{"id":79206,"date":"2023-11-22T16:51:09","date_gmt":"2023-11-22T22:51:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/?p=79206"},"modified":"2023-11-22T16:51:09","modified_gmt":"2023-11-22T22:51:09","slug":"2-steps-to-wage-war-on-worry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/2-steps-to-wage-war-on-worry\/","title":{"rendered":"2 Steps to Wage War on Worry"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #339966;\"><strong>2 Steps to Wage War on Worry<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Over many years in church leadership, I\u2019ve learned that there are no more powerful tools at my disposal than prayer and the Word.<\/p>\n<p>You may be a naturally gifted leader, but eventually, that falls short, runs dry, or hits a lid. A deepened dependence upon God is your ultimate source for healthy, accomplished, and lasting leadership.<\/p>\n<p><strong>WAGE WAR ON WORRY<\/strong><br \/>\n<em>\u201cBut seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.\u201d\u00a0<\/em><br \/>\n<em>Matthew 6:33-34<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Worry is a waste of time, and we know it, but we still worry about stuff. We worry about our kids, problems at work, money matters, health issues, and who will be elected to office. We worry about big things and little things, but mostly about things that never happen.<\/p>\n<p>Being follically challenged (I\u2019m going bald) and growing up in Southern California means I received more than my share of sunshine. I\u2019ve had skin cancer on the top of my head twice now. Both times the doctor used a surgical technique called Mohs and declared me all clear. Nonetheless, the first time I had skin cancer, I worried about what might happen if it came back. The second time, I worried about getting it a third time.<\/p>\n<p>Do you see the pattern? Worrying about this is nothing more than wasted thoughts. A better remedy is to use sunblock, wear a hat, and get on with life!<\/p>\n<p>The real problem with worry is that it consumes productive energy and leaves you with little to show for your time except an inability to focus, a lack of confidence, and emotional exhaustion.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat if?\u201d is the battle cry of a leader who worries.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>What if the income doesn\u2019t come back up?<\/li>\n<li>What if we don\u2019t get the certificate of occupancy by grand opening?<\/li>\n<li>What if my leadership isn\u2019t accepted?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While some contingency planning is good for strategy, it\u2019s not a remedy for worry. Consider Jesus\u2019 words in Luke 12:25, \u201c<em>Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life?\u201d<\/em> The answer is none of us! Worry never adds value to your situation nor does it do anything to strengthen your soul. In fact, if we don\u2019t wage war on worry, the enemy actually has room to advance in stealthy ways to take soul territory.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Worry erodes your trust in God.<\/strong><br \/>\nIt\u2019s difficult to develop faith when you worry because they are contradictory concepts. Worry is focused on something undesirable that\u00a0<em>might<\/em>\u00a0happen, while faith is focused on the potential for a positive outcome based on God\u2019s provision.<\/p>\n<p>God isn\u2019t obligated to \u201cperform\u201d for us, but he has proven worthy of our trust and faith. In fact, there\u2019s never been a time when God made a mistake.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Worry dilutes your ability to serve and give yourself to others.<\/strong><br \/>\nWorry, like an illness, shrinks your world. The greater the illness, the smaller your world. When you\u2019re really sick, your focus is solely on yourself. It\u2019s not that you\u2019re selfish; you\u2019re simply consumed! Your heart and mind may still desire to give of yourself to others, but significant worry can considerably diminish your capacity to give.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Worry zaps you of physical, emotional, and mental energy.<\/strong><br \/>\nWorry is like leaving your flashlight permanently on. The battery that was designed to last for a long time with normal usage is completely drained in a couple of days. The light slowly grows dim and then flickers out.<\/p>\n<p>Likewise, worry drains your personal battery in a very short time. When operating your human engine in healthy ways, your God-given energy will cover all your needs.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Waging war on worry requires truth and action.<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Two Steps:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Confess that what you\u2019re worried about hasn\u2019t happened and acknowledge that every minute thinking about it is lost.<\/li>\n<li>Take action on what you can change. What you can\u2019t change isn\u2019t a problem. It\u2019s a fact of life that calls for you to adapt, not alter reality.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Do your best to replace your worried thoughts with these truths:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>God hasn\u2019t forgotten you; He\u2019s always with you.<\/strong><br \/>\nThrough the promise of Scripture and life experience, you know God is with you even if it doesn\u2019t always feel like it. Meditate on that truth.<\/p>\n<p><strong>You haven\u2019t been given more than you can handle.<\/strong><br \/>\nGod promises to give you strength, and when your problems seem overwhelming, the Holy Spirit comforts you.<\/p>\n<p><strong>You\u2019re not alone; there are always people who care about you.<\/strong><br \/>\nGod\u2019s presence takes on human form through friends and family. Don\u2019t overlook this significant blessing. Lean into their love and care.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Reflection:<\/strong>\u00a0 What are you worried about today for which you can trust God?<\/p>\n<p>\u00a9 2022\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mesoamericaregion.us4.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=03e55b045b4b2d81fc3a5a85b&amp;id=8d802c8f1a&amp;e=1e0613ef18\">Dan Reiland<\/a>\u00a0| The Pastor&#8217;s Coach \u2013 Developing Church Leaders<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>2 Steps to Wage War on Worry Over many years in church leadership, I\u2019ve learned that there are no more powerful tools at my disposal than prayer and the Word. You may be a naturally gifted leader, but eventually, that falls short, runs dry, or hits a lid. A deepened dependence upon God is your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/2-steps-to-wage-war-on-worry\/\"> <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":79203,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3380,4661,276,266],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-79206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","category-leadership-articles","category-resources-ndi","category-sunday-school-and-discipleship"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79206","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79206"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79206\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesonaz.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}