Don't Worry. Instead, Pray.

I was already a world-class worrier

long before the current crises we face ...

before the Coronavirus ...

before the tornados hit my middle Tennessee neighbors.

I remember the nights in my childhood,

when I couldn't sleep because I was afraid.

I remember my mom helping me cut out

a scripture passage from my Sunday School lesson.

We taped it to the dresser mirror in my bedroom.

"Don't worry. Instead, pray. ..."

Mom and I would read the scripture when she tucked me in.

I could read it in the night if I was afraid.

I repeated the passage until the words became a part of me,

until the words began to pray themselves in the silence of the darkness.

"Don't worry. Instead, pray. ..."

These days, I light candles.

The light of them shines

into the darkness of this world,

into the darkness of my worries.

The light says, "Don't worry. Instead, pray. ..."

"Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank God for the answers. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. God's peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7, The Living Bible