Spiritual Wellness
"Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you," we read in an encouraging Bible verse from Psalm 55:22, "he will never let the righteous be shaken."
There are certain situations in which you just cannot help but worry, and no one can rightly expect you not to. If for example, you are worried about a loved one's safety, then it is only natural to worry until you know that they are safe. But, when it comes to life's usual stresses and difficulties, excessive worrying does you no favors and is a habit that you need to break because:
1) Worrying doesn't accomplish anything
When you worry about something, you may feel as if you are doing something about your problem by giving it so much attention. In reality, however, all you are likely doing is going over the same thoughts again and again in your mind, dreaming up worst-case scenarios and fixating on minor and inconsequential details.
2) Worrying keeps you from finding actual solutions
Not only does worrying not accomplish anything, but it also actively prevents you from finding solutions. Instead of worrying about everything that could go wrong, you need to be asking yourself what you can do to change your situation, or how you can help yourself deal with it head-on.
3) Worrying causes stress
Worrying may be a mental exercise, but it can also have some negative effects on your body and health. High levels of stress hormones over a long period of time can make you more susceptible to illness. Chronic worriers are more likely to find themselves getting sick, compounding even more to the number of things they have to worry about.
4) Worrying will not change the future
Since worrying about something is not going to change the fact that it is going to come to pass, why waste one more second thinking about it? You may be nervous about an upcoming test, job interview, or presentation, but worrying is not going to stop those things from happening. Your time and energy will be much better spent preparing for them instead.
5) Worrying makes you forget to rely on God
Excessive worrying undermines that fact that you should be putting your trust and faith in God. "Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you," we read in an encouraging Bible verse from Psalm 55:22, "he will never let the righteous be shaken." In closing his Second Epistle to the Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul offers similar words of encouragement when he writes: "Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you" (2 Thessalonians 3:16).
Jesus Himself asks His followers not to live their lives with troubled hearts, but with the peace and courage that comes with faith. In John 14:27, when saying goodbye to His disciples, Jesus comforts them by saying: "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."
If the Lord considered these words good enough to provide comfort to the disciples who were about to lose Him to the cross, then they should also provide us with enough spiritual encouragement to face our own lives with faith and strength. Worrying is always a waste of time when you have the support and comfort of God.
Spiritual Prayer
O Lord, God of Israel, who sits on the cherubim, You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made the sky and the earth. Incline, O Lord, Your ear and hear. Open, O Lord, Your eyes and see. Hear the words of Sennacherib, which he sent to taunt the Living God. Surely, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have annihilated the nations and their lands and have put their gods in the fire, for they were no gods but the work of mens hands wood and stone; thus they have been destroyed. So, now, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You, O Lord are God alone.