WORRY

“Worry often gives a small thing a big shadow”

Swedish Proverb

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Worry For The Worried”

Many folks worry about things that never happen. It is like the patient in the mental hospital, holding his ear close to the wall, listening intently. The attendant finally approached.
"Sh!" whispered the patient, beckoning him over.
The attendant pressed his ear to the wall for a long time. "I can't hear a thing," he finally said.
"No," replied the patient, "it's been like that all day!"

LEADER: “An Average Person is Focused on:”

http://www.entwagon.com/cgi-bin/quotes/quotes.pl?cat=Worry&id=2

· 40%—things that will never happen

· 30%—things about the past that can’t be changed

· 12%—things about criticism by others, mostly untrue

· 10%—about health, which gets worse with stress

· 8%—about real problems that will be faced

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “The Grand Canyon of Worry” By Tony Beckett

http://www.backtothebible.org/radio/today.htm/21510 EXERPT

Dan Norton wrote: It begins with a slow drip, hardly even noticeable. Gradually the drip becomes a trickle, following whatever path it can find, picking up speed, growing larger and stronger. Over time it wears into a rut, then a gully. And, one day you're faced with the Grand Canyon all because of a drop of water.

Well, something like that can happen in the Christian life, only it's not so pleasant. It starts with a little worry. Then more worries are added. And, it grows and grows until eventually it becomes unmanageable fear. That's when you lose every joy in life.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #3

“As a rule, men worry more about what they can't see than about what they can.”

Julius Caesar 101-44 BC, Roman Emperor

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Worry – Champion or Chump” #1 By Tony Britt

EXCERPT

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=38039&ContributorID=6234

There was a survey taken by USA Today citing major sources of worry. 36% said work is the biggest source of stress – 22% money – 10% children – 7% health – 5% marriage – 5% parents – 5% no stress at all – 19% little stress. You could do this survey in a lot of places and get similar results.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #4

http://www.entwagon.com/cgi-bin/quotes/quotes.pl?cat=Worry&id=2

"There is little peace or comfort in life if we are always anxious as to future events. He that worries himself with the dread of possible contingencies will never be at rest."

Samuel Johnson 1709-1784 Author/Poet

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #5

“Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow; it empties today of its strength.”

Corrie Ten Boom 1892-1983 Hid Jews during Holocaust /Author

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #6

http://www.entwagon.com/cgi-bin/quotes/quotes.pl?cat=Worry&id=2

“We consume our tomorrows fretting about our yesterdays.”

Persius 34-62 AD, Satirical Poet

LEADER: Worry will not change the result, but worry will change you… it will change your peace of mind and your health:

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Worry – Champion or Chump” #2 By Tony Britt

EXCERPT

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=38039&ContributorID=6234

A story is told about a man who came face to face with the dangers of worry:
Death was walking toward a city one morning and a man asked, "What are you going to do?"
"I’m going to take 100 people," Death replied.
"That’s horrible!" the man said.
"That’s the way it is," Death said. "That’s what I do."
The man hurried to warn everyone he could about Death’s plan.
As evening fell, he met Death again.
"You told me you were going to take 100 people," the man said. "Why did 1,000 die?"
"I kept my word," Death responded. "I only took 100 people. Worry took the others."
This interesting tale portrays so well the fact that half of all the people in America’s hospital beds are constant worriers. 43% of all adults suffer health effects due to worry and stress. 75% - 90% of all visits to primary care physicians are stress-related complaints or disorders. Worry has been linked to all the leading causes of death including heart disease, cancer, lung ailments, accidents, cirrhosis and suicide. An estimated 1 million workers are absent on an average workday because of stress related complaints. Stress is said to be responsible for more than half of the 550 million workdays lost annually because of absenteeism. 43% of all employee turnover is related to job stress. Mental distress can even lead to death. Add to the list the mental fatigue of nights without sleep and days without peace, and we get a glimpse of the havoc worry plays in destroying the quality and quantity of life.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #7

http://www.entwagon.com/cgi-bin/quotes/quotes.pl?cat=Worry&id=2

“Worry affects the circulation, the heart, the glands, the whole nervous system. I have never known a man who died from over work, but many who died from doubt.”

