My dad often told a joke about a man, we will call him Bill, who worried all the time. It drove his friends crazy. They didn’t even like to be around him because he was always worried…about everything. Then, one day their friend was calm and easy-going. Everyone noticed the dramatic change in Bill. He seemed to have no care in the world. Finally, his friends could not stand it any longer…they had to ask him.

“Bill, how is it you have changed so much, going from a constant worrier to how you are today?” Bill replied, “It’s simple. I hired a man to worry for me! If something comes up, I just give it to him, and he worries for me.” Bill’s friends were amazed. “Wow! How much would you have to pay someone to do that for you?” Bill told his friends the man’s salary was $250,000.

His friends pointed out the obvious. “How can you pay him that much? You don’t make $250,000 yourself.” Bill’s quick reply: “That’s his worry!”

OK…a silly story. But there is nothing silly about those who spend their lives worrying about everything. Fred Smith called worry, “…the nagging headache of the soul.” So how do we get beyond that headache and move on to a more productive and positive life?

First, face the reality of what worry accomplishes…. nothing. Jesus said it clearly. “Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” (Matthew 6:27 NLT) The Apostle Paul told the Philippian believers to just stop. “Don’t worry about anything….” (Philippians 4:6 NLT) Pretty clear direction.

Apart from hiring someone to worry for you, what can you do when you find yourself wrapped up in worry? Leadership experts like Steve Gutzler and John Maxwell list a number of things. Here are few thoughts:

  1. Breath in, breath out. The oxygen to your brain will help you lower your stress levels, and the pause will help you get a better focus on reality.
  2. Create “white space,” some thinking time to deal with the reality.
  3. Go for a walk, move, be active. Don’t just sit and worry.
  4. Change your pattern. Do something different. Instead of worrying, do something nice for another person.

John Maxwell humorously says, “Don’t worry about yesterday, it ended last night at midnight.” And Gutzler says, “While I sleep, God works on my behalf.”

It’s worth repeating Paul’s admonition:

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6-7 NLT

God’s best…