Do not fret – it only causes harm. Psalm 37:8
The word “fret” comes from an eleventh-century Old English term meaning “to devour.”It was used of monsters and Vikings, and of animals that ate people, as you can see by looking closely at the word”fret.” The first two letters – “fr” – are similar to the word “for” or “for the purpose of.” And the last two letters are “et.” Think “eat.” The word “fret,” then, described the fear of being eaten by an animal. In biblical days, people worried about encountering a lion or a bear as they traveled. They fretted about it.
Nowadays we use this word to describe a worry that is eating us up on the inside. Here’s what the Bible says about it: “Do not fret … Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret … Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; do not fret … Do not fret because of evildoers” (Psalm 37:1, 7, 8 and Proverbs 24:19).
BOTTOM LINE:
Worry is a hard emotion to control, but you’ll find strength in remembering these seven words of Scripture: Don’t fret – it only causes harm.
David Jeremiah Destinations 2013 June 30
PS: This post was entirely not expected or planned as I have recently largely refrained from Sunday posts. However, early this morning when I read the above post, I was compelled to prepare it. Hours later at the pre-service prayer time, a dear saintly prayer warrior expressed concern that the author of yesterday’s post and a former pastor is indeed, breaking our hearts, again, as did Ravi Z, and numerous others over the years.
Again, I’m reminded the sermon this very morning heavily emphasized Satan is pulling out all the stops to create confusion and chaos in Christ’s Kingdom. The author of yesterday’s post, serves as yet another example of our Godly spiritual vulnerability, whether in church leadership or not, and our utmost need is to be authentically sharing in a “caring cultivating anchored community,” such as Marlin Miller speaks of in Plain Values.
I find it interesting now though, looking back over the decades, that too many of these leadership persons, such as Tullian T, Robert M, Ravi Z, etc. that initially connected and inspired my spiritual growth, are now “fallen from grace,” and honestly, that is a matter of concern to me. Am I spiritually gullible and lacking in discernment? Perhaps that is why now my first scriptures each morning are from dailylightdevotional.org, because it is so pure and simple without any detracting narrative! I do believe the greatest compliment a MM blog reader could give me is that they are now literally addicted to reading dailylightdevotional.org and extensive prayer every morning when they rise before tackling anything else. Thanks for your time!