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Worry prevents us from seeking spiritual things. When Jesus was in the home of Mary and Martha, Mary sat at Jesus' feet and listened to his teaching. (See Luke 10:38-42). There was Martha hustling and bustling around trying to prepare the meal and make things nice--all by herself. Finally, Martha obviously couldn't stand it anymore, and she complained about Mary's lack of help to Jesus. Many of us can certainly sympathize with Martha, can't we? After all, just who did Mary think she was sitting there while Martha had to do all of the work, we might reason. But what a shocker Jesus' reply was for those of us who think that way, huh? Jesus said that Mary had the right attitude about it. He explained to Martha that Mary had chosen what was better, that obviously being the spiritual food He was giving her, and that it would not be taken away from her. Most of us could learn a lesson from Mary, too, couldn't we? Instead of worrying about the things of this world like Martha, we ought to be seeking spiritual things like Mary.

Worry causes unfruitfulness. In the parable of the sower, we see another result of worry--unfruitfulness. (See Matthew 13:1-23; Mark 4:1-20; and Luke 8:1-15.) Jesus teaches that those who receive the word can permit the worries of this life to choke them and make them unfruitful. And that is a very serious problem, indeed, because other scriptures tell us that those who are unfruitful are condemned in the end (see Matthew 7:19 and John 15:5-6). So, above all, we must not allow worry to make us unfruitful.

God's people should place their trust in Him. In the book of Jeremiah, the Lord tells us that one who trusts in Him has no worries and never fails to bear fruit (see Jeremiah 17:7-8). Did you catch that? Let's say it again: One who trusts in the Lord has no worries. Of course, it is sometimes easier said than done, but when we trust in God instead of in ourselves or others, we really don't have anything to worry about. God always takes care of our needs. Jesus points this out to His followers in the New Testament, too. He tells us not to worry about our physical needs, because God will take care of us. He also emphasizes the pointlessness of worry--it won't add a single hour to life--and that we ought to be seeking God's kingdom and righteousness first. (See Matthew 6:25-34; Luke 12:22-34.) Jesus also makes it clear that there really aren't any exceptions for which we should allow ourselves to worry. He even advises us not to worry when we are persecuted for our faith in Him. He assures us that the Holy Spirit will guide us in those circumstances if we will stand firm for Him. (See Matthew 10:17-33; Mark 13:9-13; Mark 12:1-12.) Yes, not worrying even in difficult circumstances can sound like quite a "tall order," but we must never lose sight of the fact that God loves us and is in control. Therefore, when we place our trust in Him, we don't have a valid reason to worry.

Conclusion. Worry is something which we all have to face at one time or another. Let us always remember that we should not hang onto it, though. In fact, there isn't any good reason to let worry dwell in our lives. Remember what worry can do--and all of it is bad. Worry never has accomplished anything good and it never will. Worry is good for nothing.