Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong…
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this.

Psalm 37:1-5

“Daddy, keep this for me,” said little Aaron, handing his father the quarter that someone had given to him. But a few minutes later Aaron came back and said, “Daddy, I’d better keep my own quarter.” He stuffed it into his pocket and went out to play. A little while later he came back with tears in his eyes and said, “Daddy, I lost my quarter!

How often do we commit our worry or concern to the Lord in prayer but fail to really trust him and end up taking matters into our hands? Then when we have messed things up, we pray, “Lord, help me! I’m in trouble!”

In the verse above, it says very clearly, “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him.” As we mentioned on Sunday, this is the best way to get rid of worry. Often, it’s easier said than done, but we have to be intentional about it. Two conflicting forces cannot coexist in the human heart. When we trust, worry cannot push its way in. When doubt and worry are ruling, faith cannot reign. Where hate rules, love is crowded out. When suspicion and distrust are in the body, trust and love will flee.

The Psalmist, in Psalm 37, wrote, “Fret not!” This strong admonition appears three times in the chapter, just as Jesus said three times in Matthew 6:25-34, “Do not worry!” Fretting, worrying, complaining and being distressed are often home-grown… self-manufactured, and are best confronted by a change of attitude and a renewing of the mind. When a baby cries because he’s hungry, we can’t soothe his distress by giving him a rattle. He won’t quit crying until his hunger is satisfied. Apart from God, our soul cannot be satisfied. The Psalmist says, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God” (Ps. 42:1).