Thursday, October 16, 2003

Take a Vacation from Worry!

God has been so good to me lately. Those of you who have known me for a while know how I tend to worry about EVERYTHING. This semester has been particularly bad. But this week I have felt so at peace. It is almost as if the words of encouragement I share with so many others has finally begun to sink in: God really is bigger than all our problems and worries. What a miracle of God’s grace. If you could see me now you would get to observe my “happy dance.”



For some reason, I am enjoying things more. Just allowing the day to unfold in its own way. Just hanging out with Jesus and letting Him handle my doubts and troubles. I guess I decided, unbeknownst to myself, that I would take a vacation from worrying.



How about you? Would you like a vacation from worrying? Did you know you can ask someone else to fill in for you in the worrying department so you can skip off to a spiritual club med? God has assigned us our own personal worry wart that will worry on our behalf and let us off the hook.



I am not crazy. Check out Romans 8:24-27: “For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”



Cool, huh! This is our birth-right as Christians. The moment we were born-again and accepted Jesus into our hearts as Lord and Savior, we were given access to His Spirit who worries for us so we don’t have to. And the Spirit’s worry (or interceding, praying, on our behalf) gets things done where our worrying goes nowhere. If you don’t know if Jesus is in your heart, e-mail me. We can take care of that.



So how do we access this wonderful birth-right in Christ? Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard you hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Tell Jesus all about it, about everything that is on your mind. And then thank Him for being equipped to handle your needs. Thank Him for being creator of the Universe and creator of you. Thank Him for loving you lots. And then just let it go. If it comes back, ask for more help, thank Him some more, and go do something restful. He’s seen a lot since the beginning of the world. We won’t be able to surprise Him or catch Him unprepared to take care of our situations.



I praise Jesus that He has helped me experience this freedom and joy this week. I give Him all the credit. I pray He is making that same freedom a reality for you, even as you read this. Just let Him work; you’ll be glad you did.



Blessings,



Sami

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