Troubles and difficulties are a necessary part of life. It is human nature to be concerned about the bad situations in our world and in our personal lives. Worrying about them is not abnormal, but it is a lot like sitting in a rocking chair – it will keep you in constant motion, but it will never get you anywhere. Even so, there are a lot of valuable things we can learn from the times we worry. I like the way the poet Robert Hamilton expressed this thought:
“I walked a mile with sorrow
And ne’er a word said she;
But oh the things I learned from her
When sorrow walked with me.”
Worry has been described as the great American disease. It causes much unhappiness and is one of the least productive ways to spend time. It can impair your appetite, disturb your sleep, irritate your disposition, and put a frown on your face. There is a huge difference between thinking about your problems and worrying about them.
To worry about genuinely difficult things is bad enough, but worrying about those that are non-existent is a needless waste of time and energy. Mark Twain once said, “I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened.” To worry about things that may never occur is to lose faith in life.
It has been mathematically calculated that 40% of things we worry about will never materialize, 30% deal with old decisions which cannot be changed, 12% focus on criticism that is mostly untrue, 10% deal with our health which only worsens when we worry, and only 8% of them are legitimate. This does not mean that life has no real problems that need to be met head-on with wisdom and determination.
It is God’s plan for us to learn and progress. Troubles are a part of our earthly schooling. The anticipation of trouble is often the cause of what we consider to be our greatest difficulties. As stated earlier, troubles and difficulties are a normal part of life, but worrying about them is what paralyzes our thought and action. So, what should we do?
The place to begin is to cast our care on the One who cares for us. 1 Peter 5:6-7 says: Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” Not to accept Christ’s offer simply means that we are either not ready to stop being miserable or that we do not trust Him to do what He says He will do.
Faith is a powerful force that cannot be conquered. Another powerful force is prayer. We don’t have to explain our problems to God. We can turn them over to Him and trust Him to help us. Charles F. Deems expresses it this way:
“The world is wide
In time and tide,
Then do not hurry.
That man is blest
Who does his best
And leaves the rest.
Then – do not worry.”
The Paper Pulpit 
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