By Joe LaGuardia
“Do not worry,” Jesus told his disciples in no uncertain terms (Matthew 6:25). It’s one of the clearest admonishments in scripture, and it stands up there with the ten commandments as being, well, God’s Word for us today.
There are many times, however, that I have read that scripture and said, “It is easier said than done.” I wonder why Jesus told us not to worry when the only thing most of us is really good at is worrying.
Upon reflection, I suppose that there are different types of worrying.
The first is to worry when you are anxious about something in the future. Since the future has yet to happen and you are not sure whether your fears are founded or not, this worry can be a distraction and can keep you from seeing the blessings in life.
The best medicine for this type of worry is gratitude. We need to be thankful for what we have, enjoy the moment, praise God for waking us up this morning, and give God any anxiety we may have about what the future may hold.
Jesus said it himself, “Do not worry for tomorrow will bring worries of its own” (Matthew 6:34); and Paul’s letter to the Philippians states, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything be thankful and make your petitions known to God” (4:6).
The second type of worry is chronic worry tied to anxiety disorders or depression. This type of worry requires intervention and resources that help people move beyond the disorder or cope with it.
Sometimes, a person can go to a therapist for a few sessions and get things straightened out. Other times, people need therapy or medication over the long haul.
I once knew a person who struggled with an anxiety order, and she concluded that if she only had more faith in God, then the anxiety would go away.
The only problem was (as I saw it) that she already was a person of great faith.
I was able to demonstrate to her how her faith inspired my own life and encouraged so many people around her. We agreed together that the only way for her to move into a place of acceptance and coping was to get help.
God provides us with some good counselors for a reason, and its helpful to know that all of us deal with chronic anxiety every now and then.
There is a third type of worry with which I am familiar, and that’s the worry I think all of us feel no matter how close we are to the Lord. This is the worry that accompanies responsibility.
Unlike the first type of worry, this anxiety does not stem from uncertainty or fear of the future. Nor is it chronic anxiety that paralyzes life. Instead, this type of worry is that on-going anxiety you feel when you are responsible for someone or something.
If you are a parent, you know what I mean!
There are certain worries that I have only experienced as a father, and these worries do not go away. I worry for my children’s health, safety, their little God-given spirits, and very lives.
But I also find that this worry is not all bad. In fact, something would be wrong with a parent who did not worry about his or her child.
It’s a healthy worry because it grows out of concern, compassion, grace, and empathy. Who wants a parent who does not worry, or an employee who does not worry about meeting a budget or a deadline?
I think that, at the end of the day, we really use the word “worry” for many different things. Since the second type of worry I mentioned is biological and can’t be avoided, and the third type is required for relationships in which people matter, Jesus may have said, “Do not worry,” to those of us who only struggle with the first type of worry–that of the future.
But no matter the type, not worrying is certainly easier said than done.
