The Plumbline

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life. (Psalm 139:23-24 NLT) Know my anxious thoughts. Are you one of the many who actually get a little 'twitterpated' when life gets tough? No, the meaning of that word isn't 'upset', 'in a tizzy', or even anxious. It means that you are 'infatuated' or 'obsessed' with the 'toughness' of the moment. There aren't many of you out there that actually face 'anxious moments' with such enjoyment, but anyone who subjects themselves to those huge rollercoaster rides or those 'spin till you pass out' ones might just thrive on that level of anxiety. The rest of us don't actually face anxious moments with a sense of 'infatuation' with whatever is occurring! The rest of the world faces those anxious moments with a little bit of fear, mistrust, or the initia...

Don’t worry and say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ That’s what those people who don’t know God are always thinking about. Don’t worry, because your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things. What you should want most is God’s kingdom and doing what he wants you to do. Then he will give you all these other things you need. So don’t worry about tomorrow. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Tomorrow will have its own worries. (Matthew 6:32-34) Stop for just a moment - get quiet and focus with me for just a second or two. What were you just worrying about - that thing you just kept mulling over and over in your mind that you just cannot seem to put out of it? To worry means you pass over something with repeated focus, almost as though you were wearing a "rut" into it just by the frequency of thought or attention you are giving it. In some respects, worry is understandable and kind of productive. When you cannot figure ou...

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. (Philippians 4:6-7) What makes you anxious? There is something - even if you are the most well-balanced, totally 'put together' individual. It might not be consistent, but there is some stress in your life on occasion that makes you a bit on edge. There are others of us that are anxious all the time - there is not a moment that you don't feel 'on edge' and about to be crushed by the stress you feel. Anxiety is a feeling that impacts our functioning - at least at some point in our lives. God wants to address that anxiety - through is Word, by his presence, and with his overwhelming peace that cannot be moved by anything. There will a...