Reason to Worry

I was reminded in the past week that worry is my vice. There may seem good reasons to worry, but in God's domain there is no noble purpose of worry. Worry does not move man or God. Worry most often enters into a situation beyond my control and tears viciously at truth and trust. When I need tangible faith and confidence the most is when I have given worry a foothold that threatens to estrange me completely from the One Whom I can base my hope! Within eight hours of ill news, I had worried myself physically sick. Within twenty-eight hours I was in a spiritual state of extreme agitation and cried out in desperate prayer. I was rewarded with satisfaction of something profitable in those "groans that words could not express". Thirty-six hours later, I was emotionally spent, but refreshed and challenged by words I had to believe. I was left with this final exhortation, an exhortation quoted from the Apostle Paul to the Philippians (4:6-7), "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God , which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Those words, spoken through someone unawares, hit me like a powerful but sweet wind and made me gasp and smile inside. Through the upcoming week, I saw God show Himself. He is ever-present and bigger than our circumstances. He reminds me, as the verses go on to say, "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things." (vs. 8)