Therefore, do not worry

We do worry, however.

On this day in 1989 a child was born. A small, premature little boy. The last child of his mother. A tiny thing, not much bigger than a Barbie doll.

“What would you like us to do, Mrs. Confere?” the neonatologist asked.

“I don’t understand. What do you mean?” I responded.

“At 24 weeks gestation, and one-pound nine-ounces, your son has less than a ten percent chance of making it through the night. We need to know what you want us to do?”

“You do what you are trained to do, “I said. “The rest is up to God.”

At the time I thought that was the most difficult night of my life. I knew there would be no more children. I was just 24 years old and all four of my pregnancies were problematic. My first two pregnancies ended with premature births, both girls, both died within hours of being born.

Only one, my third child, was born at term. That pregnancy was nursed along with months of in-hospital restriction to bed, hourly medications, and no less than weekly trips to labor and delivery for additional medications via I.V. to stop preterm labor.

I put the life of my new son in the hands of God. The next morning, I took him back. When things became difficult again, he dropped weight, he wouldn’t eat, he may have had a seizure, I gave him back to the Lord. When things improved, I took him back. It was a pattern that would repeat many times over the next 23 years.

Matthew tells us:

Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. – Matthew 6:34 NIV

We do worry, however. It is the nature of our beings. Yet the Lord clearly instructs us to give our cares to Him. It becomes easier as we learn to trust in Him. For some, the trust comes immediately upon repentance, and asking the Lord to live within us. For others, it may take a little more time. The narrow gate and straight path are the same for everyone, but the journey is different.

When we find ourselves in a state of worry it is important for us to call upon the Lord. We aren’t troubling him. He is there to hear us. The simple act of speaking with Him will help us experience the release of our anxiety.

You do not need any special chants or magical words to speak with the Lord. He hears us. You might simply say, “Help!” You might not say anything at all. We know the Lord hears even the groaning of our spirits.

When I find myself in a troublesome spot, I tend to start my conversation with Him with, “Oh, Lord Father! I am in a mess,” then I fill in what is going on. I often say that I don’t know what to do, and I need Him to take it on. I finish up the conversation with something like, “Thank you Father. I ask for your help in the name of your son Jesus. Amen.”

Today is one of the three days of the year when I do not actively participate in social media. This is scheduled, so it will post automatically. I won’t be interacting with anyone via social media. Other than producing my church live stream on social media I likely won’t even log in.