Category: Worry
Defined: breathe—to pause, as for breath; take rest
What it means to me: stay calm
My story:
This is a bit embarrassing, but here it is.
Not long ago, I did some grocery shopping. Pushing my cart across the parking lot, I reached into my bag for my car keys. Now, I don’t carry a large bag. I always have to reach behind my wallet for my keys. Except this time, there was no wallet in my bag.
Where is my wallet? I patted my jacket pocket. I stopped and looked in my bag. Nothing. Okay. Just breathe. I must have left it at the check-out counter. I’ll unload my groceries, and go back in. Everything will be fine.
By the time I got to the car, I had already planned on how to call and cancel my cards. I’ll need a new driver’s license. I think I have some cash at home…
So as I’m putting the bags into my trunk, I see my wallet inside one of the grocery bags. Yep, that’s the embarrassing part. I don’t know when I did that.
Anyway, of course, I was relieved to have found it, but this got me to thinking.
How quickly I jumped to worry mode. I went from zero to worried in about 30 seconds.
How often do we worry before we even know there is a problem?
It’s all well and good to talk about faith and all things working out for my good, until I actually need to take my own advice. In that moment, I failed. I know myself well enough to know that if I had actually lost my wallet, I would understand that it would work out just fine in the long run. And don’t get me wrong, I never got in a panic about it, but I did worry.
Takeaway: Not every situation is a problem to be solved. Sometimes we just need to wait and see what God will do. Just breathe.
Today’s goal: Today I will make the distinction between a real problem and an imagined scenario. Before I react, I will take a breath and know that all will be well.
Affirmation to go: