Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him. —Psalm 42:5
We often believe we don’t have any control over our own hearts. Yet that’s not the truth.
In his book The Seeking Heart, François Fenelon speaks to this matter:
Ask God for calmness and inner rest.
I know what you are thinking—that controlling your imagination does not depend on yourself. Excuse me, please, but it depends very much on yourself! When you cut off all the restless and unprofitable thoughts that you can control, you will greatly reduce those thoughts which are involuntary. God will guard your imagination if you do your part in not encouraging your wayward thoughts.4
We have to rein in our souls and put them under the control of the Holy Spirit. Don’t let your mind dwell on the things that worry you. Instead, follow the advice of the Psalmist and don’t “occupy [yourself] with things too great and too marvelous for [you]” (Psalm 131:1).
4 François de Salignac de la Mothe Fenelon, The Seeking Heart (Jacksonville, Florida: Seedsowers, 1992) 87.
Make it Personal
Take those things that are worrying you and mentally place each one at the foot of the cross, trusting that God is in control.