Worry

52 posts

Thought Habits of a Healthy Heart

What you think shapes who you are. Worry or peace are the fruit of your thoughts. God makes a big deal about how and what you think. What you think determines your level of anxiety as well as your level of contentment and peace. Your thoughts are both the expression of your heart and the gateway to your heart. Your thoughts direct you to joy or to fear. Your thoughts produce worry or peace, not your circumstances. Your thoughts will lead you to God’s peace. In return, God’s peace will guard your thoughts in a way that surpasses human understanding and frees you from the tyranny worry and fear. Paul describes how your thoughts guard your heart by bringing God’s peace […]

Praise or Worry

People are designed for worship. Specifically, God made you and me for the express purpose of worshipping him.  Praise is an action of worship where people repeat back to God all the great things he is and has done.  Psalm 103 describes it this way: Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. David is saying praise should flow from the deepest parts of who we are. We do best, we function best, when the praise of God defines us.  The converse is also true: when you and I don’t live […]

Peace In the Mess of Life

The twenty-third psalm is often read at funerals to give hope and comfort for mourners. However, the psalm has a powerful message for life. It is a message that will center you on God’s care. The psalm looks at life from God’s perspective.  Here are the first two verses: The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. These words are from David. If you think about his life it was not one of idyllic peace that these words describe. David’s life was filled with the ugliness of sin, both his own and the sins of others. David was constantly surrounded by betrayal, bitterness, violence, […]

What About Tomorrow?

Are you obsessed with tomorrow? People assume that tomorrow will come. However, there is no guarantee that tomorrow will actually happen. Even if tomorrow does come, there is nothing that you can do to control the events of tomorrow or the impact they will have on your life. Yes, you can and should be responsible with the choices you make today.  But there is no way to control or predict what will happen tomorrow. Still, thoughts of tomorrow dominate our plans, our thinking, our worries and our hopes. Jesus puts tomorrow in proper perspective. Your well-being for today and the arrival of tomorrow is connected to the purpose and plan of God. Here is what Jesus says (Luke 12:25-26): Who […]

To Shield or Protect?

Protecting your children is the obligation of a faithful parent. However, there is the false notion that children should be protected from every danger and uncertainty of life. That simply is not possible! There is too much uncertainty in life, too much which is beyond your control to protect .  Yet, the temptation to worry about all of the things from which you cannot protect your children persists. You cannot shield your children from life itself or even from their own hearts.  The storms in Matthew 7 come to the wise and the unwise alike.  Until you go to be with Christ, sin and uncertainty will be a part of life. Do you want children to worry needlessly? Of course […]

Safety and Your Children

“Be safe!” This is frequently the last thing you say to your children when they leave the house. Often the plan for their safety doesn’t go much beyond theses words. Yes, you have taught them to be good drivers, you have told them which situations they should avoid, and you may have even encouraged them to pray for God’s protection. But in your heart, if you think too long about it, there is a nagging fear for your children’s safety, a fear that goes beyond just physical safety. You hope they will be make safe choices in selecting friends and in the activities they do.  However, you know the true dangers your children face. They are the same ones that […]

Is That Enough For You?

Janet was fussing at her children. Well, actually, she was fuming. But the reason for her upset had nothing to do with the kids. She was in charge of planning a special luncheon for the ladies at church. Two women had not yet called her back to confirm that they had their responsibilities taken care of.  Suppose one or both of them couldn’t come through! What was she going to do? Janet was worried and stressed and she didn’t have time for any drama with kids. Everyone believes that worry is not a good thing. Worry increases stress and  leads to anxiety. Worry makes us less pleasant to be around, just like Janet. We know this. Yet we still worry.  […]

Does God Need Reminders?

Jesus was on a boat with his disciples. He decided to take a nap. While he was sleeping, a fierce storm came up. Waves were crashing over the top of the boat. The disciples feared for their lives so, in a panic, they woke Jesus shouting, “We are going to drown!” Let’s pause the story for a moment. Can you identify with the disciples? It appeared the boat was about to sink and there was Jesus, sleeping! The disciples acted as if they didn’t alert their master, he wouldn’t know that they were in danger. At that precise moment, they were acting very much like you and me. We somehow think it is our job to remind God that he […]

Stress and Self-Trust

Stress happens. Stress is a fact of life. What happens immediately following stress is what determines whether you will know peace or experience more stress. There is no way to avoid stress. But what you can avoid is the pain and disorientation of continuing stress. In the midst of stress you can either turn to God and his word or you can rely on your own judgement and watch the stress and confusion grow. Trust in God and his ways leads to peace. Like oil and water, trust and stress do not mix (See Matthew 6:19-34). When you attribute short, curt answers and a contentious spirit to stress, you are demonstrating that the stressful situation has overcome you. There is […]

Stress Can Be a Good Thing

Stress is part of life. There is no way to avoid it. But what you can avoid is the fatigue and disorientation of continuing stress. When stress comes you can either turn to God and his word or you can rely on your own judgement and watch the stress deepen. Trusting in God leads to peace. This means stress can lead to peace. When you attribute short, curt answers and a contentious spirit to stress, the stressful situation has overcome you. There is much in life that can be overwhelming. But God remains in control of his world. Stress can and should remind you that God is faithfully in control. So, stress can lead you to peace. Proverbs 3:7-8 teach […]