Finding Worship in the Worry

[originally written for The Wealthy Way blog]

When we’re presented with situations that are beyond our control, it’s safe to say that most of us respond the same way initially: worry. Within the mindset of worry, there is a delicate balance of healthy and unhealthy. It is easy to worry about a variety of situations; it is far too easy to let that worry consume us. However, keeping a mindset of worship will keep you afloat in times of great stress.

Worry for tomorrow can quickly become a leech that robs the joy of today. It becomes harder to enjoy the blessings right in front of you when the shadows of tomorrow are pressing on your thoughts. Once you’re caught in the downward spiral of negative thoughts, the fight to regain positive ground escalates to a new level. When that spiral begins to happen, it’s important to resist the pull to sink into the worry.

Matthew 6:27; Luke 12:25 ESV – “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?”

Matthew 6:34 ESV – “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

Philippians 4:6a ESV – “Do not be anxious about anything…”

This sounds rather blunt, right? Don’t be anxious? How do you even begin to have such an attitude? How easy would it be to scoff, “Easy for you to say! You don’t know my life.” The beautiful truth is that, no matter what situation is causing you worry, anyone can choose to pull themselves out of the quicksand mindset of worry.

So how do you do that? Where do you start the process of seeing worry through well-rounded glasses?

Philippians 4:6 ESV – “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

1 Peter 5:7 ESV – “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”

Matthew 6:25-27 ESV – “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. … Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?”

God knows and sees all, so turning our hearts and minds toward God is the first step in conquering worry. He asks us to talk to Him, to cast our anxieties on Him, to leave our struggles in His hand.. and we worship Him in doing so. It’s hard, and we need an attitude of worship to be able give Him our worries. One attitude of worship is thankfulness.

In the moments of worry, find one thing to be thankful for. You can be thankful that you are healthy and able to work (even if you just lost your job). You can be thankful that you have a family (even if one of them is very sick). Your point of thankfulness doesn’t have to be related to whatever is worrying you, but find one thing to thank God for. If you think of more than one, keep looking for more. The more points of thankfulness you find, the more your attitude will be drawn away from the worry.

If you want to establish a habit before the times of immense worry come, try finding five things to be thankful for each day. Author and blogger Ann Voskamp talks about the power of a thankful attitude in her book One Thousand Gifts, using personal examples of how finding five points of thankfulness every day helped her through some deep struggles in her life. She could have drowned in her worries, but her mindset of thankfulness carried her through.

An attitude of thankfulness, especially in times of worry, gives worship to God in ways we may not completely understand. By turning our focus away from ourselves, thanking God for His blessings, and casting our cares upon Him, we can find worship even in the worry.

“No amount of regret changes the past. No amount of anxiety changes the future. Any amount of grateful joy changes the present.” -Ann Voskamp