Faith and the Worry Meter

Scripture Verse that Caught my attention today: Psalm 11:1 In the LORD I take refuge; how can you say to me,
“Flee like a bird to the mountains;

Observation: Good question.

Application: There are times when faith is truly put to the test. One of the easiest ways to test our faith is consider our own personal worry meter. Most of us have one of these instruments lodged deep within our being. And most of us do worry on occasion. Some of us even have a chronic condition of worry that, seemingly, can’t be helped. But whoever we are, we pretty much know, at any given time, how high our feelings are registering on our worry meter.

Generally speaking, the more we trust in God, the lower our worry meter readings. The less we trust in God (and, by contrast, the more we trust in ourselves and/or human achievement,) the higher our worry meter readings. Part of the reason for this is that when we trust in God, we are trusting is the one who sees our life in light of two stages—earthly and heavenly. By contrast, when we trust in ourselves and/or human achievement, we are dealing with only our earthly life which could, in certain circumstances be in dire straights and give us every reason to worry.

So the Psalmist gets it right...having God as our refuge has an affect on how we face life’s challenges. It doesn’t mean they will be easy or even that we will necessarily conquer them. But we can face them head-on knowing full well that we do not do so alone.

Prayer: Lord, thanks for the reminder from people of old to keep all things in perspective in the light of you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Readings today included: Jeremiah 21, 24, and 27, Psalm 11, and 1 John 2)