"Heart regular rhythm without a murmur or gallop..." As a child, I would listen to my dad, a family doctor, dictate charts...slowly memorizing a whole list of ailments-I-don't-currently-have-but-could-get-someday.

Add in 5 children and a husband-- and I can come up with many hypothetically tragic scenarios to consume hours of worry-filled energy.

My mom had a blood clot in her leg-- I immediately began feeling pain in one of mine.

Our daughter complained of stomach pain-- I was sure her appendix was about to rupture.

It didn't help that our 4th child's symptoms were a reality. After months of reassurances... We learned that Selah had the disease Pompe-- Which she eventually died from in April 2008.

In some ways, that led to a healthy perspective--

Teach me to number my days,

that I may present to you a heart of wisdom.

~Psalm 90:12

On the otherhand--it only amplified my tendency to-- Worry. Fear. It is such a struggle for me. But I'm thankful for the battle-- Because it keeps me coming back to God, clinging to Him, focusing my mind and heart on what I know is True.

So how do I battle the worry?

1. I call it sin. In my worry, I'm doubting who God is, His control over all things. I'm forgetting His unfailing love. I ask Him to help me-- Take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. ~2 Cor. 10:5

It is not only wrong to worry, it is infidelity, because worrying means that we do not think that God can look after the details of our lives, and it is never anything else that worries us.

~Oswald Chambers

2. I cling to my worry-verses. When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You. ~Psalm 56:3 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. ~James 5:13 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ~Philippians 4: 5 and 6

3. I stay in the present. God promises strength for the current....not the anticipated. Do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. ~Matthew 6:34

God already knows what my tomorrow will be...it will not catch Him off guard...

He begs you to leave the future to Him, and mind the present.

~George Macdonald

Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow; it empties today of its strength.

~Corrie Ten Boom

4. I choose to believe. I will believe who God is. I will believe that His love is faithful. I will believe that His plan, what He allows, is best. And I will pray-- I believe, help my unbelief. ~Mark 9:24

5. I pray thankfulness. With His help, I give thanks. With His help, I remember-- That if my hope is not in Him, I'm clinging to an idol.

Where does your security lie? Is God your refuge, your hiding place, your stronghold, your shepherd, your counselor, your friend, your redeemer, your saviour, your guide? If He is, you don't need to search any further for security. ~Elisabeth Elliot

6. I remember that little eyes are watching. A huge motivator. I want to live out-- Cast all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you. ~1 Peter 5:7

7. I think about Heaven. This is not the end. I know Heaven is real. And that changes everything.

If God is for us, who can be against us?...

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers,

nor things present nor things to come,

nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation,

will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

~Romans 8: 31, 32, 35, 38, 39

Worry is never over. It's a constant struggle. But when I start to sink into a swirling pit of fear, I want to face and fight the battle-- With Him and through Him.

...for God gave us a spirit not of fear, but of power and love and self-control. ~2 Timothy 1:7