"The only way to fight against the worry in my mind is to turn it over to God." -Andy Wendling

Conquer2016_WorryBlog

“Don’t worry about it.”

How many times have you heard that one? When I’m worried about something, someone telling me that almost feels like they are dismissing my issue. They make it feel like those Ken Nunn lawyer commercials on TV, you snap your fingers and say, “it’s just that easy.” In reality, it’s just not that easy. We have real problems, real issues, and real decisions to make. Many of the things we face are uncertain. How am I going to pay the bills this month? How am I going to repair a broken relationship? Did I make the right choice? What if________? (you get to fill in the blank!)

If the solution to conquering our worries isn’t just snapping our fingers and saying, “don’t worry about it,” then what is it?

I’ve spent an embarrassing amount of my time worried about this or that. One of the biggest worries I face daily is if I’m going to have a panic attack that day, week, month, or year. Having a panic attack is the scariest thing I’ve been through. In order to not have more, I attempt to avoid being in situations where I would have another one. Along with this, I worry about daily situations that might have the possibility of causing me to feel panic. Not only do I worry about things of today, but I worry about things next week, next month, and even something we have planned a year from now. I can actually worry about having a panic attack so much I end up having a panic attack. If it was just as easy as snapping my fingers to stop it, I would.

The only way to fight against the worry in my mind is to turn it over to God. When I stop wasting time worrying, I can spend more time with God, and God gets me through my worries.

Philippians 4:6-7 tells us to not worry about anything. Great, now God is telling us to just stop worrying. Instead of stopping there, however, this verse actually gives us an alternative to worry. We are instructed to replace our worry with prayer, focused on thankfulness and asking God to specifically help us with whatever we need. God promises to protect our hearts and our minds with His peace.

I’ll tell you what, experiencing God’s peace in a time of worry is an inexplicable relief. When I find myself worrying, I turn to God. I spend time in prayer thanking Him for everything I can think of, I ask Him to help me through my panic and my worry, and I spend time reading his Word.

When I’m with God I don’t have time to worry. When I’m with God I experience His peace. When I’m with God my mind and heart are protected.

Do I fall back down into my pattern of worry? Absolutely, I’m not perfect. God is there to pick me back up every time.  I can’t just “not worry about it,” but I can give my worry to God.

Andy Wendling has been a part of Friendship for almost seven years. He serves as an Elder, a small group leader and coach, and as the Welcome Team ministry leader. Andy is married to the wonderful Theresa and they have three great kids. He enjoys rooting for the University of Michigan and the Green Bay Packers in his spare time. You can read more from Andy on his blog andywendling.wordpress.com