I have been reading the book, Calm My Anxious Heart, by Linda Dillow. My friend Sienna and I are doing it as a bible study. It's made me realize that a majority of the stress and drama in my life comes from my worries and anxieties about the future. Some things I can control and some that I can't. We have been studying Philippians 4:6. It says:
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 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.
I've read this verse a thousand times, yet I usually still do things my way. I worry about everything and pray as a last resort when I feel I can't take it anymore. There are quite a few things I'm worried about. It's stressful and I don't want to be bogged down by it. In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus gets where I'm coming from, and tells how to escape the crazy train, when he says:
28-30"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."
He knows we go through a lot of stress. He's saying to trust him, do things his way, and we will be at peace. When worry or anxiety start to creep into your mind, instead of worrying about it, decide to follow Philippians 4:6. Don't worry, but instead pray about it. Don't just pray for what you need, thank God for what he has already done. If you look around at your circumstances, I'm sure you'll see(like I do) that you are extremely blessed already. God promises that if we follow the formula,
(Prayer + Give Thanks) - Worry = God's Peace
he will fill us with enough of his peace to get through whatever storm we are facing. The book recommended that we make a list of all of the positive things in our lives versus all of the negative things. As I made my list of negative things, I let out any frustration I was feeling. Then I looked them over. A lot of them stemmed from selfishness. I hated to admit it, but it was true. Then when I started to write my list of positives, I realized that it was much longer than the other. I recommend you do this too and meditate on it every morning. It's certainly helping me to keep my mind from worrying about what I don't have. By weighing the positive and negative, it starts to seem silly to dwell on the lighter load of negatives.
The last part of the passage in Philippians tells us to think on whatever is "True, Noble, Lovely, Right, and Pure". If we take control of our thoughts and our worries and put them where they are supposed to be, I think we will experience less stress, and I am all for that.
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