Christian Living

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The Progression of Worry
By Dan Langerock

I was looking through the Spanish dictionary the other day, when I came across three words that spell out the progression of worry in a person’s life, if they let it.

To worry preocuparse

This is the word we get “preoccupy”. Think about what happens to you when you worry, you think about the object of the worry a lot during the day, trying to solve it. No matter what you try to think about, your mind automatically comes back to that subject. You may even lose sleep because you are so involved in solving the problem that both your subconscious and conscious minds are working on it.

To fuss quejarse

This is when you begin to show that the situation is out of control. It begins to manifest itself in your outward demeanor and how you interact with others. You may be hard to get along with in this stage and irritable. You may not want to, but you tend to take it out on others around you.





To wear away desgastarse

Gradually, as you let worry progress in your life, it will begin to wear away or erode the good things in your life. They may still be there, but you will be so involved with what you are worrying about, that you won’t be able to enjoy or appreciate the good things, let alone recognize them.

It reminds me of how the land is gradually eroded by a river due to the flow of water. You probably won’t see big chunks of soil being moved, but little by little it is worn away until things on the banks may be in danger. This is what happens in your life. You probably don’t see the good things in your life as you once did, and you have more of a negative attitude as a result. This doesn’t happen all at once, but like the river, it takes a little each day away from the land.

How has worry affected your life? Are you as happy as you once were? Do you see the blessings that come your way or does someone have to mention them to you before they can be seen and appreciated? Can you see the progression of these three words in your own life? Please think about this when you are tempted to worry about something. God wants you to be free from worry but you must make a conscious choice to allow God to take your worries instead of trying to carry them yourself.

I Peter 5:7 says: “Cast all your cares upon Me”, says the Lord, “because I care about you. Have you given God the heartaches and worries of your life? Don’t you yearn to be free of that nagging at your mind and soul every hour of every day? God is waiting for you to relinquish your cares to Him, because He loves you so very much. Make a fresh start and let God take that weight off your shoulders. He loves you!

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