31 Days of Joy: Pray and Don't Worry

“Worrying is stupid.

It's like always walking around with an umbrella waiting for it to rain."

― Anonymous

Pray and don't worry.

Once you have given God your love and your life, Jesus teaches you can give Him your worries by asking God to provide for your needs and the trusting that He will provide. What do you need today? Energy to make it through the day? Finances? Wisdom? If you trust in God, then there is no need to worry about your life. One of the best sayings to live by is "let go and let God." The only thing that worrying will do is ruin your day. The emotion will make living dark, depressing, and adds up to hours and hours of invaluable time that you'll never get back. Worry accomplishes absolutely nothing. Worrying is destructive to us in many ways. It becomes a mental burden that can even cause us to grow physically sick. Worrying is the opposite of trusting God, and outs your focus on the wrong things. So what do you do? You've got two to alternatives to worrying: panic or pray. When you talk to God about your needs, you be specific, and do it with thanksgiving. Don't just say, "Lord bless me" because blessings can come in many forms. Be honest with Him. God says you can pray about anything and everything. Nothing is too great for God's power. Nothing is too insignificant for His care. Anything worth worrying about is worth praying about. If we prayed as much as we worried, we'd have a lot less to worry about! Give God your worries. We were not designed to carry burdens and decisions that we can't control. As believers we have God's help to make it through anything. When we keep our eyes focused on God, we remember his love for us and we realize we truly have nothing to worry about. God has a wonderful plan for our lives, and part of that plan includes taking care of us.

Focus Scriptures:

Philippians 4:6

Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Psalm 55:22

Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.

Proverbs 12:25

Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up.

1 Peter 5:7

Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

Joy in Action Today:

Make a list of the things you worry about. Everyday, pray over each area of worry until God intervenes. Pray that God will renew your mind and trust Him until things get better.