Learning The Key To Stress Management: Don’t Worry!

In review of Philippians 4:6 it says, “Don't worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart.:

Bottom Line:

Do not worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks.

What this means to me:

I am to not worry or be anxious about anything, instead, I am to let God know what I need in my prayers and requests, asking with a thankful heart for all he has done. The number one source of stress in my life is not always work. It’s worry. The work won’t keep me up at night; however the worry will. God is very clear in the Bible what he thinks about worry. Philippians 4:6a says, “Don’t worry about anything” (NLT). I need to let go of worry. Worry is unreasonable for a couple of reasons. First, worry actually exaggerates the problem. The more I think about it, the bigger it gets? Second, worry just doesn’t work. To worry about something I can’t change is useless. And to worry about something I can change is stupid. If I can do something about, just go do it. Furthermore worry is unnatural. Worry is something I’ve learned, I was not born with it. Since worry is unnatural, it’s also unhealthy. My body wasn’t designed to handle worry. When people say, “I’m worried sick,” they’re telling the truth. Doctors say a lot of people could leave the hospital today if they knew how to get rid of guilt, resentment, and worry. Proverbs 14:30 says, “A peaceful heart leads to a healthy body” (NLT). Worry is unhelpful. Worry cannot change the past, and worry cannot control the future. All it does is mess up today. The only thing that worry changes is me. It will make me miserable! It’s never really solved a problem. It’s unhelpful. Therefore, worry is unnecessary. God made me, he created me, he saved me, and he put his Spirit in me. With all of that, I should know that he will take care of my needs. There is no need to worry. The first step in stress management is to refuse to worry about anything. Why? Because it’s unreasonable, unnatural, unhelpful, and unnecessary. The Bible says in 1 Peter 5:7, “You can throw the whole weight of your anxieties upon him, for you are his personal concern” (AMP). God personally cares about me and for my needs. So any of the things I’m stressing, anxious, and worried about, I should just let them go. Instead, I should give them to God. Besides when I worry, its like saying I don’t trust God to handle it for me. I’ll do my best to remember to “cast all my anxieties and worry on him.” He will not rip me off.