Nothing gives our minds or nerves as much distress as borrowed troubles.  Someone has written, “Worry is an old man with a bent head, carrying a load of feathers he thinks is lead.”  Worry about what might happen makes even the smallest trouble seem huge.  Nervously anticipating troubles that may never happen can crush our spirit.

A doctor once said, “Stress and worry break us down.  They are the unseen source of our headaches, backaches, heartaches and stomach aches.  They produce everything from obesity to obscenity, from constipation to diarrhea, and from impatience to impotence.  They give us knotted stomachs, sleepless nights, high blood pressure, low morale. They make our tempers short and our days long. They cause indigestion, irritation, chest pain, and muscle strain.  You don’t get stomach ulcers from what you eat. You get ulcers from what is eating you.”

When I was in university, I had a friend who worried that he wouldn’t have enough money to pay his bills for the next school year so he thought maybe he should get out of school right now.  He also worried that he would never get a job after school that would pay enough to pay back his loans.  He worried that he would never find a girl that would like him.  No one wanted to be his friend because he was always worrying about something that could happen in the future.  Are our homes like that?  Do we put ourselves and our children in positions that we can never enjoy what we have because we worry about something that could possibly give us problems in the future?

Martin Luther once described his favorite preacher: “I have one preacher I love better than any other; it’s my little tame robin (Mauge, you can change it to a common bird we have here in Bolivia).  I put his crumbs on my window sill at night. He hops onto the sill when he wants food and takes enough to satisfy his need.  Then he flies to a nearby tree, lofts his voice to God and sings a song of praise, tucks his little head under his wings and goes fast asleep, leaving tomorrow to look after itself.”

Instead of “borrowing trouble” by constantly worrying about the future, listen to Jesus’ promise: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:27).  Let’s let God’s peace fill our homes this week.

None of us are perfect as individuals – nor are our marriages perfect.  As we work together to maintain our love and a strong marriage, our homes will be a good environment for growing and happy children.