*Note: this writing is a follow-up to my previous post about worry. It may be helpful to first read “Don’t Worry.”
God doesn’t always work mysteriously. Sometimes we can tell exactly the way he wants to grow our faith. I found myself wrestling worry the very day after I offered my thoughts here on what we can do about it.
Abby Kate climbed in the car that Tuesday, hurt and frustrated. Two kids in her STEAM class were mocking her. What’s worse, one of them was a girl Abby Kate had shown kindness to when the girl was a new kid at school.
Since there were only 4 days left in the school year, I sought the simplest solution. With Abby Kate’s permission, I emailed her STEAM teacher and asked that she move Abby Kate away from the mean kids.
(Let someone help you.)
Still, by bedtime Abby Kate’s emotions had escalated to worry. Her prayer notes from a virtual GA (Girls in Action) meeting earlier that evening read:
“Please help me to not be bullied…”
After I tucked her in, we talked to God. We asked Him to soften the hearts of her classmates so they would be kind and we asked Him to give Abby Kate courage.
(Pray.)
The teacher followed through Wednesday in separating the students but on Thursday the two returned to their usual seats. Their hearts were still hard as they continued to tease.
“Just one more day,” I said reassuringly to Abby Kate on our way home after school.
Friday offered promise in that Abby Kate would not have STEAM class because of a schoolwide awards ceremony. The hitch in my hope was that the early part of the day included outdoor free time. I wondered if the kids would hunt for her so they could continue to taunt.
I wondered…
Wonder is a precursor to worry, isn’t it? Our minds create all sorts of scenarios as we sort through “what if.” Trying to predict what will happen is a waste. Our time is better spent looking back on what has already been because when we reflect, we can trace God’s faithfulness. My reflection happened over breakfast with a friend.
Abby Kate’s Kindergarten teacher was recovering from shoulder surgery but felt well enough to leave her house, so we met for a meal. I confided almost immediately my “wonder” about Abby Kate’s last day of school. Through casual conversation my reflection began to take shape, and without even realizing it I named a half-dozen moments in Abby Kate’s Kindergarten year alone that could only have been orchestrated by God.
So, let’s add this to our list:
4) Focus on God’s Faithfulness. Name the ways God has shown up for you before. Make a literal list if you must. How has He answered your prayers? In my experience, God’s provision and protection are most often carried through people. He proved it again this week when Abby Kate returned to her favorite summer camp.
I had some hesitations about camp this year, and especially “wondered” whether she would encounter mean kids there, too. When I reached the clipboard to check her in, I heard a voice:
“Hey, Abby Kate!”
It was Bruce, a young man who in previous years worked as a camp counselor-in-training. He returned this year as a counselor, and he was assigned to Abby Kate’s bus. Abby Kate beamed. She had found a friend she could trust. I had found God’s faithfulness in a familiar face.
God is always nearby and often closer than we think. In a middle school classroom. At a restaurant breakfast table. On a summer camp bus. We just have to adjust our eyes to see Him. When we are focused on Him, our worry fades.
My final (for now) words on worry are not my own. They are from my daddy, written in a letter postmarked September 15, 1998:
“Pray a lots. Worry over nothing. Be thank(ful) for everything. (Especially me.)”
Daddy was wise, and funny when he wanted to be. Those last two words make me laugh.
And laughter would be good on our “Don’t Worry” list, too.
“Because of the Lord’s faithful love we do not perish, for His mercies never end. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness!”
(Lamentations 3:22-23)
