Worry

Worry, according to Merriam-Webster, is "to think about problems or fears : to feel or show fear and concern because you think that something bad has happened or could happen". Anxiety is very similar to worry, anxiety is "fear or nervousness about what might happen". Anxiety and worry go hand in hand and can cause similar problems. All human beings are worry about something at some point in their life.

What do people worry about? Why? People worry about an assortment of things in life, such as change, the future, past mistakes, money, or what other people think about them; all of these things are out of our control. We, as humans, worry about things that are out of our control because we like to be in control. Humans are not in control of everything, God is in control, He is, after all, the Creator of the world and everything in it; Genesis 1:1: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

Why shouldn't people worry? Worrying never actually helps anyone or anything, it has no power to change the outcome of a situation; in Matthew 6:27 Jesus says: "Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?". Jesus' question here is rhetorical, because no one can add an hour to their life by any means, let alone worrying. The other reason not to worry is that worrying can lead to anxiety, which can cause health issues, like high blood pressure, panic attacks, headaches, and sleep loss. 

As I stated earlier, God is in control; Psalms 46:10 says, "Let go of your concerns! Then you will know that I am God. I rule the nations. I rule the earth." We just need to trust God as Proverbs 3:5-6 instructs us to do: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." God will always provide for his people; Matthew 6:31-32, "So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them."

I'm not writing this post to sound self-righteous, I'm speaking from experience. I have been and can be a worrier, so I know how ridiculous worrying can be. I'll give you an example of when I have worried: when I was in eighth grade, I had a spinal fusion surgery to correct scoliosis. "Fusion is a surgical technique in which one or more of the vertebrae of the spine are united together (“fused”) so that motion no longer occurs between them." I wasn't worried at all about the surgery because I knew how much it would benefit my body; after the scoliosis was corrected, I lost the ability to eat by myself. I wasn't worried about having help eating, I was worried about having help eating in public; as in, I was worried about what other people would think. 

Along that time, a friend of mine showed me Galatians 1:10, which says: "Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ." This verse taught me that I shouldn't be worried about what other people think, I should focus on serving God through whatever challenges arise in life. The other thing that showed me why I shouldn't worry about this was the support of my family and friends; you guys know who you are, thanks for the support. Since I got over worrying about having help eating in public, I haven't worried about as many things. Getting over that one worry was the first step to dealing with worrying as a whole.

So, the next time you worry about something, take a step back, pray, and trust that God knows what He's doing. Henry Ford put it best, "I believe God is managing affairs and that He doesn't need any advice from me. With God in charge, I believe everything will work out for the best in the end. So what is there to worry about?"