A Guest Post-by Karisa Glenn So I guess I should start by saying after having lost my mama,daddy and nana (my mom's mom who helped raise me) in 24 years that I DID my share of worrying with good cause.I worried about everything....about my marriage, husband, kids, job and the list goes on.

So what happened???

Well, of course prayer is always my "go to". But we are ALL human and succumb to the sin of worry if we are honest with ourselves. Eventually though, something happened. I discovered that I really worry for nothing. Me using time and energy to worry over things doesn't change the outcome of the situation at hand. I mean, just because I worry about how the results of my kids blood results are going to turn out, doesn't mean I will get positive results??? Right????  And just because I pray for positive results doesn't mean I'll get them either. I remember the night I got the call that my daddy had had his heart attack. I was 24, married with a little one that just turned 3 and scared to death. I was "next of kin" since mama died when I was 11. I didn't know what to do. I had some tough decisions to make. I worried and cried like crazy. I sat in the floor of the ER and prayed and begged God to not take my daddy. But...He did. Ultimately, the worry was in vain. But what I discovered was the praying and talking to God wasn't.  I knew my daddy was a Christian, I knew he was no longer in pain and I knew God needed him more than I did. That in turn caused me to need the Lord even more. I can pray about it...and I do. But what I now do as I've grown older and wiser and stronger in my faith is let it go...yes, the famous song from Frozen. I pray that God's will, not mine, be done. It doesn't mean I'll like it. It doesn't mean I'll EVER understand. It means my worrying WON'T change the outcome. It's hard not to worry. When your child is sick or hurt, it's almost instinct. It happens. But I have to remind myself quickly, it uses time and energy and takes away from time and energy that is BETTER spent with the Lord. When I get to that point...I tell him ALL about it.

I mean I give it all to Him.

I tell Him all that is on my mind and heart and how I feel...I have found it's ALWAYS the better choice. Again, I'm not saying it's easy, it's not. It's something I've learned to do through life experiences ...and I KNOW I'm now a stronger wife, mother, sister, friend and person because of taking so much worry out of the equation. About Karisa:

I had the pleasure of teaching with Karisa a few years back.  She was Hallie's first grade teacher and we attended church together.  I was astounded by her maturity and strength but even more by her faith. She has suffered tragedy after tragedy.  But she has a ferocious spirit.  Her tireless energy and determination makes me both exhausted and overwhelmed with admiration.  I'm blessed to call her friend.

 

I had trouble downloading the picture she sent of her sweet kids so I had to take a screen shot of the picture I got to instagram.

 

You have an invitation to write too.  Click on yesterday's post.

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