Dr. Charles Horace Mayo 1865-1939 Surgeon/Mayo Clinic

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Why Worry” #1 EXERPT

http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon1a/whyworry.htm

According to Ken Anderson, nine times out of ten, the worrying about something does more damage to the one who worries than the thing he or she is worrying about.
Anderson continues, "Modern medical research has proved that worry breaks down resistance to disease. More than that, it diseases the nervous system—particularly that of the digestive organs and of the heart." Concern is needed to keep us on track with our responsibilities, but worry, like stress, is a killer.
An examination of 500 patients in a British clinic showed that more than one-third of their visual problems were caused by emotional tension. And a survey of some 5,000 university students showed that worriers get the lowest grades.
The word "worry" comes from an old Anglo-Saxon word meaning to strangle or to choke. While we need to be attentive to life's concerns, worrying about them "chokes" the joy out of life. Worrying is like driving a car with one foot on the accelerator and the other foot on the brake.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #8

"The reason why worry kills more people than hard work is that more people worry than work."

Robert Frost Poet/ 4-Time Pulitzer Prize Winner
HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #9

http://www.entwagon.com/cgi-bin/quotes/quotes.pl?cat=Worry&id=2

"Worry is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all other thoughts are drained."

Author Somers Roche 1883-1935 American author

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #10

“Worry a little bit every day and in a lifetime you will lose a couple of years. If something is wrong, fix it if you can. But train yourself not to worry. Worry never fixes anything.”

Mary Hemingway – Wife of Ernest Hemingway

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Mental Stress Stats”

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=42927&ContributorID=6997

According to John MacArthur, some years ago, the Mayo Clinic stated that statistically 80 percent to 85 percent of their total case load were ill either in reality or artificially due directly to mental stress. Also according to MacArthur, not too long ago, there appeared an article in a leading medical journal entitled, "Is Stress the Cause of All Disease?" The author of the article says that at the beginning of the century, bacteria were considered to be the center of attention. Today, mental stress has replaced bacteria.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Don’t Be Such Worry-Warts!” By Dewayne Gamez

EXCERPT

Many experts say that coping with stress is the #1 health priority of our day. One leading physician has stated that, in his opinion, 70% of all medical patients could cure themselves if only they got rid of their worries and fears. We know that medical science has closely tied worry to heart trouble, blood pressure problems, ulcers, thyroid malfunction, migraine headaches, a host of stomach disorders, amongst others. For example 25 mill Americans have high blood pressure due to stress/anxiety; 1 million more develop high blood pressure each year. 8 million have stomach ulcers every week 112 million people take medication for stress related symptoms.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #11

"A Johns Hopkins doctor says that "we do not know why it is that the worriers die sooner than the non-worriers, but that is a fact." But I, who am simple of mind, think I know; we are inwardly constructed, in nerve and tissue and brain cell and soul, for faith and not for fear. God made us that way. Therefore, the need of faith is not something imposed on us dogmatically, but it is written in us intrinsically. We cannot live without it. To live by worry is to live against Reality."

Eli Stanley Jones 1884- ? Missionary/Author/Evangelist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #12

“There is nothing that wastes the body like worry, and one who has any faith in God should be ashamed to worry about anything whatsoever."

Ghandi 1869-1948 Indian spiritual and political leader

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Romans 8:6

⁶For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,

LEADER: Let’s look at some solutions:

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #13

"Do not anticipate trouble, or worry about what may never happen. Keep in the sunlight."

Benjamin Franklin 1706-1790 Entrepreneur/Statesman/Scientist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #14

http://www.entwagon.com/cgi-bin/quotes/quotes.pl?cat=Worry&id=2

"I've had a lot of worries in my life, most of which have never happened."

