Less worry, more prayer

Last weekend we held our big yard sale, and before it got underway, I was nervous.

The weather was awful. At 8 a.m. it was overcast and 80 degrees with 75% humidity. We had placed an ad in the paper and put up signs in the area, but I was still anxious. What if nobody came? What would we do with all this junk? We had put so much effort and prep into this, would it all be for nothing?

After a couple of minutes of mental sweating, it dawned on me: "I should pray." So I asked God to bless this yard sale. It sounds silly asking for such a thing as I type this out, but I asked Him to please deliver some people who would want to buy our stuff. We weren't looking to make a ton of money, we just really wanted this stuff out of our house.

And did God deliver, we sold nearly everything!

The next day, Sunday, I was anxious again. I had a freelance project I needed to finish over the next few days. I was stressing, wanting to get it done but nervous to start for fear I wouldn't do a good job. Money's tight around here and I wanted to make this client happy so I would get other jobs in the future.

I automatically fretted, then realized, "I should pray." I prayed again, asking the Holy Spirit to be with me, remove my fear and grant me the grace and smarts to get this project done on time. So far, so good. The project is going well and I should have it done on time.

Whenever I get anxious, my first reaction is rarely "Pray." It should be, I know. It always seems I mentally put myself through the ringer and then realize, "You should pray over this." But I find I am getting better. I'm realizing quicker than normal: "Stop worrying, start praying!" I'm putting myself through less mental anguish and instead offering my situation up to God and His will.

I think about the saying "Worry is a lack of faith," and realize I need less worry and more faith. Slowly but surely, I am getting there.