What are you worried about?
Illness, job uncertainties, travel, health, career, finances, relationships, family, children, parents, people, situations, project deadlines, upcoming exams/test/interviews/performance reviews/competitive events, …
Worry is a waste of time, when you know that God is with you and He is taking care of you. Trust God for the best outcome and move forward.
Do you know that you can remove your worries by recalling God’s love and care for you. Trust his words of assurance on his care and protection at all times; words such as Cast all your anxieties on him, for he cares about you. (1 Peter 5:7). Recite and memorize this verse. Try the 3-step-approach, for better results.
Steps
- Take a deep breath and feel the presence of Jesus.
- What are you worried about now? Tell Jesus about your worries or fears. Handover your worry or area of concern to Him and feel detached from it. Pray for a positive outcome.
- Remind yourself how many times Jesus has helped you in similar situations. Trust Jesus will bless you with the best outcome. Thank Jesus for his love and care. Be relaxed.
You might have eliminated your current worry by now. Persisting worries (or anxiety) may require taking some corrective or preventive actions.
- List down all your worries; identify the causes if possible.
- Determine what may happen under normal circumstances based on your past experience; determine the worst case scenario too (what is the worst thing that could possibly happen?). Resolve to accept the worst, should it occur.
- Know that God will protect you and give enough strength to face even the worst situation. Feel calm and peaceful in His presence. Remember about His protection you have received so far. Recall that most of your past worries never actually occurred; thank God for the blessings you have.
- Plan and do what may help to improve the situation. Ask ‘what corrective action can I take that will remove or minimize my worry?’ Take that action immediately.
Affirmation/mantra/self-talk:
- I don’t worry over insignificant things
- “Instead of worrying, I trust God to meet all my needs.” Say it again and again.
- “This is temporary!” or “This too shall pass”
- “Everything is going to be OK.”
- “Do not worry about tomorrow. .. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” – Matthew 6:34 or “One day at a time.” [for overwhelming situations]
More about worry
What is worry? Worry is a natural response to anticipated future problems. The positive purpose of worry is that it helps you to take precautions; mild worry helps you to be proactive. But some people overestimate future dangers and get worried about things they have no control or about insignificant issues. This type of worry drains your energy.
What causes worry?
For most of us, life is uncertain and there are many things going around over which we have no control. We often deal with unreliable systems and unpredictable people. We are vulnerable as human beings. So it is natural to feel anxious about our future. Yet it is possible to minimize its impact on our life.
When you imagine more negative outcome than positive outcome, it can cause worry. Worry is also caused when you are over-concerned about something. Too much attachment to a desire or an outcome causes worry.
Some people may have experienced traumatic situations in the past and this may trigger worry when they face similar situations.
For some people, worrying is a coping mechanism and gives a (false) feeling that they are doing something about the situation just by worrying. They are not doing anything to reduce the impact of the potential issue that they are worrying about, and they know that most worries never actually occur.
In work places, people often over-commit without adequate resources or skills. Not having a proper system for goal setting/planning/tracking can cause worry. Certain habits may be blocking progress and could bring worry. Relationships, ill-health, financial situations, new regulations can also be sources of worry. Worry is caused when you don’t have enough trust in God. When you rely on worldly forces more than God’s power, you feel worried.
ഉത്കണ്ഠകളെ എങ്ങിനെ അതിജീവിക്കാം: Tips from Fr. Manjali (video)
Word for Meditations 