Walking In Peace: Trading Worry for Prayer and Action

Do not be anxious 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 your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

I memorized this particular scripture a few decades ago when my anxiety had reached its height. I’ve poured over this passage, studying each word and digging deep into the Greek, hoping it would burrow itself deeply into me in exchange.

Sometimes, these words randomly pop into my head, even when I’m not necessarily trying to think of them. I’ll be going about my business, and there they are; “Do not be anxious about anything.” And then whispering to no one in particular, I finish the scripture, “Instead, pray about everything.”

These scriptures are most definitely in my mind.

And yet, I worry.

I’m good at worrying. Seriously, I’m a pro at it. I’d probably earn a medal if there were such a thing. My mind and imagination know how to twist a small concern into a giant “what-if,” and I fall hook, line, and sinker almost every time. I am also phenomenal at catastrophizing the most mundane situations into full-blown 911 crises. 

What can I say? It’s a gift. It’s unfortunate this is what I’m good at, but hey, we can’t all be pro basketball players or amazing artists; some of us have to be good at worrying. (*insert shoulder shrug and long sigh.)

I make light of it because, honestly, it’s exhausting. And friend, I’m sure you relate if you know the feeling of desperately needing to be free from the what-ifs that plague your day-to-day.

A prescription for life.

Recently, when these words from Philippians stumbled into my mind, or I stumbled across them, highlighted in my Bible—I honestly can’t remember which—the thought occurred to me: “What if I followed this like a prescription, just as it is written?”

This elementary thought stopped me; I knew the Holy Spirit was talking. On a side note, isn’t this often how God works? He’s amazing. He’ll take something you “thought” you had figured out and give you a nudge or a thought with the most basic, childlike instruction that leaves you breathless and humbled. 

This was one of those moments for me.

It humbled me to my core because I knew that for all the years of study and memorization, I couldn’t say I had made prayer instead of worry a real, tangible habit. And when I sincerely asked myself, “Have I committed to this truth? Have I consciously made prayer over worry an absolute must?” My answer, sadly, was no. Sure, I pray, and I take my significant concerns to God.

But do I leave them there, and do I do this regularly?

It was time to ask myself some gut-honest questions outside the easy excuses realm of:

• well, this is a part of who I am, and
• this is a lifelong struggle, and
• some people struggle with anxiety and worry more than others
• and God understands and doesn’t hold it against me
• and, and, and…

Hear me when I say there is truth in these statements. But at the end of the day, God has given me a Spirit of power, Love, and a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:6, partial)  Do I actively bring the anxiety-inducing, bothersome, uncomfortable, fearful thoughts straight to Him with thanksgiving and petition as Paul instructs the Philippian believers to do?

If I’m being sincere, instead of going straight to the throne when worry comes stumbling into my mind, I go straight to the worst outcome.

That’s a sobering truth. 

Hitting the road with God’s word

Even when I’ve prayed about my worries, I have been known to take them back later in the day because I’m sure there’s something I must figure out there. I ruminate on the concern, allow it in, and ask it to sit down to see what would happen if the situation turned out how I feared. So, I let it play out—positive I can figure something out by doing this— and then, before I know it, I’ve given this worry space, room to stretch out and make itself a certainty over God’s truth. 

Every time I fall into this trap, I give up the power God bestowed upon me, and I become just as James wrote:

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. James 1:22

Whenever I engage my fear instead of seeking Him, I become a forgetful hearer of the truth that changes lives—my life.

This truth is quite humbling for me. It’s one thing to read and memorize scriptures while sitting in my comfortable space where I can’t get hurt, and an entirely different thing to take that scripture and walk out life with it. This is what James meant: Take the words you hear, and, yes, memorize them, repeat them, and lodge them deeply in your heart and mind.

But then.

Well, it’s time to take His word and hit the road, or, as they say, “where the rubber meets the road.” It’s time to apply these words to our everyday lives and see God work.

Being a doer of the word and not just a hearer

Prayer sometimes feels like nothing more than a good luck charm in a frightening situation. I’ve known my share—more than I can count—of moments where praying feels much more challenging and even useless compared to falling apart. Friend, it’s hard to give what frightens us and, in most cases, what we love the most over to someone we can’t see. Even when we believe and know that prayer can, figuratively and if needed, move mountains, we find ourselves paralyzed by the fear that feels so much more real at the moment. 

Here’s the reality: we will worry and have concerns pop into our heads that say there’s a 5-alarm fire when it’s just a backyard burn. We will fight the monsters in our heads and battle with the traumas we’ve faced in the past and fears that threaten our futures. We will. But the beautiful truth to all of this is that we have a choice:

Walk hand in hand with worry or walk hand in hand with God.

We are not exempt from the trials and tribulations of this world—period. But thankfully, we have a God who knows our sufferings and does not leave us alone. We have a tool powerful enough to move mountains.

Even the mountains in your head. 

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Worry Less, Pray More, and Do Something About It

These have become my words to live by this year.

If I can worry about it, I can pray about it. Period.

I’ve also realized I carry many worries I can DO something about, even if they’re small, like making an appointment or tackling one small task in a project, which feels overwhelming. There is typically always something we can actively do when worry seeps in. So, from here on out, if I can do something about it, I will do it, and the rest, as they say, is history. Why worry when I can pray or do?

I pray this is encouraging to you, and perhaps you’d like to join me in worrying less, praying more, and doing something about it.

Here are four things to try when there’s a concern nagging and threatening to turn into a full-blown fear:

• Every time a worry pops into your mind, pray about it. Give it up to God and walk away from it immediately. No excuses, no pause, no allowing it to ruminate for a few minutes. Give it up and walk away: commit to being a doer. 
• If there’s something that you can do, do it! For example, I don’t enjoy flying; it causes me LOTS of anxiety. We had to take a trip last week where I was flying a lot. Whenever worries over the trip popped up, I would pick a small task, e.g., buying a travel pillow off Amazon. Once I took care of my task, I’d pray over my worry, hand it to Jesus, and remember that He covers me with his love and forgiveness and is in control. Is there an upcoming event or circumstance that is causing you anticipatory anxiety? Can you do a small task to ease some of the anxiety? If there is, no matter how small, do that task and remind yourself to leave the rest of it alone. 
• Start looking at scripture from a fresh angle. Take a scripture you’ve known for years that is meant to help you in an area of your life you struggle with and take it at face value. Ask God how to apply it today, and listen to what He says. 
• Lastly, be kind to yourself. Implementing new things takes time. Remember, friend, we’re a work in progress—his work—and it’s beautiful.

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As always, friend, thank you for stopping by,