Today's reading

Finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. –Philippians 4:8 NIV

October 26, 2019

It’s All in the Focus

Finally brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. –Philippians 4:8 NIV

It’s 2:00 a.m., and you can’t sleep…so what do you do? You think, “Sleep, must sleep,” but the harder you try to sleep, the worse it gets. Now you’re more awake than ever. If we could figure out why we can’t sleep, instead of trying to force sleep, perhaps we’d get some rest. The same principle applies to worry. The more we worry, the more our emotions take over. The result? We worry more. What if instead of focusing on the things we can’t control, we focused on the things we can. What if instead of dwelling on what could go wrong, we focused on the things that have already gone right? Worrying today about tomorrow never changes anything. It only robs us of the joy promised today. We have a loving Father who knows our every need. He longs to bless His children as much as we long to bless ours. No matter how things may look, we can always rest in His love. Since the Father provides for birds, aren’t you more valuable than they are? (See Matthew 6:26-27.) Don’t worry about tomorrow, and don’t worry about worry. Simply trust the One who has carved us in the palm of His hand.

prayer focuses

Father, help me to remind myself daily that each day has its own problems and not to worry about what the future may hold.

Help me remember to be a “can-do” kind of person, and let the “can’t” go.

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about the

Author

Brenda Beattie

Brenda Beattie is a retired letter carrier and an active Chaplain for the USPS. She and her husband retired to Bradenton because they loved their church, Bayside Community Church. She has self-published two books, "Finding Sacred Ground In The Daily Grind," and "The Case Of The Missing Letter." She is also a repeat author for "Chicken Soup For The Soul." Her articles appear monthly in the "Mountaineer," a postal publication. Her hearts desire is to encourage and to give hope.