In the suitcase of my life, I pack away a lot of things. I pack joy, silliness, and laughter. I also pack my failures, my unforgiveness, and last but not least, my worry.

In Matthew 11:28, Jesus says we must cast off our worry to live lightly, to not pack worry into our suitcase. He wants those of us who are weary and burdened to come to Him for rest.

But instead of coming to Him for rest, I seem to make up reasons to worry.

After nine years of marriage, my husband and I had two children 17 months apart. Worrying is now a parenting skill I am perfecting, and that’s not a good thing. I worry about their diet, education, activity level, spiritual maturity, what they’re watching, who their friends are… and that only scratches the surface. Even if you’re not a parent,  you can relate to the fact that all of us can obsessively worry about anything.

There is value in thinking through these areas to see if how we are living is in alignment with our values. The problem is that I’m not evaluating; I’m all-out worrying.

So what is an Achiever’s response to worry?

Achievers create a plan, devise a strategy, and text a friend. As Sally Breedlove says in Choosing Rest, “we gravitate toward tangible assurances and human solutions to control the frightening things we face.” We are also “seeking for something that will look and feel more substantial than trust in the invisible God.”

Worry is all about my inability to control future circumstances. Worrying starts when I realize that I’m not in charge of everything and everyone, and I feel prompted to do something about it.

In the midst of my worry, there are four true truths about God and my heart:

The truth is: God is trustworthy. The entire Bible speaks to His faithful heart toward His wayward people. And because He is trustworthy, He asks us to put our trust in Him. The Message paraphrases Matthew 6:34 this way, “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.” Satan wants me preoccupied with me. God wants my eyes on Him. As Breedlove says, “We trust God’s heart even when He won’t guarantee outcomes.”

The truth is: I am hesitant to trust God. I’ve been fed some information (this probably all started with a serpent in a garden) that God doesn’t have my best interest at heart, and maybe He’ll ask me to do something I find drudgerous. My distrusting attitude should lead to repentance. Belief and trust are not based on continuous verification, but on action despite fear. I need to ask for forgiveness in the places I don’t trust Him.

The truth is: God is ready to help. Isaiah writes, “But the Lord wants to have mercy on you. So he will rise up to give you His tender love.” (Isaiah 30:18) Breedlove points out that image here is God rising up on tip-toe to help you. As a parent or boss, have you ever had someone fumbling and floundering on a project, and  if they would just ask, you would totally help? God is like that: ready, willing, and on-tip-toes-excited to help you. Will you ask Him for help? Will you lay the weight of worry at His feet?

The truth is: I need to evaluate how I view my life. I believe that I can and should be in complete control at all times: control over people, outcomes, grades, relationships, etc. When things start proving me wrong, I start worrying as a way to influence the result. But God is clear that He is in charge. So when the inevitable suffering and sorrows crash over and my worries overwhelm, I can decide that the fear and worry will be my reminder to pray. I choose the Person of Jesus over the problem being solved.

Friends, these things are easy to write and hard to implement. I struggle with worry right alongside you. But I know, I know, I know in my heart that He has got me in the palm of His hand. And He has got you, whatever your situation. And because of that, I hope that you’ll choose to live lightly with me and empty your suitcase of worry. Letting go of this weight is a daily activity because worry comes in waves, and is not a once-and-for-all activity. Will you join me in daily giving our worries back to Him?

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