I'm so sick of worry, and for a guy with "Hakuna Matata" (it means no worries!) tattooed on his left bicep, I sure do worry a lot. Worry wakes me up every morning like an alarm clock going off in my head at 8 a.m. It never fails; as soon as I open my eyes, the thoughts, worries and troubles of not just that day or that week, but the thoughts worries and troubles of 10 years down the road, creep into my head like a lion ready to devour me.
For example, here were a few of this morning's meaningless worries that woke me up that have no real inclination on my life:
- What if I lose my job and can't pay my rent
- What if I don't have enough money to go on vacations
- What if I have a daughter and she doesn't like me
Notice, they're all "what if's," and most of them deal with money. Worry is evil, prideful and sinful and to see its evidence in my life makes me cringe. If you're like me and full of anxieties, here are a few tips I'm going to be implementing into my own life to help chunk up the deuces to worry and his friends.
1) Write it Down
There is something about checking things off a list that make me feel productive. In turn, there's something equally satisfying about writing things on a list so as to get them out of my head. Putting thoughts and worries down on paper, whether it's a chore, an errand to run or a future worry, helps take the nagging stress away of having to remember to get that task done. It also helps make that future worry not seem like such a reality. When I read, "I'm worried about having a daughter that won't like me" on paper, it helps me remember that, "Oh! I'm not married, and oh! there is 0 percent chance Emily is pregnant." Poof. Worry gone.
Write stuff down. Get stuff done.
2) Ask for Help
I've come to realize that asking for help is not as bad as it seems. I'm not talking about asking for mental help, like from a psychiatrist, but help for getting tasks done if there's too much on your plate. One thing that cause high stress and high worry is having too much going on at once. Whether it's work, family stuff or just day to day life, asking for help can indeed be helpful. Not only is it a sign of humility, but you'll also find that if you ask people that you love and that love you for their help, more times than not, they will be happy to help because they do indeed love you and want to help you. When you ask for help, you begin to talk about your worries openly and get them out of your own hands. As the African proverb goes:
If you want to go fast go alone; if you want to go far go together.
3) Give it God
It's never really occurred to me until recently that worry is a sign of pride. Worry says that "I have to take care of this, that and the other," and it says "All these thoughts are my own, and I'm going to take care of them myself." It's such arrogance, really. In reality, the key to overcoming worry is to hand all our worries over to Someone who cares for us and can take care of all our worries. That person is God. It says in 1 Peter 5:
"Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God so that at the right time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him because He cares for you."
If we become humble enough to admit our worries to Him and humble enough to say, "This (insert worry here) is really stressing me out, Lord. I trust you with it. You are in control. You'll take care of it because You take care of me," then surely we will begin to experience freedom from the day to day thoughts that weigh us down.
-Cliff
Do you have any tactics for battling worry yourself? If so, I'd love to hear them. Leave a comment below with whatever it is that helps you sink your stress.
Cliff's Note: He'll take care of it because He takes care of you.
What I'm Reading:
Wild at Heart by John Eldredge