Key scripture -“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7).

When you worry, have you noticed how you start to feel anxious, irritated, and fretful. The word “worry” comes from an old English word that means “to strangle” or “to choke.” When you worry you feel like you are being choked because your rational way of thinking is being cut off.

Life is full of troubles, and there are all kinds of concerns we have every day about our health, our safety, our family, our jobs, and our finances. Yet Philippians 4:6–7 reminds us, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

No matter what you have to face today, I want you to remember that The Lord, himself, is watching over you no matter where you are or what time it is. You are not alone, therefore, you have nothing to fear as you face each new day.

Look at what He promised us in these verses in Psalm 121 about how He watches over us:

Verse 3 – He will not let you stumble; The one who WATCHES over you will not slumber.

Verse 4 – Indeed He who WATCHES over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. The Lord himself WATCHES over you. The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.

Verse 7 – The Lord keeps you from all harm and WATCHES over your life.

Verse 8 – The Lord keeps WATCH over you as you come and go, both now and forever more.

The Lord is WATCHING over you, so stop worrying. There is no good in worry; it doesn’t help anything. In fact, worrying is a complete waste of time.

Instead of worrying, do what it says in today’s Key scripture, “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7). So instead of worrying, pray, because it will help you overcome your anxiety and worry.

Remember what Jesus said about worrying. “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:25-34).

If you are like me, panic seems to strike a lot in the middle of the night. When that happens, get out of bed and get on your knees and say, “Lord, I give this problem to You. I am not going to stay awake and think about it, because I know You will take care of it. I’m going back to sleep, and I’ll see You in the morning.” The Lord does not want you to lay there and fret and worry. He wants you to go back to sleep and rest peacefully because He stays up and watches over You. So the next time you start to panic, no matter what time of the day or night it is, pray instead.

Pray this – Our Precious Heavenly Father, forgive me for all the times that I have failed to give my burdens to you and instead I chose to worry about them. I know that fretting and worrying only leads to evil, it does not accomplish anything good, and it is a complete waste of time. Give me the strength and wisdom to leave my problems and burdens with You, and every time I try to take them back and worry about them, I will get on my knees in prayer and give them to You again. I know that I live under the shelter of the Most High, and I find refuge, rest, and peace from all of my problems under Your shadow. You are always there for me, and are so close to me that I don’t just see Your shadow, I live under Your shadow. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” (Psalm 91:2). Father, I commit all my cares to you. Thank You Father for always watching over me and never abandoning me. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.