Are you one of the forty percent of adults living a life gripped by worry? A lot of responsibilities come with adulthood. We make important decisions, which impact us and our sphere of influence. These decisions often made from our limited perspectives come with time bounds magnifying our fear of failure. Yet, God provides a remedy.

In the beginning, the earth and the heavens make night and day, living creatures roam, and God rests. God rested? God commanded all living creatures and mankind to multiply and fill the earth, and instead of helping He ceased, and rested. Counterintuitive to our nature, God used rest to produce more.

Beep! Beep! Beep! No, it cannot possibly be another day. I roll over to look at the clock. Its face mocking me. I push snooze and lay back down hoping I can start over. Maybe today will be the day the clock will be my friend and we will walk in harmony together.  But no. As I lay my heart tightens and my mind races.

Jesus, the word of God made flesh, makes all who believe in Him free from the law of sin and death. God addressed freedom from sin and death in His first conversation with man, setting man’s life foundation from earth to eternity (Genesis 2:16-17). Adam, the first man God conversed with did not comprehend the value of freedom. Instead, Adam stood watching the unfolding conversation between his beloved and the serpent. Adam ate the fruit exchanging freedom for bondage. Liberty for sin. Life for death. Home for exile.

The internal battle for self-control requires an external power to gain restraint. On the surface, it might seem logical to pursue self-control by trying to control oneself. We create rules and boundaries if we struggle with impulsive actions or addictions. When we fail and fall prey to our temptations, we shame ourselves. Then we try again. Relying solely on ourselves to gain control. Creating this negative cycle progressing us towards isolation. The more we fail in “self-control” the heavier the weight of shame becomes. We retreat, giving birth to self-deprecating thoughts and false theology. Our miscalculated battle plans leave us warring against the wrong enemy.