Worries You Can't Control
Anxiety & Peace
What Do You Do With the Worries You Can't Control?
A gentle morning devotional for the mom whose mind won't stop spinning.
When you are worried about something you can't control, you don't have to be strong enough to fix it. The strength that holds you is like a tree's root system, deeper than the storm and mostly unseen. You can stop gripping the control you never really had, and let yourself be held by the God who is already with you, whatever the outcome.
Read
"God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." (Genesis 1:27)
Today's readings: Genesis 1:1 to 2:25 · Matthew 1:1 to 2:12 · Psalm 1:1 to 6 · Proverbs 1:1 to 6
Reflect
In the Psalms selection today we read: "But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do."
What are you finding yourself thinking about day and night? It can be tempting to think about our worries and what-ifs. But if we can choose to focus on the best things in life, particularly the love of God for us personally and His good promises, we can be like these trees. Fed, watered, nourished, and as a result becoming fruitful at the right time and experiencing unwithering Shalom, holistic prosperity.
It's important, therefore, vitally important, to guard our hearts. What "guarding your heart" looks like for each person is different. For me, I've taken a step back from checking the news headlines this year because it causes me to focus too much on things I can't control, lessening my focus on the things I can control and have the opportunity to produce.
For you, the news might not have that effect. But what does? Is there anything in your life that you focus on so much that it robs you of your power, strength and peace? Consider taking specific actions that can help minimize your exposure to those thoughts. Then begin replacing the thoughts with things above, such as these verses, so you can walk in greater peace and joy.
How This Matters to a Mom
If you are reading Psalm 1 and part of you is quietly wishing you felt that grounded, that stable, you are not alone. A lot of mornings don't feel stable. They feel reactive. The kids' moods set the weather, and you bend with every gust of it. You are told to be strong, and you want to be, but if you are honest, sometimes you don't need to be strong. Sometimes you need to be held.
Here is what I keep noticing about that tree. The wind blows and the branches sway. From the outside it can look like the tree is barely holding on. But the root system goes so much further than anything you can see above the ground. The part doing the holding is hidden. I think that is true of you too. The strength in you is mostly the part no one sees, and it goes deeper than the storm. I have even heard it said that trees lift their branches into the air almost like they are worshiping, right through the wind and the waves. Not worship instead of the storm. Worship in the middle of it.
I will tell you when this became real for me. My daughter had surgery. She had to go under anesthesia, and we were waiting on results from a tumor that had to be removed. If you have ever filled out the anesthesia paperwork, you know the particular kind of fear that is. Will the doctors be kind. Will they be careful. And then they wheel your child into a room you are not allowed to follow her into. I could not predict the outcome. I was not in control of any of it. And yet I was calm, truly calm, because I knew Jesus was my strength and that He had rooted me in something the hospital hallway could not shake.
That is the hardest part of worry, isn't it. Underneath all of it is the fear that something bad is going to happen. But because of Jesus and His promise of everlasting life, there is no final outcome where the worst thing wins. So much of our worry is us gripping a control we don't actually have. Sometimes it can feel like someone else is wheeling us into the operating room of our own life and we are the one out cold on the table. And God is the one waiting to wake us up, the friendly face already there, holding your hand, waiting for you to open your eyes.
So here is the small thing you might do this morning. Picture Jesus holding your hand even while you are trying to shut Him out. Picture Him patient, not pressuring, just waiting for you to open your eyes to Him. You don't have to muster anything. You don't have to fix the thing you can't control. Just let yourself be held. No matter what you are walking through, no matter the season, He is with you.
Respond
What are you finding yourself thinking about day and night?
Is there anything in your life that you focus on so much that it robs you of your power, strength and peace?
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