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Worry is how we express our fear of the future.
When we think about it, worry has been around since the beginning. Look back even when Adam and Eve hid in the Garden of Eden. Were worry began there. As understandable as it was unhealthy, Adam and Eve hid from God among the trees and covered themselves with leaves.
They were rightfully afraid of the consequences of their choice to disobey God and went ahead to eat the forbidden fruit (Gen 3: 10). As a good, caring God they knew he was, but what put their first worry in their minds to think what would God do? Later when God asked why they were hiding, Adam said, “I was afraid.”
In retrospect, we can now see what our first parents could not. Even after they brought so much loss upon themselves, if they had admitted their wrong and thrown themselves on the mercy of their good and compassionate God, it would have been a better response than worrying and trying to hide from His presence.
Knowing that God is a Good God—that nothing evil can originate in him—helps drive fear away, even when we have sinned.
David knew God’s goodness and love by experience. That’s why he could tell us that even when he was in the darkest valleys of life, he feared no evil(Psalm 23: 4) In Psalm 31, he wrote of terrible life experiences—being forsaken by his friends (Psalm 31: 11-12) and attacked by his enemies (Psalm 31: 13-15) Yet he could say, “but as for me, I trust in you, O Lord” and “My times are in Your hand” (Psalm 31: 14+15)
We too can use worry as an opportunity to find in the Lord the reason to say “Therefore we will not fear” (Psalm 46: 2) and yet we allow fear to override our trust in God. Worry can either bring us to the Father in Heaven or it can drive us away from him. When we do fear, we do have a choice to make, however the time line in that thought is very narrow. We need to train our minds and attitude and concentrate to put a block in that narrow space, to stop the enemy entering in to expand that worry.
God has told us not to worry, he has told us in many areas of the Bible, but did you know that there are two kinds of worry?
Worry type (1) there is a negative, harmful crippling worry.
Worry type (2) a positive beneficial concern.
The same Greek word (Merimnao) is used in the New Testament for both.
Negative worry in the Bible is an anxiety that focuses our thoughts either on concerns that we can do nothing about, or on matters that distract us from resting on God’s ability to meet our needs.
Jesus mentioned of such worries six times in His Sermon on the Mount. He taught His followers to believe that the Father in Heaven wanted them to trust in Him one day at time. You heard that song; “One day at a time Sweet Jesus” You can see where it came from. We do need to learn to trust Jesus one day at a time even for the most common care of life.
But not all worry is bad, the Bible actually tells us of a healthy type of worry of concern, it shows His care through us that results in a meaningful action and prayer.
In (2 Corinthians 11: 28) for instance, Paul spoke of his “deep concern for the Churches.” And the same Greek word mentioned earlier (Merimnao) was used when urging against self-consuming anxiety.
Train our minds, that when we do come to that place of worry, give it up to God that very instant so that he can help you know which type of worry you are facing so you can trust God in his decision. A decision to let the ultimate worry bring us Jesus who died for us is the first step. From then on, every concern of life, regardless of how troubling your concern may be, can help us to care for others and trust the Lord for what He alone can do. Worry is an unhealthy ailment to trusting What God has told us not to do. So let’s trust God for what he can do.
When we think about it, worry has been around since the beginning. Look back even when Adam and Eve hid in the Garden of Eden. Were worry began there. As understandable as it was unhealthy, Adam and Eve hid from God among the trees and covered themselves with leaves.
They were rightfully afraid of the consequences of their choice to disobey God and went ahead to eat the forbidden fruit (Gen 3: 10). As a good, caring God they knew he was, but what put their first worry in their minds to think what would God do? Later when God asked why they were hiding, Adam said, “I was afraid.”
In retrospect, we can now see what our first parents could not. Even after they brought so much loss upon themselves, if they had admitted their wrong and thrown themselves on the mercy of their good and compassionate God, it would have been a better response than worrying and trying to hide from His presence.
Knowing that God is a Good God—that nothing evil can originate in him—helps drive fear away, even when we have sinned.
David knew God’s goodness and love by experience. That’s why he could tell us that even when he was in the darkest valleys of life, he feared no evil(Psalm 23: 4) In Psalm 31, he wrote of terrible life experiences—being forsaken by his friends (Psalm 31: 11-12) and attacked by his enemies (Psalm 31: 13-15) Yet he could say, “but as for me, I trust in you, O Lord” and “My times are in Your hand” (Psalm 31: 14+15)
We too can use worry as an opportunity to find in the Lord the reason to say “Therefore we will not fear” (Psalm 46: 2) and yet we allow fear to override our trust in God. Worry can either bring us to the Father in Heaven or it can drive us away from him. When we do fear, we do have a choice to make, however the time line in that thought is very narrow. We need to train our minds and attitude and concentrate to put a block in that narrow space, to stop the enemy entering in to expand that worry.
God has told us not to worry, he has told us in many areas of the Bible, but did you know that there are two kinds of worry?
Worry type (1) there is a negative, harmful crippling worry.
Worry type (2) a positive beneficial concern.
The same Greek word (Merimnao) is used in the New Testament for both.
Negative worry in the Bible is an anxiety that focuses our thoughts either on concerns that we can do nothing about, or on matters that distract us from resting on God’s ability to meet our needs.
Jesus mentioned of such worries six times in His Sermon on the Mount. He taught His followers to believe that the Father in Heaven wanted them to trust in Him one day at time. You heard that song; “One day at a time Sweet Jesus” You can see where it came from. We do need to learn to trust Jesus one day at a time even for the most common care of life.
But not all worry is bad, the Bible actually tells us of a healthy type of worry of concern, it shows His care through us that results in a meaningful action and prayer.
In (2 Corinthians 11: 28) for instance, Paul spoke of his “deep concern for the Churches.” And the same Greek word mentioned earlier (Merimnao) was used when urging against self-consuming anxiety.
Train our minds, that when we do come to that place of worry, give it up to God that very instant so that he can help you know which type of worry you are facing so you can trust God in his decision. A decision to let the ultimate worry bring us Jesus who died for us is the first step. From then on, every concern of life, regardless of how troubling your concern may be, can help us to care for others and trust the Lord for what He alone can do. Worry is an unhealthy ailment to trusting What God has told us not to do. So let’s trust God for what he can do.
