Lazy Sunday

As I get more honest with myself, and learn to be aware of how I am feeling, I get to see some things in me that I don't really like. Things I never would have thought I struggled with or dealt with in my life are becoming more apparent. My supposed, "I don't really struggle with that" syndrome is wearing off, at least a little bit...

One thing I have learned is that I can be a very controlling, and I believe, therefore anxious person. Uptight, worry-full, stressed out to the MAX... whatever you want to call it.

The other day I spent time reading over some Scriptures directly related to worry, including this one:

...casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7 ESV.

I was laden with fear and worry at the time over a specific thing, and the Scriptures helped me to hang on to another way of thinking. A more godly way of thinking. A heavenly way of thinking. Jesus' way of thinking.

All my fear and worry can cause me to be preoccupied and disconnected from the task at hand, especially when it comes to my family. Instead of giving them my full attention, they get leftovers, if there are any. My body is there, but my mind is elsewhere.

So why "Lazy Sunday"? Today was a wonderful day of anything but worry-full and anxious. I've had to work hard at it, fighting moment to moment sometimes to keep from giving in to the anxieties that can invade my mind. But there has been definite progress.

This picture of my daughter on our swing was a perfect snapshot of my heart today - carefree and peaceful. I was able to enjoy my family more, laugh more, and not be weighed down and preoccupied about "stuff." Stuff that didn't go away, mind you. The stuff still exists, but God is helping me to walk day by day without worry, even in the midst of the potential anxieties of life. God didn't promise that life wouldn't throw at us things that might cause us to worry, but He did say that He would be with us in the midst of it.

So praise God... for His Word and His love towards us. And how He empowers us to live with peace and joy in the midst of the chaos of life.