Breaking Anxiety's Grip By Michelle BengtsonSample

Day Five

The Father of Lies

Scripture: John 8:44

Do you ever feel as if your thoughts are tumbling around in your head like balls in a pinball machine? Will the insurance agent call me back? Can I pick up the kids from school without running out of gas? What will my boss think if I don’t get this sale?

I think we forget sometimes that all those everyday worries add up to an uncomfortable way of living, void of the peace God promises. Worry stems from believing the father of lies, the accuser of the brethren (John 8:44). I’ve taken his bait many times. Have you? 

The enemy always wins when he convinces us to divert our attention from God to the details of to-do lists, overcrowded schedules, praiseworthy holiday costumes, perfectly set dinner tables. We focus on “impression management” with styled social media photos and status updates to engender likes, comments, and shares, as if they mean anything about our value and worth. We might even say yes to commitments when we’d rather not, just because we desire acceptance and affirmation. We work ourselves into a frenzy with insufficient rest because we don’t trust next month’s paycheck or perhaps because we’ve fallen victim to the lie that our worth is equal to our busyness or our possessions. 

When we allow ourselves to become swallowed up in the urgency of the moment, the hour, or the day, we trade our peace for a counterfeit that never satisfies. When we aren’t intentional with our thoughts and actions, our habitual way of responding to life with worry sets the stage for unrest and discontentment. 

We never see Jesus worried or hurried. He had enough ministry needs to meet to last multiple lifetimes, yet He had only three years to complete the work the Father sent Him to do. He wasn’t ruled by to-do lists or public perception. Never once did He rush to get more done. We never read of Him running to His next divine appointment. Rather, Jesus walked at a pace that was sustainable. He simply did the next thing His Father told Him to do, and that was enough. 

I pray, Lord, that You will help me to lay down my worries and, instead, trust in Your perfect provision. Help me to recognize that when I worry, I am believing the enemy’s lies rather than Your promises. In Jesus’s name, amen.