But instead of calling the police, he calmly walked up to the intruder and said, "Good evening. I am so pleased to see you! Come upstairs and meet my wife. She has been waiting 10 years to meet you."
If not checked, worry can totally consume our lives, robbing us of sleep, friendships and even everyday pleasures.
To the Greeks, worry was something which tears a man in two, dragging him in opposite directions. Their word for "worry" described a garment coming apart at the seams.
The Anglo-Saxon word described a power gripping a man by the throat, as a wolf seizes a sheep and strangles all the vitality out of it.
Our English word is actually related to words such as "wreath," "wrinkle," "wrong," and "wrist." The idea behind every one of these words is that of something twisted: a wreath is made up of materials twisted or wound up in a circle; a wrinkle originally conveyed the idea of something which had been twisted; if something is wrong, it is because the truth has become twisted; and a wrist is a joint which can be bent and twisted.
So worry is something which twists, or strangles, the neck or spirit. Someone has pointed out that worry, if left unchecked, soon can choke the "abundant" out of life.
Charlie Brown’s philosophy was, "That's the secret to life... replace one worry with another.” But Jesus said, "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" (Matthew 6:27).
So instead of wringing our hands, let's choke out worry by remembering that our Heavenly Father can handle it. Whatever "it" happens to be.
--Rocky Henriques, www.uticabc.com