The
Antidote
to Nagging Worry and Sleepless Nights
By Dr. Laurel Shaler
Jesus talks a lot about not being
afraid. In fact, He devotes Matthew
6:25–34 to instructing us not to worry.
He tells us that we don’t need to
worry about our lives because God
will take care of all the details. He
also reminds us that, even when life
gets really rough, worrying does not
add a single moment to our lives.
So – why do we continue to worry?
More important, how can we get rid
of this nagging worry that keeps us
up all hours of the night, tossing and
turning?
Excessive concern over a current
or possible circumstance, and our
lack of control, can take hold and
trap us into ruminating, or staying
stuck on repetitive thoughts. The
reality is that worry
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chokes us. Worry can make us feel
like we can’t even breathe. In fact,
Mark 4:19 says that worry chokes out
the Word of God—the Truth. Jesus
also said this when He taught the
parable of the sower.
From a boat on the lake, Jesus was
teaching a crowd, standing on the
shore, when He began talk-ing to
them about seeds. Using a metaphor
they were familiar with, He explained
that when the farmer throws out
seeds, there are different
responses to the seed.
I imagine the crowd
nodding. They
knew the chal-
lenges of
farming.