Worry

Tuesday afternoon, I met with my professor about the main section of my capstone project which is a literary interpretation of Pride and Prejudice. An hour later, I left his office feeling as though my head would explode. This coupled with the last few days of sifting through job search engines in the hopes that something exists on the other side of graduation in May left me quite tuckered out. I was feeling grouchy and pensive, when I remembered a recent lecture in theology class on the sin of worry.

I thumbed to Matthew 6:25-34 where Jesus describes his provision for the birds, the flowers and us. I noticed something new to me near the passage's end. Christ says, “For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (NIV).

 We can’t simply extract worry from our lives and leave a vacuum. That energy and effort sucked away by worry should instead be invested into the pursuit of God’s kingdom. Jesus acknowledges that we need provision of food, drink and clothing, but he dismisses these temporary worries as things God already knows and will take care of. These things are the business of "pagans" who do not have their minds preoccupied with God’s kingdom the way believers ought to. Not only is worry unhealthy for our bodies and souls and completely unnecessary, it might also be a tool which Satan can use to distract us from God’s business. 

It reminds me of Elizabeth's constant analyzing of every situation from Charlotte's engagement to Jane's heartbreak to Lydia's escapade to her own disgruntlements. I tend to approach life the same way, critically interpreting each situation and soon crossing the line into worry or judgement. But Jesus came to rescue us from that sin. Fixing our minds on him, frees us from energy sucking business of worry.