Even though Jesus admonishes us that we can’t change a single thing by worrying, it’s a part of everyone’s life. Some worry more, others less. And, of course, there are things we all face that cause us to worry more than other things. Invariably, we all experience times when we’ve fretted over something that ended up going very well. A medical report. A job interview. An exam in high school or college. A meeting with the boss. A work review. A loved one’s travels. The list is endless of the things we may have lost sleep over, which turned out much better than we had feared. Share when this has happened to you. Your experience could save many others a lot of wasted worrying.
Take 2 with Jerry & Debbie 
December 20, 2018 at 11:37 am
There’s a story about a poor old Jewish rabbi who ran a small bakery to make a living. His black clothing was somewhat worn, a tatter here or there. H was working in his bakery sweeping the floor. A young Jewish man came into the store in a state of worry over some setbacks and challenges. He asked the rabbi what he should do when so many bad things were happening. The rabbi looked at him for a moment and then spoke softly. “I don’t know. Nothing bad has ever happened to me.”
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December 20, 2018 at 11:50 am
Wow, Richard. That is quite a story. A lesson for us all. I guess we can choose how we view all the things that happen to us. We appreciate you sharing this.
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December 20, 2018 at 1:05 pm
I wasted years on a common worry: that I would never marry and have children. I had a powerful conversion experience in my mid-twenties, and once I understood the beauty of the Church’s teaching about vocation, I felt a deep longing to be a wife and mother someday–and this was a dramatic shift from my previous secular life, where career achievements are supposed to provide your life with meaning.
But in the crazy, mixed-up dating culture we have today, finding a husband seemed like such a challenge, and I approached it like any other life project, as if it were my “problem” to solve. Looking back, I should have thought that if God gave me this vocation, He wouldn’t just leave me to my own devices in getting there. But I went down several dead ends before, finally, without my planning or pursuing it, a relationship formed with a good friend of many years, someone whom I’d never have thought of. He is a wonderful man, and everything seemed to fall into place, and I felt at peace for the first time. But did that stop my worrying? No–I worried constantly about the fact that he wasn’t Catholic. With my fledgling faith, I thought, I would need a devout husband! My mind incessantly worried how lonely marriage might be if I couldn’t share my faith with my spouse.
What finally helped me was Eucharistic Adoration. My prayer life was so full of the noise of worrying–I was yammering at God and not doing enough listening. Adoration was were I learned to quiet my mind and let God take the lead. What I heard there was that God had brought this man into my life for a reason, and to trust that his plans would be so much more beautiful than my plans. It turned out that this dear friend did become my husband, and he was baptized and received into the Church a year after our marriage. It hadn’t occurred to me that God could be using me as an instrument in someone else’s life, to bring him into the faith. We are now blessed with two daughters.
The whole journey taught me that God is weaving a tapestry through our lives, that we can be patient and let him go to work, and that we’re never alone in our challenges–that’s where my worries came from, the assumption that I was alone in the world and overwhelmed.
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December 20, 2018 at 3:41 pm
Noelle,
This is a beautiful story. Thanks so much for sharing it here on the website. We pray that you and your lovely family have a very Merry Christmas, and that the coming year is filled with many graces and blessings for you. Please keep us in your prayers.
Jerry and Debbie
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