How to Overcome Worry with Praise

Worry, anxiety, and fear are probably some of the most talked about emotions in today’s time. We’ve all said “I’m not going to worry about it”, and yet we lay awake at night trying to think of a solution to the current problem. Then anxiety kicks in because we can’t control what is happening and fear soon follows because we can’t see the outcome of the situation.

I was reading in my Women’s Study Bible in the book of Ecclesiastes when I came across a commentary insert titled, “Antidote for Worry”. I really enjoy this Study Bible because it is beautiful and I love things that are pleasing to the eye, and it also speaks to the heart of a woman. It pulls out the things that are close to my heart as a woman so that I can delve into scripture a little more personally.

This excerpt is taken from The Study Bible for Women; Christian Standard Bible.

Biblical Womanhood “Antidote for Worry”

Women are constantly bombarded with temptations to worry. Ecclesiastes 11:7-12:1 does not specifically mention worry, but the Teacher commends an outlook on life that can serve as an antidote:

• Life is good (11:7). The Teacher affirms that it is pleasing…to see the sun, a reference to the goodness of simply being alive. He calls both young (11:9) and old to rejoice, a verb enlisting active celebration. Worry is not compatible with the attitude of embracing the inherent goodness of life itself as God’s good gift. Doing something that outwardly demonstrated the truth that life itself is good leaves little room for anxiety about how a moment, day, or year will turn out.

• Life includes dark days (11:8). Life is good despite the days of adversity (12:1) that everyone experiences. You cannot worry them away. Do remember the days of darkness (11:8)-whether past, present, or future, and whether in your life or the lives of others- not as catalysts for worrying but as contrasts enhancing recognition of the inherent goodness of life itself. Worry competes with faith in God’s ability to redeem any situation for good. (Rm 8:28), with trust in God’s faithfulness, and with hope in His promise to render justice in the end (Ec 11:9).

• Life is Short (11:10). Here, as throughout the book, the Teacher points out the fleeting nature of life and its futility not to incite readers to recoil from life in fear and dread but to recognize that it has meaning only from the Creator’s perspective. Whatever threatens to cut life short invites worry. The woman who has addressed the inevitability of death and the aging process (chapter 12) is better equipped to face with confidence whatever life brings. Discernment between what has eternal value and what does not last can dispel many worries and yield more fruitful investment of mental and emotional energy in God’s priorities.

• Judgment is certain and belongs to God alone (11:9). Essentially, worry is an effort to control what belongs solely to God’s control. No amount of worry can change or undo the past. What you can do is to live obediently in the present-especially praying fervently and sharing the gospel so that both the present life and eternal destination of others can be changed. Only God knows the future. Apart from the glimpses He has revealed in His Word and the certainty of the promises He has made, no one is privy to the future. Worrying changes nothing but your health in this earthly life “under the sun.” Regarding issues of justice and inexplicable evil, Scripture makes clear that although God does not always intervene or make things right in ways you can see or in your timing, He does hold everyone accountable (Rm 14:10-12; 2Co 5:10; Heb 9:27)

Approaching life with an outlook marked by these four truths fits the challenge of Ec 11:1-6 to live soberly, recognizing that “you don’t know” what God knows. It also fortifies your heart against the constant temptation to fear (i.e. worry about) everything but God. (end excerpt)

When you begin to feel as though worry and fear are taking over, it’s time to break away from those feelings and begin to praise God. Praising God takes the focus off of your current situation and allows you to lift your true heart to the One who deserves all praise.

Praise: (The Study Bible for Women)

• A declaration of and/or call to praise God – i.e., to glorify and honor God by proclaiming who He is

• The recounting of what God has done in creation and /or redemption

• A description of God’s acts of deliverance or of His greatness and compassion

Here are several chapters in the book of Psalms I would like to share with you that you can read when you feel you want to focus on praising God.

Psalms
8, 19, 33,
66, 68, 95,
100, 103, 104,
111, 113, 114,
117, 145, 147,
148, 149, 150

Worry, anxiety and fear may be some of the most talked about emotions in today’s time, but that does not mean it has to control how you feel. Choose to praise God in your circumstance and give to Him what you cannot control. I pray that these “praise verses” are ones that will flow from your heart and bless you.