Even though we all know we’re not supposed to worry, it seems understandable and inevitable as we stand for the restoration of our marriages and face so many unknowns. Yet, as one of the FAM Fellowship members recently pointed out in a post on the private site, the Bible repeatedly tells us not to worry. So as we stand for the restoration of our marriages, there’s a lot to learn from what David expresses in Psalm 55.

And God’s promise in Psalm 55:22 is especially encouraging as we stand for the restoration of our marriages, because it says Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall. So, if we believe God, if we take Him at His Word and believe that HE will sustain us and meet every need as Jesus promised in Matthew 6:30-34, we have NOTHING to worry about, because Jesus said If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Even though David’s thoughts troubled him and he was distraught; even though he was suffering at the hand of wicked enemies and being reviled by them; even though his heart was in anguish and he was assailed by the terrors of death; even though he was beset by fear and trembling and overwhelmed by horror; and even though he wished for the wings of a dove to fly away and find a place of rest and shelter far from the tempest and storm, his final words were “But as for me, I trust in you.” So, not worrying obviously doesn’t mean that we can’t acknowledge that we have problems or that we wish we didn’t have them; but as Christians, it does mean that we take all of our cares and concerns to the Lord in prayer, WITH THANKSGIVING, just as we’re told in Philippians 4:6, which says Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And then we have to TRUST Him to deliver and protect us, because we take Him at His Word and KNOW that He WILL NOT LET US FALL! In fact, Isaiah 40:30-31 tells us that Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Also, it’s very significant that immediately after 1 Peter 5:6-7, which says Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.; verse 8 says Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Being alert obviously REQUIIRES us to be aware of the problems we face as we stand for the restoration of our marriages and families; so acknowledging our distress, fear, pain and concern is not the problem. The problem is failing to take those concerns to the Lord in prayer with faith and thanksgiving, because we know He WILL protect and deliver us and not let us fall; and failing to take those thoughts captive by going on down the road with them and Satan; allowing them to create emotions that in NO way glorify God and certainly don’t magnify His Holy name and omnipotent power; which in turn lead to acts of disobedience that can very easily kill, steal and destroy our hope for marriage restoration. So WORRY IS THE DEVIL’S PITFALL intended TO KILL, STEAL AND DESTROY THE RESTORATION OF OUR MARRIAGES AND FAMILIES! And we know that, because 2 Corinthians 10:2-6 says For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete. And when we worry, we are NOT taking every thought captive, so it’s not possible to make them obedient to Christ as we stand and rely on the power and promise of His Word. And if we’re not standing on the power and promise of God’s Word, we might as well not stand, because then we will surely fall! And the ONLY way to STAND on God’s Word is to DO God’s Word, just as Jesus told us in the parable about The Wise and Foolish Builders in Matthew 7:24-29. And since we all want to build the restoration of our marriages and homes on THE Rock; the only foundation that withstands the storms of life, we need to avoid the pitfall of worry and practice taking every thought captive and make them obedient to Jesus Christ, as we rely and stand on His Word!

The following is Diane’s Heart To Heart post about worry and some of the responses from other fellowship members. As always, I thank Diane and everyone else for allowing me to share their thoughts here, because they do bless and encourage others. And we can’t help being blessed and encouraged when we learn to avoid the pitfall of worry!

I was reading today and felt that I was supposed to share what I learned about worry. Jesus says many times in the Bible not to worry…cast your cares…be anxious for nothing. He says His yoke is easy and His burden light. Anxiety is not pleasing to God; surely the Lord had a better plan for His children. Anxiety is foolish because it concerns that which isn’t. It lives in a future that can’t be foreseen. It deals with what ifs, and could bes, speculation and possibilities. As long as we dwell on the worst case scenario, we guarantee our own misery. Calamity is always within reach of our imagination.
The worrier has a mind torn between the real and the possible, the immediate and the potential. He is trying to fight the battle of life and he is bound to lose. The worrier attempts to live in the future but the future isn’t here and the future isn’t his. Nothing can be done and no amount of worry can change the outcome. Jesus says over and over “don’t worry’, so why do we continue to worry? Concern and planning focuses on the present; worry is attached to the future. The future is in God’s hands. If we believe God is our creator, we must believe He is also our Sustainer, or we are inconsistent. His loving and timely care is all around us; look and you will find comfort. We have seen it over and over again.
God is concerned about the smallest things; birds, each petal on a flower, the hairs on our head; He’d never suffer and die for us and then neglect us. A quote I thought said a lot is “Worry doesn’t rob tomorrow of its sorrow; It robs today of its strength.” Worry will not totally leave us; we just need not dwell in it long. It’s a momentary phase when we trust God and are anxious for nothing. When we pray and tell God what we need, always with a thankful heart, the peace that surpasses all understanding will be given to us and protect our minds and hearts. When we keep God the center of our lives, we’ll be sheltered from the storms of stress and worry. Don’t dwell on tomorrow’s stress. Jesus told us that tomorrow will take care of itself. God will give us the grace and strength we need for it, but He doesn’t give us tomorrow’s grace today. Each day has its own number, so we live them in the order God arranged them. Everyday we dwell in worry is a day of joy lost-a day not seeing all the wonders God wants us to see. Enjoy the journey on the way to where you are going. Worry about nothing -pray about everything. Use these words to battle the worry giants in your life. Be encouraged. Diane