Mark Twain 1835-1910 American Author

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #15

“How much pain worries have cost us that have never happened?”

Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826 Third US President

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #16

"What a pity that so many people rather believe their doubts And doubt their beliefs. . . Why don't we just decide to have no doubts, And believe your beliefs!"

Jannie Putter – South Africa

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Proverbs 12:25

²⁵Anxiety in a man's heart weighs it down, But a good word makes it glad.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #17

At age 96: “For every worry under the sun There is a remedy or there is none. If there is a remedy, hurry and find it. If there is none, never mind it."

Le Grand Richards 1886-1983 American religious leader

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #18

http://www.entwagon.com/cgi-bin/quotes/quotes.pl?cat=Worry&id=2

"To be under pressure is inescapable. Pressure takes place through all the world; war, siege, the worries of state. We all know men who grumble under these pressures and complain. They are cowards. They lack splendour. But there is another sort of man who is under the same pressure but does not complain, for it is the friction which polishes him. It is the pressure which refines and makes him noble"

Saint Augustine of Hippo 334-430 Algerian Bishop of Hippo

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #19

“Let our advance worrying become advance thinking and planning.”

Winston Churchill 1874-1965, British Statesman, Prime Minister

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #20

"Time and happenings and the grace of God are the best solvers of puzzles. One must leave much to these, if he is not to worry himself into premature senility."

Alex Dow 1862-1947 Engineering Doctorate

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #21

"Once a decision was made, I did not worry about it afterward."

Harry Truman 1884-1972 33rd US President

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #22

"If you have enough push, you don't have to worry about the pull."

Zig Ziglar 1926- , Master sales trainer, author, motivating speaker

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #23

"If only the people who worry about their liabilities would think about the riches they do possess, they would stop worrying."

Dale Carnegie 1888-1955

Author "How to Make Friends & Influence People"

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #24

"The best cure for worry, depression, melancholy, brooding, is to go deliberately forth and try to lift with one's sympathy the gloom of somebody else."

Arnold Bennett 1867-1931 English novelist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “He Chose Wednesdays to Worry”

J. Arthur Rank, an English executive, decided to do all his worrying on one day each week. He chose Wednesdays. When anything happened that gave him anxiety and annoyed his ulcer, he would write it down and put it in his worry box and forget about it until next Wednesday.

The interesting thing was that on the following Wednesday when he opened his worry box, he found that most of the things that had disturbed him the past six days were already settled. It would have been useless to have worried about them.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #25

If you want to know the secret to getting the most from your day . . . then simply refer to the advice given to Charles Schwab, the president of US Steel, at the early part of this century: "Write down the most important things you have to do tomorrow. Now, number them in the order of their true importance. The first thing tomorrow morning, start working on an item Number 1, and stay with it until completed. Then take item Number 2 the same way. Then Number 3, and so on. Don't worry if you don't complete everything on the schedule. At least you will have completed the most important projects before getting to the less important ones.""

Ivy Lee – Efficiency Expert

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “How to Conquer Worry”

FROM: cf. Happiness is a Choice, p. 171

· Get plenty of rest; troubles often look smaller as you get closer.

· Distinguish between those parts of life you can control and those you can’t.

· Check your goals—are you worrying about unrealistic ambitions?

· Depend on God.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #26

"I see that I am inwardly fashioned for faith and not for fear. Fear is not my native land; faith is. I am so made that worry and anxiety are sand in the machinery of life; faith is oil. I live better by faith and confidence than by fear and doubt and anxiety. In anxiety and worry my being is gasping for breath — these are not my native air. But in faith and confidence I breath freely — these are my native air."

