Worry Much?

Did you realize that worry and trust actually go hand in hand? You can't have one without the lack of the other.

If you worry a lot, then you have little or no trust; if you trust a lot, then you have little or no worry.

Some would like to fool themselves and say that they're the 'middle of the road-ers'; well, the Word states that you are either one or the other.

Psalm 62:8 tells us to put all of our trust in God- if we do that, then we can't worry.

I think that worry is simply our fighting with our own lack of control.

I like control, but I've also learned that I don't really have control over anything in my life or my environment except myself.

There was a phase in my life where I fought to control everything in my life, everything in my environment and everyone in it. Needless to say, I failed miserably.

When you live a life of being controlling, you will constant battle a feeling of failure and frustration.

I'll be honest, I'm great at worrying. I can work myself up with the best of 'em!

Currently, I'm dealing with this in my life.

I mean, right this second, I'm battling worry and the stress of having little control.

Being a survivor of rape, I have this intense need to control my environment- in this case, I'm talking about my home.

My current landlord, is a jerk. He's inconsiderate, cheap, and kind of a bully. Did I mention he's a tad chauvinist in that he thinks he can intimidate young women using their own ignorance against them?

See, just this week, the Father blessed me with an opportunity that I hadn't even really been praying for but secretly really wanted. I currently live in an old duplex that is in bad condition (I do the best I can to make it nice) with a slummy landlord that quite frankly, doesn't give a damn. I wanted to live in my own house- I didn't care of it was a rent house, as long as the landlord was good to me. I'm an impeccable renter so I felt that I deserve to be respected and treated fairly by my landlord.

I was blessed with a house this week! I get to move in June 29th (because I walk in the Favor of my Father) and it just so happens to be right across the street from my current establishment. It's bigger, more up-to-date and I've known the landlord literally, all my life. God's pretty amazing that way.

I gave my notice on June 1st along with my last month's rent check. Man, it felt good! Unfortunately, that feeling was short-lived. Two days later, he starts texting me that he wants to show my house to potential renters. Uh, huh?

I knew that he had done that to my neighbors and he was pretty obnoxious about it and most of the time, he didn't give them notice, just showed up. That does not fly well with me at all, I don't like surprises and to be frank, I don't like surprise visitors at my house.

Well, he texted me about one appointment this morning- I reluctantly agreed and forced Daisy and Chester outside for the morning. I came home at lunch (like I always do) and let them back in and sat down with the remote with my lunch and some down time.

All of the sudden, there's a knock on the door- there he is with another potential renter. The dogs are going nuts and I end up putting them back outside while they peruse through my home.

I hate this.

Then, about 3pm, he texts me with: "I have someone that needs to see your house at 4pm".

This time, I was all, 'No. I can't get home to put the dogs up, I can be available at 6pm tonight.'

Nada.

No. Response. Whatsoever.

This stresses me out more than one can imagine. My co-worker has dogs that are her children and insisted that I go drive by my home and see if he ignored me (like he has in the past). Luckily, he didn't.

Still, this has kept me in knots all day long. Now, I'm concerned every time I leave my house that he's going to text me (or not) and just show up anyway.

To make matters worse, I have neighbors that are meth-addicts. I'm so not making this up- I live in a desirable, almost non-existent neighborhood and these new people move in.

Needless to say, they're having issues- domestic issues a couple of days ago, where I was tempted to call the police, and then last night- banging on the walls in the middle of the night, ripping me and the dogs from a dead sleep wondering what in the world was going on.

Between my neighbors, my landlord, and just the general stress of moving- my stomach is in knots and my hair is wearing thin.

Then, in the midst of my turmoil, I hear that still, small, voice say: "Do you trust Me?"...

Hhhhmmm, "Yes, but, You don't realize...." I can't even finish the statement because there's this resounding "Do you trust Me?" bouncing around in my spirit.

Ugh... If I ignore it, it will go away. Right? No. At least, not yet. I go on Pinterest to distract myself, what do I run across?? A picture with 5 "Trust Him" quotes on it.

Okay- fine, I'll stop trying to control my world and I'll, ugh, trust You.

What specifically do I need to trust Him with right in this moment?

· Wisdom (on responding to my neighbors and my landlord)

· Favor (that he'll realize this is huge invasion of my privacy and unacceptable; I'll get my deposit back with no worries, and just generally respect me and my space that I'm paying for and stop trying to show it beforehand)

· Instruction (What I should do if he doesn't do the above)

· Discernment (This applies mostly to mine and the dogs safety and general dealings with my neighbors)

· Peace (because, I need it. Badly. Right now.)

· Just that He's going to do what He said He'd do, which is HANDLE THIS SO I DON'T HAVE TO.

When am I ever going to really grab a hold of that knowledge?!

I find myself asking God to help me trust Him. I want to. I know it's in MY best interest to do so. I know that just getting alone in His presence is what will give me the peace that I am in desperate need of. So why do I fight it?

I hate the lack of control. Thankfully, that's an area that the Father is healing me in every day. I'm learning to let go and just let Him handle it. I'm not totally there yet, but I'm getting closer and closer every day.

If you're still with me- and I wouldn't blame you for jumping ship a few paragraphs ago; I pray that you find comfort and reassurance in what the Father says about worrying and trusting Him.

Here are 5 things the Bible says about worry:

Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Matthew 6:26-27 (NLT)

Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?

1 Peter 5:7 (NLT)

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

Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”

Psalm 62:8 (NLT)
O my people, trust in him at all times.

Pour out your heart to him,

for God is our refuge.
 

I pray that you are encouraged and that you learn to really trust Him; that you really learn that He really does have it all under control. He hasn't forgotten you. He knows how dire your situation or desires might be. Give Him a chance to show you something really beautiful.

Please join us over at A Creative Word and get the HELP that you need to you know, just do your life!

Blessings!!

Pamela

I can be reached at Pamela@aCreativeWord.com.