Don't Worry It Could Be Worse

DON’T WORRY, IT COULD BE WORSE

By: C. Mason Davis

A Peanuts cartoon showed Charlie Brown bringing Snoopy his dinner on Thanksgiving Day. But it was just his usual dog food. Snoopy looked at his bowl and said, “This isn’t fair. The rest of the world today is eating turkey with all the trimmings, and all I get is dog food.” He stared at his food and said, “I guess it could be worse. I could be a turkey.”

TODAYS SCRIPTURE

Matthew 6:34: “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.”

Worry is a state of the mind. It’s not a disease. It’s not an illness. But it is an excuse. It is one of the most overused excuses one can use to hide from life. An excuse to avoid anything and everything in attempting to shelter oneself from living a life that God would want you to experience. The Bible tells us that worrying is a complete waste of time. Matthew 6:27 says, "Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?" This verse suggests that most of what we worry about doesn't happen. Jesus also says in Matthew 6:25, “Therefore, I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?”

There are two things in life you should never worry about. First, those things you can change, and things you can do something about. Second, those things you can’t do anything about. If there is nothing you can do why spend your time worrying? Don’t waste your time. Matthew points out that life is much bigger than the things that we worry about, and think are so important. In Matthew 6:26, Jesus says, “Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?” Do you think they’re worried? God takes care of them. He takes care of us. So, worrying is simply a waste of time and time is precious.

Although to worry about anything is a waste of time, as humans, most of use worry because we think the worst of every situation. That every situation that we find ourselves worrying about is at a level that “nothing could be worse” than what you’re going thru at that time. Everything becomes dire. Because of this, we scare ourselves into becoming very negative in every thought and start to feel that there is no hope.

As a child, I was always made fun of because of my first and middle names. My mother told me that my first name was her father’s first name, and my middle name was my dad’s father’s middle name. My full name is Carlie Mackenzie Davis. The Davis part of my name is great, but the first and middle names are…well, embarrassing to me. After some thought and research, I found that if I had been named for my dad’s father’s first name and my mother’s father’s middle name, I then realized just how much worse my name could have been. I would have been named, Ego Wayne Davis. Thus, this issue could really have been worse than it was. Since that time, I’ve tried not to worry about anything because no matter what I’ve been through, it could always be worse.

Worry can become even worse as it can develop into anxiety which is an overwhelming apprehension that causes people to become distressed, distraught, and tormented with the inability to cope. Worry is very bad for your overall health. Bad for your mind, body, and soul. What is worry spiritually? The spiritual side of worry is an indication of emotional attachments, lack of willingness to put forth consistent effort, lack of faith, and ultimately a lack of understanding of how faith in God works.

In?Matthew,?Jesus talks about a topic we can all relate to, and that word is “worry.” Now we understand worry and we understand what it means to be thankful, but I don’t think that we understand the connection between the two and how thankfulness can help us overcome worry. Matthew 6:31-33 says, “Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”