I don’t know about you, but sometimes I make things harder than they have to be. I don’t do it on purpose, but I tend to be a worrier and spend a lot of time anticipating situations that never come up.
Our son’s time in the military taught me a lot about how not to do that. Here are some things that I need to remember during worrisome times, and they may help you as well with your worry habit:
1) Become more deliberate about living in the moment.
Living in the past just made me focus on regrets. Trying to live in the future overwhelmed me with worry. It was only when I learned how to look at now as a blessing that I found contentment.
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2) Let go of things you can’t control.
It wasn’t possible for me to follow my son on deployment and make sure he was safe. I couldn’t control the timetables of when he came and went. Once I realized that, I was able to move on to the third thing in my arsenal of grit and grace…
3) Take your worries to Him.
During my son’s deployment, I spent a lot of time in conversation with God throughout each day. When the worries crowded in, weighing me down, I off-loaded them to God. The more I turned to Him, the easier it became and the longer the peace lasts.
The idea that tough times make us stronger isn’t just a cliché. There’s truth to be found there. We can come out the other side of struggle when we endure with grit and grace.