The Cure for Worry

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6–7

Do you realize that God has a sure-cure solution to worry? Has anyone ever told you that if you perfect the process you will be able to live a worry-free existence? Yes, you read that correctly. And if you know me fairly well, you know that I seldom make statements anywhere near that dogmatic. But in this one I am confident. If you will follow God’s stated procedure, you will free yourself to laugh again.

Let’s get six words clearly fixed in our minds. These six words form the foundation of God’s therapeutic process for all worrywarts.

WORRY ABOUT NOTHING,
PRAY ABOUT EVERYTHING

Say that over and over until you can say it without looking. Say the six words aloud. Close your eyes. Picture the words in your mind. Spend a minute or more turning them over in your head.

What qualifies as a worry? Anything that drains your tank of joy—something you cannot change, something you are not responsible for, something you are unable to control, something (or someone) that frightens and torments you, agitates you, keeps you awake when you should be asleep. All of that now needs to be switched from your worry list to your prayer list. Give each worry—one by one—to God. Do that at this very moment. Tell the Lord you will no longer keep your anxiety to yourself.

Three commands sum up Paul’s teaching—rejoice, relax, rest. They look pretty easy, but for someone who has worried as long as you have, they are not. You haven’t done much of any of these three lately, have you?

To begin with, REJOICE! Worry about nothing . . . pray about everything, and REJOICE! Loosen up and laugh freely. Laugh more often. Consciously stay aware of the importance of a cheerful countenance. Live lightheartedly!