I have a secret to tell you. I’m not very good about giving over my worries and anxieties to God. I mean, I do… eventually, but only after I’ve sat with them for much longer than I should have. Do you ever do that? Sit with your fears and try to conquer them yourself, instead of giving them to God? I’m a bit of a worrier, so I’ve been down this road more times than I’d like to admit, and the results are always the same — what was once a smallish worry grows into something seemingly insurmountable. That’s usually the point at which I humbly hand it over to Him. The moment I do I am always left feeling lighter and freer, and wonder to myself why it had taken me so long.
I know that God wants all of me; my good days & my bad days, plus all the worries and anxieties that pop up in between, but it wasn’t until I realized what the worry was taking away from me that I finally managed to break the cycle. Worry, like comparison, is a thief of joy and will steal the light from your life without you even realizing it. It takes away your ability to be present and enjoy the life you’ve been given, and that’s something that I couldn’t allow anymore. I want to live in the sunshine! I want to feel God’s face shining on me. I want to be present for my husband and children. I want to be able to see the beauty that God’s put in my life, and that just can’t happen if I’m living in the dark.
I know there’ll always be things in life to worry about, but I also know that I’m not going to live in the dark with them anymore. By choosing to give them to God the moment they rear their ugly heads, I’m choosing to live in His glorious sunshine.
Are you a worrier? Do you give your worries over to God right away? Or do you live in sunshine?
Meet Heather Hamilton, our Inspiration contributor. She’s the wife to one + the momma to three; two that live in her house + one that lives in God’s. You can find her sharing her journey to becoming the girl God created her to be over at her blog, Life Made Lovely, and sharing her love of handmade in her new shop, The Paperie. She’s the founder of the Joyful Life Library and the curator of The Joyful Shop, which uses 100% of it’s profits to support the library project. And every day, she chooses joy.
Yes. I am a worrier….but in our weaknesses he makes us strong ( 2 Corinthians 12:1 “That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” Romans 5:3 “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance”). Acknowledgment and holding on to the power of Gods word is such a great place to be as we struggle with the battle of relinquishing control for the things God desires to handle. So encouraged by you and reminded of the love our God has for us as his children!
@Sarah, Those verses are SO good, Sarah! I will be holding onto them tightly. xo
@Sarah, I heard a quote once — do you spend as much time in prayer as you do worrying? Love that. (By the way, I don’t — guilty!)
Oh I’m a terrible worrier! And while I know it does me no good to internalize my fears I do it time and time again. It’s a tough habit to overcome. Thanks for this post!
@Rachael Barclay, I feel the same way Rachael! So thankful for a God who gives us grace through our weakness. xo
@Rachael Barclay, I heard a quote once — do you spend as much time in prayer as you do worrying? Love that. (By the way, I don’t — guilty!)
The opposite of joy is hopelessness. And the opposite of peace is anxiety and worry. All throughout the Bible are people who are sad, but they still have joy. So we know that even in darkness we can be joyful.
I think the phrase “Choose Joy” is lovely, but I would go a step further and say to receive joy, for it is truly a gift from God.
I think my “aha” moment was when I heard this: “God DELIGHTS in being trusted.” He loves it when we bring our troubles to him, He desires it like a father desires for his children to trust him with their concerns. And if my greatest desire is to please him, then it is much easier to hand my worry and anxiety over to him, and with that comes peace.
@Jenny, I need to remind myself constantly that I can delight God by simply trusting Him. That’s so good!
I have been struggling with this as well recently, and living with fear can be so debilitating! I found this quote, which led me to seriously face my issues with fear: “You block your dream when you allow fear to grow bigger than your faith.” Reading that I realized that when it came to so many things, I was letting my fear override my faith, and it’s something I plan to be more conscious of! I have dreams that can’t afford to be blocked, and the faith to know that with Him, they can happen!
@Celinka, I love that quote Celinka! xo
Im struggling with this big time at the moment. I made the decision to switch from Etsy to Big cartel with my own URL and the whole 9 and now I am feeling so anxious and like maybe it was a mistake and now no one will find my shop and on and on. And in the process I am just feeling like a bad mom. I spend a lot of time just feeling bad and thats not how God wants us to live. I just try to remind myself daily of HIS truth, and not my crazy head stuff! Somedays are better than others for sure, but it is amazing how He really does take over when I let go. Finally. Wonderful post :)
@Erin @ Isaboo Designs, ooh, I know just what you mean Erin! When we finally let go He takes care of it all. I love that quote Let go & let God. It’s so helpful in times like this. xo
I needed to hear this today. Thank you so much for sharing! :)
I have found myself worrying WAY more recently, due to some different circumstances…and it is so draining! So I’ve been trying to praise and thank the Lord whenever I catch myself worrying. {I recently read One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp and it changed my perspective on this!!} Praising the Lord for those very things that are worrying me is soooo much better! I actually blogged about it recently…it has been helping me fall asleep more easily lately!
@Nicole, I totally agree, Nicole! Focusing on things to be thankful for absolutely erases the worries we fill our minds with. I love that!
Thanks for this amazing post! I am a worrier and know God’s word, but find that I struggle with implementation. God doesn’t want us to waver, but to be like Peter and step out and STAY OUT of the boat. Often times, we want to get back in the boat where it is comfortable! As you mentioned, we have to give everything to God and live in his sunshine and I have vowed that I will strive daily to do just that. My favorite scripture is Proverbs 3: 5-6, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. I pray that we all do just that! Have a blessed day!
@Chamel, I love that verse Chamel, and I’m totally with you on wanting so badly to stay out of the boat. :)
Thank you for these encouraging words! This creative lady so needed these words. I have been agonizing over a shop/studio name for a very long time as well as creating/scrapping my web designs for them. (I am a bit OCD…Ahem)
One of the reasons for this is stems from the need to make the name of my shop/studio the same as the central focus of my writing.
The problem with all of this is the fact that the ONLY thing I have been creating are names and designs-not actual art:O!!
Now that I have spent a lot of time in prayer, I have got a name! (So thankful to God for this, since I wanted it to bring glory to Him.)
But I have one more thing stopping me and I wonder if you could help me. Because this name has been a long time coming….I don’t want to even go live with it until I get it registered as a Trademark. Do you think this is silly or very important?
I am very concerned that I would have to start from scratch if someone wanted to come along and trademark the name before I got a chance to.
What are your thoughts, Maggie?
Beautifully written! Love you guys!