Eli Stanley Jones 1884-? Missionary/Author/Evangelist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Our Heavy Sack”

"A wayfarer carried a heavy sack about which he complained unceasingly. From none could he get help or comfort. And as he slowly journeyed, groaning under his burden, the Angel of Optimism came to him and spoke kindly, saying: "Brother, what does thou carry?" The man answered surlily, "My worries." The angel smiled pityingly upon him and said, "Let us look into thy burden and examine thy worries." And so they looked in. But lo! the sack was empty. "Why surely," cried the man, "there were two great worries, too heavy for man to bear. But—ah, yes, I had forgot—one was a worry of yesterday, and so it is gone." "And the other?" "That—why, that was a worry of tomorrow, and it—it has not yet come." Then the angel smiled with infinite pity, saying: "Hearken! He who bows himself down under the worries of yesterday and tomorrow wears himself out for naught. But he who carries only the worries of today has no need of a sack for his sorrows. If thou will cast this black thing aside, and give all thy strength and cheer and courage to the things of today, real misfortune never can burden thee." Wondering, the man did as the angel commanded. And as he took up his journey and went lightly, swiftly on, his heart and his hands were free to relieve many a brother wayfarer of his burden and to pluck sweet fruits and flowers along the wayside. And when he came at last to the setting of the sun it was with smiles and a song."

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “If He Did The Best He Could, It would Be Finished.”

FROM: Today in the Word, September 5, 1995, p. 32.

While touring Italy, a man visited a cathedral that had been completed on the outside only. Once inside, the traveler found an artist kneeling before an enormous wall upon which he had just begun to create a mosaic. On some tables nearby were thousands of pieces of colored ceramic. Curious, the visitor asked the artist how he would ever finish such a large project. The artist answered that he knew how much he could accomplish in one day. Each morning, he marked off an area to be completed that day and didn’t worry about what remained outside that space. That was the best he could do; and if he faithfully did his best, one day the mosaic would be finished.

LEADER: If we do the best we can in each day and trust in God to carry our load…at day’s end we can be satisfied.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #27

“Every evening I turn worries over to God. He’s going to be up all night anyway.”

Mary C. Crowley – Author “ Be Somebody”

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #28

"Most of our conflicts and difficulties come from trying to deal with the spiritual and practical aspects of our life separately instead of realizing them as parts of one whole. If our practical life is centered on our own interests, cluttered up by possessions, distracted by ambitions, passions, wants and worries, beset by a sense of our own rights and importance, or anxieties for our own future, or longings for our own success, we need not expect that our spiritual life will be a contrast to all this. The soul's house is not built on such a convenient plan; there are few soundproof partitions in it. Only when the conviction — not merely the idea — that the demand of the Spirit, however inconvenient, rules the whole of it, will those objectionable noises die down which have a way of penetrating into the nicely furnished little oratory and drowning all the quieter voices by their din."

Evelyn Underhill – Author “The Spiritual Life”

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #29

http://www.entwagon.com/cgi-bin/quotes/quotes.pl?cat=Worry&id=2

"Ere thou sleepest, gently lay Every troubled thought away; Put off worry and distress As thou puttest off thy dress; Drop thy burden and thy care In the quiet arms of prayer. Lord thou knowest how I live, All I'VE DONE AMISS FORGIVE; ALL OF GOOD I'VE TRIED TO DO STRENGTHEN, bless and carry through; All I love in safety keep While in Thee I fall asleep."

Henry Van Dyke 1852-1933 American clergyman & writer

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #30

“Do not worry; eat three square meals a day; say your prayers; be courteous to your creditors; keep your digestion good; exercise; go slow and easy. Maybe there are other things your special case requires to make you happy, but my friend, these I reckon will give you a good lift.”

