One of my long-time friends, a guy I’ve known since the prehistoric days of junior high school, had brain surgery this morning. Some undiagnosed physical issues pointed to the possibility of a tumor, so, in my friend’s words, “The doctors are going fishing to see if they can determine the nature of the unknown tenant.”
Brain surgery is one of those events that lends a sense of perspective to our day-to-day lives. The other “important” issues shrink somewhat in comparison to having a hole drilled in your skull.
I tend to be a worrier. I worry about finances, I worry about the future, and when things are going well I worry about not being worried. I constantly try to guard against this temptation, but still I fall too often into its grasp.
I believe that worry is the enemy’s way of immobilizing me. Rather than focusing on places in which I might create meaningful impact, I waste precious time and energy fussing about issues beyond my influence. Each time I’m caught in this trap, my sense of power actually decreases. It’s a vicious, negative cycle.
Jesus framed this idea as a simple, penetrating question: “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” (Matthew 6:27)
As I thought about my friend during the day, I tried hard to focus on the obvious answer to this question. Worry accomplishes nothing except to waste the gift of each moment. Every time I began to worry, I stopped instead and said a brief prayer. I’m not very good about doing that in times of stress, but today I discovered an unfamiliar sense of peace in a rejection of worry.
“Not worrying” doesn’t mean living in denial. Test results won’t be back for a few days, and there’s still a wide spectrum of possible outcomes. But today, for a short period, I encountered the blessing contained in the answer to Jesus’ question.
What are you worrying about? How can you use that time and energy in a more positive manner?
P.S.–I talked to my buddy’s wife after the surgery, and she told me that it went well but that they had discovered something “abnormal.” In my kind, sensitive way, I chuckled. “Given the brain they were exploring, does ‘abnormal’ really surprise you?” We’ve been friends for a long time–if I was too nice, he’d think something was wrong!
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