A devotion to overcome anxiety

Throw your burden on the Lord, he will support you! God will never let the righteous shake! —Psalm 55:22 (CEB)

I have a way to keep anxiety like an intimate companion, not willing to let it go. I invite him just for a moment and then I give him the ride of the house. A worry floats in my head, and instead of fighting it or even putting it in God's hands, I build it, feed it with other worries, and soon the worries multiplied, putting me in a hold.

The other day I was feeding anxiety with more anxiety, trapping myself in a prison of my own making. Then I remembered something my son, Tim, in his last high school said to my wife, Carol. It was a Sunday night and he had a project he needed to complete, with a deadline looming and his mother once asked too many things about his progress.

"Mom," Tim said, "your anxiety isn't making me do any faster."

Ah, the unexpected wisdom of a teenager, piercing the charm of anxiety. How many times since I've used those words for myself. Rick, your anxiety isn't helping you get things done. So I ask the concern to leave, throw him out, send him to pack, slam the door and wish a dear goodbye. After all, how good is my anxiety? “Here, God,” I can say, “take this worry. I've had enough. " He has gone.

Dear Sir, I am happy to pass on today's concerns. I suspect I'll have more for you tomorrow. —Rick Hamlin

Digging deeper: Proverbs 3: 5–6; Matthew 11:28