Abraham Lincoln 1809-1865, Sixteenth US President

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Let God Worry”

A widow who had successfully raised a very large family was being interviewed by a reporter. In addition to six children of her own, she had adopted 12 other youngsters, and through it all she had maintained stability and an air of confidence. When asked the secret of her outstanding accomplishment, her answer to the newsman was quite surprising. She said "I managed so well because I'm in a partnership!" "What do you mean?" he inquired. The woman replied, "Many years ago I said, 'Lord, I'll do the work and You do the worrying.' And I haven't had an anxious care since." We could all profit by following the example of that mother. When we carry our part of the load, we need not be disturbed by the demands of life.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: I Peter 5:7

⁷casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Worry For The Worried” By Elizabeth Cheney

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=38039&ContributorID=6234

   Said the Robin to the Sparrow,
     "I should really like to know
   Why these anxious human beings
     Rush about and hurry so."
   Said the Sparrow to the Robin,
     "Friend, I think that it must be
   That they have no Heavenly Father
     Such as cares for you and me."

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Matthew 6:25-34 (ALL TURN TO)

²⁵"For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ²⁶"Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? ²⁷"And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? ²⁸"And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin,

²⁹yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. ³⁰"But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! ³¹"Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?' ³²"For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
³⁴"So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Worry – Champion or Chump” #3 By Tony Britt

EXCERPT

Lets look at what Jesus says about worry. This is part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Jesus is speaking to a large crowd of people on the mountainside. Verse 25 says, “therefore, I tell you do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food and the body more important than clothes? Jesus makes a bold statement in saying do not worry about your life.
Some of us think, “ I know Jesus said it, but that’s impossible”. Does the fact that Jesus said these things mean that we shouldn’t eat or wear any clothes? Of course not! Jesus is saying that we get so caught up and fret about what we gone wear.
The Greek word translated do not worry literally means “to be drawn in different directions.” Worry pulls us apart. Until we as humans interferes, everything in nature works together, because all of nature trusts God. People, however, are pulled apart because we try to live our lives by depending on material wealth. Jesus was saying God has built into His Creation the means by which all things are cared for. The birds are fed because they diligently work to maintain their lives. They do not store up great amounts of food, but continually work.! The lilies grow daily through a natural process. Therefore an individual need not be anxious about his existence
Life is more important than food or drink and the body more important than clothes. Worrying has a big affect in our world and quite possible here today.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Worry – Champion or Chump” #4 By Tony Britt

EXCERPT

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=38039&ContributorID=6234

If you decided today “ I’m not going to worry”, many of you equate this with not taking action. For example, if you said I’m not gone worry about what I will eat – what I will wear – my house, my job, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t fix you and the kids a meal or that you walk out the house naked or you don’t take care of your house or you just decide that’s it, I’m not going to work tomorrow. No! No! No! Do not worry means that you stop fretting over your life – stop letting all the things in life consume and takeover your mind.
Do not worry about your life. Why? Because verse 26 says “look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” We don’t have to worry about what we’re going to eat because just as God takes care of the bird, our heavenly father will definitely take care of us. God cares for the birds and we are much more valuable than any birds or animal – so God will definitely provide for his children. We don’t have to worry because God promises to take care of our needs.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Worry – Champion or Chump” #5 By Tony Britt

EXCERPT

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=38039&ContributorID=6234

How do we get relief? No R-O-L-A-I-D-S! But verse 33 says, “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be added as well”.
The word “seek” (zeteo) means to go after; to strive; to pursue; to desire; to aim at; to search for; to endeavor to get. The believer’s life is not to be preoccupied with material things, as necessary as some things are. The believer is first of all to be seeking after the kingdom of God and His righteousness.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Trusting In Worry”

http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon1a/whyworry.htm

If we worry, we can't trust; if we trust, we can't worry.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Psalm 139:23

²³Search me, O God, and know my heart;

Try me and know my anxious thoughts;

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Why Worry” #2 EXERPT

One antidote for worry is trust and trust is a choice. When things aren't going well and I am prone to worry, I keep praying until the storm passes, "Dear God, I choose to trust you in this situation no matter how I feel." In time my feelings catch up with my choice and the worry gives way to calm.
Meaningful worship, supportive relationships, sharing my feelings with a trusted friend, physical exercise, proper diet, deep breathing relaxation exercises and sufficient rest all help--PLUS learning to pray about the causes of our worry and not just the symptoms is a major key in learning to win over worry.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #31

"The sovereign cure for worry is prayer."

