There's a wonderful old story in which God, concerned that so many of his children were unhappy, gathered in a circle the one hundred unhappiest people he could find and told them to list their ten worst problems on a piece of paper and throw their lists into the middle of the circle. They were then invited to choose a list of problems they'd rather have instead. In the end, each of those hundred people chose the list they'd written themselves.
God does not expect the impossible of us. He clearly commands,"be careful anxious for nothing" Not only is worry a sin and a disease, but it becomes foolish because it is not necessary. I would not ridicule our worries because they are real. That's what makes them so dangerous, but it is foolish to carry our worries instead of placing them upon the lord. "cast thy burden on the lord" "God will supply all your needs." In these quotations God gets to the basic cause of our frustrations: worries, anxieties, and fears.
Let us just be honest and admit that we do not trust god completely- we do not leave everything in his hands. "You never need to lift a finger to defend yourself unless you are not quite sure that God can handle the matter." Our worries indicate that we just do not think God is big enough to handle the problem without our help. Such worry dishonors the lord, belittles our God, and doubts his word.
First of all, a doctor cannot cure the disease of worry. His pills doctor the symptoms and not the cause. He can give tranquilizers and keep people from exploding but when the effect of the pill wears off the tensions remain. The basic cause remains. He can give us sleeping pills and help us forget for a few hours, but when we awake, the problem is still there. A psychiatrist cannot cure worry. If he is honest,he is the first to admit this. He can probe into our subconscious mind and dig out the reason, but when he finds it he does not know what to do with it unless he is a believer in the lord. Now if the doctor cannot cure it and a psychiatrist cannot cure it, then is there and cure? YES! A believer in Christ has within him a supernatural life. A life of worry is on the natural plane. A believer in the Lord is on a spiritual plane. The believer is exhorted to "be careful for nothing," but God does bot stop at that, He tells us how to get rid of cares. By prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto god. And the peace of God with passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7). No one without the "peace of God" can possibly get rid of his fears, anxieties, tensions, frustrations, and worries. The peace of God is not secured through the doctor's prescription or the psychiatrist's couch. The only cure is prescribed through the word of God.
"In everything by prayer" someone recently said, "seven days without prayer makes one weak." You have no worry that you cannot take to god in prayer. You come to God not as a beggar, but as his child. "Cast thy burden on the lord". How do you do that? You talk to him about it - that's prayer - put the burden on him and leave it there. Suppose there are two planks laid across the stream, one is sound and the other is rotten. Now if you attempt to walk on both the planks, you will certainly get wet because the rotten one will break. "Casting all your care upon him for he careth for you" (Peter 5:7) . Now do not bring out your rotten plank and try to help. That is why you fall. That is why you wet your pillow with tears. "Cast all your cares on him" When you have cast it there, trust God. He is big enough. He does not need your help.
I think for all of us this is hard to do. To trust god completely and let him deal with the rest. I have struggled with this for many years but have found that if i leave it to him and not try to "fix it" myself the results are always bright in the end. I believe that all things work for the good of god. When something is going wrong in our lives we get upset and yell at him when we should just let go and let god take over. He loves us more then any words can express and always wants the very best for all his children. I have learned that when you let God have complete control over your life he will give you peace and understanding threw any circumstances that you are going threw in your life.
