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Worry has been a life long struggle for me, so Linda Dillow's book, Calm My Anxious Heart, has been incredibly eye-opening for me. Here's a few excerpts that really struck home:
"All worry is atheism, because it is a want of trust in God."
Two of the deadliest spiritual diseases are the "if" diseases, What If and If Only. . .both lack the eyes of faith. What If looks to the future and worries about what God might allow. If Only looks to the past and grumbles about what God has given. The first leads to anxiety, the second to anger.
Do you have such a relationship with God and such a confidence in Him that you believe He is with you in your anxiety, even though you don't see any evidence of His presence and power?
"Sight says, "I see that it's good for me, so God must have sent it," but faith says, "God sent it, so it must be good for me."
"When 'What Ifs' come into our lives, we must ask ourselves if we're going to judge God by the circumstances we don't understand or judge the circumstances in light of the character of God."
Isaiah 41:10 - "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
As we grow in trusting God in all things, our contentment becomes an act of worship.
When we've given all our questions to God, when we're not grumbling about the past or anxious about the future, when our tomorrows are in His keeping, we are FREE to wake up every morning and say, "God, You've given me today as a gift. Show me how to glorify You in it."
Peace wraps around your heart when you're able to trust God for just today and not be burdened with the If Onlys, the What Ifs and the Whys. The tomorrows are His, and you are free! You are free because God Himself has become yoru sufficiency. He is your contentment. What does your freedom produce? An ability to concentrate on others and their needs, to encourage others, to love and serve the people God brings into your life.
Truth to dwell on:
The Lord is my peace. I shall not live in anxiety. He puts me under His wing of comfort and calms my spirit within me. He takes all my anxieties on Himself and helps me to focus on Him. Yes, though I walk through a time of grave uncertainties and fierce anxieties, I will not fret - for You are my peace. Your Word and Your presence calm me now. You hold my uncertainties in the palm of Your hand. You soothe my anxious mind - You smooth my wrinkled brow. Surely serenity and trust in You shall fill me all the days of my life. And I shall keep my mind stayed on You forever.
