What God Has Been Teaching Me Lately
Never Worry Alone
A sage thinker, Charlie Brown, once said, "I've developed a new philosophy... I only dread one day at a time." There's big insight in that funny little statement. It captures the intuitive truth that sometimes we can't always prevent worry or dread, so we must find ways to manage it.
I know the Bible tells us not to worry. We read "Be anxious for nothing" (Phil. 4:6), "Cast all your cares upon Him" (1 Peter 5:7) and other admonishments. But, here's the deal-- sometimes worry is just an automatic response. I would love to obey the "don't worry" commands with soldier-like compliance, but I don't. I try, but I don't always pull it off. So, on those days when my worry is getting the best of me, I've learned strategies for handling it.
The first way I handle worry is by turning my worry into prayer. In other words, I rephrase what I am ruminating on and redirect it to God. Rather than meditating on the unknown all by myself, I rephrase my worry into a prayer that invites God into it. So instead of focusing on "what if" and rehearsing it over and over in my own mind, I start with "Dear God" rather than "Dear me!" Constantly reminding myself about things that haven't happened and things I have no control over are just wasting my precious emotional energy. But telling God my worries and forming them into prayers moves them from my mind to His shoulders. That's helped me a lot, but I have also found another way to manage worry--involve a friend!
Friends should never let friends worry alone! Often, worry is based on feelings rather than facts. Sometimes our worry-filled feelings are due to very bleak and real facts. But, most often, our worry-filled feelings are because of unclear or unknown facts! All our worries can find clarity in the honest conversation of a friend. The Greek philosopher Antisthenes wrote, "There are only two people who can tell you the truth about yourself - an enemy who has lost his temper and a friend who loves you dearly." Why worry alone when a friend can tell you the truth, share the burden and help eliminate the panic?
We need both the friendship of God and the friendship of people when it comes to worry. People can be the ears of God, the mouth of God and the presence of God to us. He uses friends to be the blanket of comfort that makes worry settle down. He uses the ears of friends to be the depository of frazzled nerves so they can't keep unnerving us.
Our first place to put worry is in the presence of God, but if you keep on grabbing it back from the throne of God, share it with a friend over coffee! I am learning to humble myself and involve friends in my weaknesses and worries, and it lightens my burden and strengthens our bonds. "The best preservative to keep the mind in health is the faithful admonition of a friend." (Francis Bacon)
Never worry alone. Nothing that is kept secret brings health and happiness; it just gains more power. Detox the trouble and disarm the disturbance by sharing it with a trusted friend. You may find that you leave the conversation with far less worry and far more wisdom than you started with!
"Let us be of good cheer, remembering that the misfortunes hardest to bear are those which will never happen." (James Russell Lowell)
Well, that's what's been percolating in me lately!
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