Worry Woes


When I was in high school, Dad took a college psychology course for a management role at work. One evening while I was sitting at the kitchen table doing homework, he showed me a picture in his textbook. It was a wooden carving of a man grimacing while holding his stomach. The chapter title: Repress Your Emotions and Your Stomach Keeps Score. Dad knew me well.

 

I’d been his anxious child from the time I figured out the world could be a scary place. I bottled up all that anxiousness and by the time I was in high school I had developed stomach ulcers. Some of my high school friends may recall my baby food diet. I dealt with my fears and worries by swallowing them. My stomach did keep score.

 

I eventually learned how to handle life’s anxious times in healthier ways. But when stomach pain revisited me recently, I wondered if I had reverted to my old ways. 


I’m one who reads the daily news—maybe too much. When I add my concerns about the future for those I love, there’s plenty of acid to carve out some painful ulcers. But I’m not going to take that road. My dad warned me not to. 

 

Swallowing my worry hurts. I should know better by now. So, the doctor prescribed ulcer medication. 


But I’m taking the medicine Jesus offers too. Some of his final words he shared on earth: “I leave you peace; my peace I give you. I do not give it to you as the world does. So don’t let your hearts be troubled or afraid.”



Peace. That’s all any of us really wants. But the world can’t offer us real peace. It's hard enough to find peace at home with as challenging as our lives can be. 


So, I’m praying more and realizing a lot of the problems grinding away inside me, aren’t mine to solve. My doctor advised taking a daily walk. And instead of worrying, I'm going to redirect my mental energies to do things for those around me. 


Friends, I hope you’re able to avoid the anxiousness that this weary world can bring, but if it begins to wear you down, take Jesus up on his offer. His peace is the best medicine, plus he helps us heal when we've worried a bit too much for our own good.

 

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