Don’t Worry? Making Sense of Bible Verses about Not Worrying

Some seasons, events, and circumstances make more of an impact on us than others. That impact can be positive or negative, and it affects our overall well-being accordingly. 2020 made its mark on us in remarkable ways, particularly due to the global pandemic. We’ll be unpacking and working through its effects on us, our relationships, our work and so much more for years to come.

Trying times test our inner resilience, capacity to trust, and relationships. Worry is an all-too-natural response to daily uncertainties, so it often seems passé when the Bible continually encourages us not to worry or be anxious. Don’t worry?! But how can I not worry about everything going on in my life and the world? Worry seems like the rational thing to do, and we gravitate toward it.

Does the Bible, and the God we come to know in and through its pages, see something we don’t? How do we make sense of the many verses in Scripture that challenge us to do the seemingly impossible – not to worry? Are the Bible writers naïve, or are we missing something? In the remainder of this article, let’s take a look at some Bible verses about not worrying. At Lake Forest Christian Counseling, we offer guidance and support for navigating this challenging journey.

Bible Verses about Not Worrying

The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. – Psalm 23: 1-4

Psalm 23 is one of the more famous chapters in the Bible. Its encouragement to rest in God even in those “darkest valleys” has helped people in a variety of circumstances to live through trying times with hope.

It is important to remember that David, the author of this Psalm, was a shepherd, defending his sheep against bears and lions, and later became a warrior who engaged in many campaigns against enemies. He was so much a man of war that God declared that it was inappropriate for him to be the one to build the Temple.

Before he was king, David was pursued by King Saul, who for years felt threatened by David and the favor God had bestowed upon him. When he was king, David’s rule was threatened by a coup attempt by his son Absalom, and he had to leave his palace and go into exile.

All this is to make two points that will come up again in other passages. First, when David is speaking of resting in the Lord and not being afraid even in trying circumstances, he’s not speaking from an ivory tower. He was in many life-threatening circumstances that he emerged from holding fast to the comfort and protection of the Lord. David tried and tested what he’s passing on to others.

Second, the reality is that we will go through tough circumstances. We are called to trust God and not worry even during difficult situations we may find ourselves in. Sometimes we may feel that the solution to not worrying is to avoid all situations that could generate conditions for worry, and we ask God to help us avoid all such occasions.

While God protects us by sometimes taking us out of trying circumstances, what we see in the lives of God’s people is that often God helps them by sustaining them through those difficulties.

God has plans for our good

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. – Jeremiah 29: 11-12

The next verses we’ll consider often find their way onto motivational posters and bumper stickers. If a follower of God is asked why they shouldn’t worry, one answer is that the God who oversees the world has plans for good and to give his people a future and a hope. The challenging thing about these verses is not their content, but their context.

Jeremiah is bringing this message of hope at a time when God is telling his people that they will have to go into exile for 70 years. False, prophets were telling the people that everything would be alright, and God wouldn’t send them into exile away from their homes and to a foreign land.

This wasn’t the case, and the people did go into exile. But through Jeremiah God was reminding them that His plan was a good one; they would thrive even in exile and a remnant of the people would return to their homes. This seems counter to our expectations. Surely, if I’m not to worry, I shouldn’t be placed in such trying circumstances? On the contrary, our trust is based not on our circumstances, but in God.

He has overcome

I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth, you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart because I have overcome the world. – John 16:33

These words from the gospel of John were spoken by Jesus to his disciples on the night before his execution. He was telling them of all He and they would endure in the days to come. He reminds them of the reality that they would endure much hardship. This, however, is not the end of the story. Jesus overcame the world.

Though he was crucified and died, seemingly defeated, He rose again from the dead. God’s people may go through dark times when it seems that evil has won and nothing good can emerge from the situation. But Jesus’ death and resurrection remind us that even in the direst of circumstances, there is hope.

Jesus has overcome the world, and because of that we can take heart and have peace. The worry that can so easily consume us draws its power from the feeling that we will be overwhelmed by loss, pain, or whatever we are facing. That pain is real, no doubt about it. Equally real, and able to subvert our losses, is the God who has claimed victory over death itself.

Pray and give thanks

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:6-7

These verses are a great reminder to banish worry by means of prayer laced with thanksgiving to God. When we give thanks, we remind ourselves of all that is right in the world, of all the times God has blessed us and others. Worry focuses on what could go wrong, while prayer and thanksgiving focus on God and all that He has done.

What is also challenging is that these “upbeat” verses are being written by a man in jail to his friends who are worried about him. The apostle Paul had endured much hardship, being shipwrecked, imprisoned, beaten by the authorities, experiencing starvation, etc.

Yet he tells his friends not to worry. He’s in jail, and he’s the one encouraging them! His focus on God enables him to transcend fear and experience God’s peace that “exceeds anything we can understand.” There are deep depths here that can help us deal with our own worries that threaten to overwhelm us easily.

God cares

Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. – 1 Peter 5:7

The last verse we’ll look at reminds us of the basic truth that God loves and cares for us, and so we should entrust our worries to him. Instead of bearing our burdens alone, we are to give (other versions read “cast”) them to God and let Him carry them.

As always, the context must be kept firmly in mind. The letter was written to believers undergoing persecution, and it was written by Peter, who had himself endured similar poor treatment by being arrested and flogged for preaching about Jesus. It’s a letter from one sufferer to others.

Seeing Clearly So We Don’t Worry

One thing that emerges clearly from these verses is that these affirmations of faith in God and the call to not worry and trust him aren’t being made by people sitting in comfortable and easy circumstances. These people were going through hardship or had gone through immense difficulties and emerged on the other side of them. They weren’t newbies, but seasoned veterans who had been in the trenches, and they found God to be faithful.

They had seen God’s faithfulness repeatedly proven, and they emerged from those fires with the encouragement to not worry. That trust, that peace, that joy can also be ours. It’s not an exclusive club for the few, but an invitation to the many.

God calls us to look squarely at our circumstances and see them for what they are, but also to continue looking past them to see him and His sovereign care for us. The call not to worry is a call to see clearly; to see that while there may be a reason to fear, God is bigger than our fears and our focus should be on Him and that reality. Christian Counselors at Lake Forest Christian Counseling can help you navigate life’s challenges with faith and clarity.