William James 1842-1910 American philosopher & psychologist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #32

"Time spent on the knees in prayer will do more to remedy heart strain and nerve worry than anything else."

George David Stewart, Author

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Ten Spiritual Tonics” By Abraham L. Feinberg

http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon1a/whyworry.htm

1. Stop worrying. Worry kills life.

2. Begin each day with a prayer. It will arm your soul.

3. Control appetite. Over-indulgence clogs body and mind.

4. Accept your limitations . . .

5. Don't envy. It wastes time and energy.

6. Have faith in people. Cynicism sours the disposition.

7. Find a hobby. It will relax your nerves.

8. Read a book a week to stimulate imagination and broaden your views. 9. Spend some time alone for the peace of solitude and silence.

10. Try to want what you have, instead of spending your strength trying to get what you want."

LEADER: Do you want peace?

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Philippians 4:6-8

⁶Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
⁷And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
⁸Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Fret not – He loves you

John 13:1

¹Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Faint not – He holds you

Psalm 139:10

¹⁰Even there Your hand will lead me,

And Your right hand will lay hold of me.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Fear not – He keeps you

Psalm 121:5

⁵The LORD is your keeper, The LORD is your shade on your right hand.

LEADER: Fret not – Faint not – Fear not.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Why Worry” #3 EXERPT

All the water in the world

However hard it tried,

Could never, never sink a ship

Unless it got inside.

All the hardships of this world,

Might wear you pretty thin,

But they won't hurt you, one least bit

Unless you let them in.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “While There Is Time” By Grace E. Easley

"While there is time Lord, May I use it well, 'Tis gone in a moment, One never can tell Which day is our last one, With so much to do, All must be in order, When summoned by You. While there is time, Lord, And life is my own, Let me bring gladness To someone alone. Renew a small hope, Rekindle a dream, For shadows are never As dark as they seem, While there is time, Lord Let me not waste The chances you give me, I cannot replace, Lend me your wisdom, That I may learn To give of myself, Nor ask a return. Let me be gentle, Keep my words kind, In spite of the worries, Crossing my mind. And when at long last, Life's sun starts to set, Let me have never A cause for regret."

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Give Everything to God”

Hudson Taylor, missionary to China and founder of what is today known as the Overseas Missionary Fellowship, gave this excellent advice:

“Let us give up our work, our plans, ourselves, our lives, our loved ones, our influence, our all, right into God’s hand; and then, when we have given all over to Him, there will be nothing left for us to be troubled about.”

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Live Day By Day” FROM: Our Daily Bread

http://www.upperroom.org/devotional/default.asp?start_pos=1&item_id=35900

“I heard a voice at evening softly say,

Bear not your yesterdays into tomorrow,

Nor load this week with last week’s load of sorrow.

Lift all your burdens as they come, nor try

To weigh the present with the by-and-by.

One step and then another, take your way;

Live day by day!”

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Worry Weary” By Jane E. Maxwell The Upper Room

Through the years, I have learned to lessen my worrying by following four steps:

· First, I stop and give thanks for whatever is happening and remind myself that God is in control.

· Second, I empty out all my fears and anxieties at the end of each day, consciously committing people and situations into God's care.

· Third, I fill my mind with the promises of God, which will never fail, by studying the Bible regularly. Finally, as I go about my daily work, I visualize Jesus walking beside me, guiding me in my decisions, giving me strength when I am weary, and helping me handle one step at a time.

· These steps help me to experience the "peace . . . which surpasses all understanding"

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #33

http://www.entwagon.com/cgi-bin/quotes/quotes.pl?cat=Worry&id=2

“Stop worrying about the potholes in the road and celebrate the journey!”

Barbara Hoffman, Author

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Lamentations 3:22-23

²²The LORD'S lovingkindnesses indeed never cease,
         For His compassions never fail.
      ²³They are new every morning;
         Great is Your faithfulness.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Memo From God”