To worry or not to worry, that is the question

Steve Maraboli wrote in Life, Truth, and Being Free, “Forget yesterday - it has already forgotten you. Don't sweat tomorrow - you haven't even met. Instead, open your eyes and your heart to a truly precious gift - today.” This seems pretty similar to what Jesus told His followers in Matthew 6:34 in the Sermon on the Mount as He said, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” Make a list of the things you worry about then write next to each one how much control you have over that particular situation. We worry about things like:

•   “What if we get sick” – Everyone will get sick at some point. But we can’t control this and in fact it’s proven that worry will often cause sickness. 
• “What will others think” – Do we have any ability to control what others think? No. We can influence their thoughts possibly but we cannot be consumed with the thoughts of others because they are not living our life; we are.
•  “Will I have the money to …” – The easiest thing here is to either adjust one’s lifestyle or one’s employment. Too often we live above our means, get ourselves deep in trouble, then stress over what we are going to do about it.

We try and justify worry with ideas like: 

• “Worry shows that I care” – No it really doesn’t, because often those we are worried for don’t know it and if they do they really would prefer us not to be ‘in their business’. 
• “If I worry I will never be surprised by anything bad” – This fear of the future stops us from being able to live in the here and now. We are so consumed with what may or may not happen ‘one day’, we lose sight of what is happening today. 
• “Worrying motivates me to action” – Really? If you really look at it worry paralyzes much more than it motivates to act.

So what do we do with worry? How can we combat it?
 

§  The most obvious answer is found in Philippians 4:6-7 where Paul writes, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” So the obvious answer is to bring the cares to the Lord. 

Here’s a few practical things:Live in the present – As Jesus said don’t worry about tomorrow; it has enough cares of its own. Or as Steve Maraboli said above, “Forget yesterday - it has already forgotten you. Don't sweat tomorrow - you haven't even met. Instead, open your eyes and your heart to a truly precious gift - today. Second, embrace uncertainty. Most things in life involve a certain level of uncertainty so don't fear it but rather embrace it. By embracing it you will work to affect the outcome as compared to simply worrying about the 'what ifs'. 

 If you are like me, when it comes to worry I am a work in progress. I haven’t beaten it by any stretch of the imagination but I’m trying more and more to live in the present not the future or the past.