"Hi, my name is Nicole and I am a Worry Wart..."

In highschool one of my favorite classes was etymology. Etymology is the study of words; their origin and meaning. I have always found it interesting, especially when it comes to phrases that americans use often. Such as; "Don't put the cart before the horse" or "The early bird catches the worm." One phrase that I do not like to hear, especially if it is being used to desribe me is "worry wart." Now in my defense I come from a long line of worriers-if there was a desease or natural disaster about to occur then I guarantee you that someone in my family was going to be effected by both! I remember growing up and my mom would get so worried when one of us kids was sick. We were not only on a first name basis with our pediatrician, but also all of the staff that worked in his office! Now, I will admit that when I became a mother I did tend to worry more about my children if they didn't feel good, but I tried not to rush to the doctor for every ache or pain. My mother was excellent at taking care of us, but I do admit that as I got older I caught on to the fact that if I complained that I didn't feel well my mom was very quick to allow me to stay home from school-because she would worry about what would happen to me if she didn't let me stay home! (Not that I ever took advantage of that situation...ahem) Anyway worry is a natural part of life, it is one of those human traits that is hard to control. So, what does "worry wart" mean? The only thing that I could find was from a site called The Word Detective at http://www.word-detective.com/2007/07/worry-wart/ and it says that worry wart is "a person who annoys others by worrying loudly and constantly over nearly everything." WOW! I definately do not want to be referred to as one of THOSE people! To tell someone to not worry, is easier said then done. I have been struggling with this not worrying thing for sometime. I won't give you all the details, because then I tend to wallow in it-and that would require a whole different blog just for that subject! I will tell you that for about 2 months now I have felt like the poster child for rejection and dissapointment, nothing seems to be going right. So, what have I done? Worry. I feel like I need to attend a support group, "Hello, my name is Nicole and I am a worry wart." This morning I thought, that's it, enough is enough. I turned to one of my favorite books in the Bible and this is what I read, "Do not worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks! And God's peace, which is so great we cannot understand it, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7 It gives me comfort to know that I can turn all my worries over to God! It doesn't mean that I will never have to deal with heartache or dissappoinment again, but it does mean that I will have someone there to see me through it. Asking Him for what I need, not what I want! Now here is the tricky part-once your worries are put into God's hands do not try and arm wrestle them back from Him. You will not win and it will only put more worry on your heart. So, for all of you worry warts out there-STOP! Give it all to God and just let it be. You know what happens to a wart if you mess with it? It spreads-yuck! The same thing will happen if you constantly worry about everything-it will spread and steal your happiness and joy! Be thankful for what you have been given, do not worry about what you do not have. Worrying is like a vacum it can suck all the joy out of living-don't let it! I pray that today you will not worry, but live in the joy of each and every moment that God has given to you!