Elisabeth
05-17-2007, 06:12 PM
This morning, as I was taking a bath, I looked up at the changing patterns of shadows up on the bathroom skylight as the sun was rising. And I felt such peace. I was wondering why I worry about so many things; things that are out of my control, things that can not be changed, and things I can change, but I can only change through work, not worry!
And I remembered that passage in Matthew 6 where Jesus says to consider the lilies of the fields and the birds of the air. And I realized something about that I had never considered before, and had never heard a preacher or teacher say before. See, we tend to concentrate on the part of that passage that says do not worry, but seek His kingdom and His righteousness, and also the verse in Philippians where Paul says to be anxious for nothing. And then some people will put people down for the sin of worrying. But there is something else to the passage in Matthew 6. If a person stops to really consider the lilies, or to study the small birds playing, or the large birds majestically soaring in the blue sky, stress and worry will melt off that person. And there are so many like that; smelling the roses is a phrase we have all heard. And in an earlier thread squirrels were mentioned. What about rocking a freshly bathed, content baby on a porch swing, or sitting under a tree on a nice spring day? This time of year in AZ, we have the flowers blooming on the saguaros, and oh, are they beautiful!
So I guess maybe the more "spiritual" way of dealing with worry is not by telling ourselves to stop it, because it's a sin, but by allowing ourselves to really see and smell some flowers and enjoying the birds in the sky!
And I remembered that passage in Matthew 6 where Jesus says to consider the lilies of the fields and the birds of the air. And I realized something about that I had never considered before, and had never heard a preacher or teacher say before. See, we tend to concentrate on the part of that passage that says do not worry, but seek His kingdom and His righteousness, and also the verse in Philippians where Paul says to be anxious for nothing. And then some people will put people down for the sin of worrying. But there is something else to the passage in Matthew 6. If a person stops to really consider the lilies, or to study the small birds playing, or the large birds majestically soaring in the blue sky, stress and worry will melt off that person. And there are so many like that; smelling the roses is a phrase we have all heard. And in an earlier thread squirrels were mentioned. What about rocking a freshly bathed, content baby on a porch swing, or sitting under a tree on a nice spring day? This time of year in AZ, we have the flowers blooming on the saguaros, and oh, are they beautiful!
So I guess maybe the more "spiritual" way of dealing with worry is not by telling ourselves to stop it, because it's a sin, but by allowing ourselves to really see and smell some flowers and enjoying the birds in the sky!