Response by Jenn on June 17th, 2007 at 7:07 am
Diane,
Between this post and Joe’s post, I sense a SOF post from Linda on this subject. I love it when God has multiple members sharing on the same subject.
Why worry; as my son in Florida told me “Don’t worry, God’s got it covered!”
Praise God that he does.
Thank you for this devotion. It really speaks so loud and clear to me.
Jenn

Response by Christy on June 17th, 2007 at 7:29 am
I’ve spent my whole life watching my grandmother worry every single day over one thing or another, so as an adult, I vowed not to be like her. She was NEVER happy, because all she did was worry, worry, worry! She accused me once of not caring about something, because I wasn’t worried about it. If I start to worry about something, I remind myself of how miserable my grandmother is and tell myself how I don’t want to be like her. Lately, with everything going on with my health and my new house, it’s been hard not to worry although I’ve done fairly well. Thanks for the reminder again about how worry can rob you of so much joy. I also predict a SOF and chat topic!

Response by Maria on June 17th, 2007 at 7:48 am
Diane, what an excellent subject you tackled. Worry was my main occupation for the last 6 months and God showed me that it did not do me any good whatsoever. So now I’ve learned to cast all my worries toward the cross, because Jesus said come all you who are burdened and heavy laden and I will give you rest. It’s such a rest when we give Him the load.
Worry gives us a bit of superiority complex because it boosts our egos to think that we are in charge. Are we exalting ourselves as gods? When it should be that He is the author and finisher of our faith. I am thankful that He is just that and I will look to Him for all my needs. I know I will fail on occasion, but practice makes perfect. Praise His name. Blessings, Diane, and thanks for bringing this up.

Response by Robin on June 17th, 2007 at 8:22 am
Hey Diane, this was right on time! Usually in the summer months, as a teacher, my funds are a little tight. I tend to “worry” about how things will be paid, and how I will generate activities for my children. I usually work at the church camp and it pays okay; it’s not what I am used to, but it is something. I have even been contemplating getting a part-time and weekend gig at the mall, just to supplement my income for the summer. I also sometimes “worry” about what to do with my home – refinance or sell. Then I start eating when I become overwhelmed with things LOL. I recently realized that I was being a worry wart. I had to remind myself that if God is big enough to turn my husband’s heart back to me; He can take care of me financially during the summer and direct me with my home. Thank you for reminding me of Proverbs 3; about trusting, not leaning to my own understanding, and acknowledging God, in all my ways. Please continue to pray for me to use the same faith for restoration in these other areas of my life.

Response by Thursa on June 18th, 2007 at 2:43 pm
Thanks Diane!!! I now proudly say I am cured of worry! God is GREAT!!!! This was a huge problem for me, always worrying about my tomorrow as I’ve shared before. I love the quote you mentioned, I hadn’t heard it before and it was good! I learned this thought in church a couple of weeks ago and I’ve been saying it a lot with the “it doesn’t matter” – that tomorrow doesn’t exist. We can’t get to it; and we don’t know if it will ever be here, so why would we waste a second of today “worrying” about it? And our yesterday, well, it’s gone too! It is history and God now has it and will use it for HIS-STORY in our testimonies that He is weaving for His mighty glory. So live NOW; knowing God is with us right now as He “works” (present tense) all things for our good!

Response by Joe on June 19th, 2007 at 4:36 pm
This was also a good post for me to hear. I thank you for the reminder. God Bless.

Posted Wednesday, June 20th, 2007 at 8:55 am in Seeds Of Faith.