Death was walking toward a city one morning and a man asked, “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to take 100 people,” Death replied.

“That’s horrible!” the man said.

“That’s the way it is,” Death said. “That’s what I do.”

The man hurried to warn everyone he could about Death’s plan. As evening fell, he met Death again. “You told me you were going to take 100 people,” the man said. “Why did 1,000 die?”

“I kept my word,” Death responded. “I only took 100 people. Worry took the others.”

This interesting tale portrays so well what the National Mental Health Committee reported a few years ago: half of all the people in America’s hospital beds are constant worriers. Mental distress can lead to migraine headaches, arthritis, heart trouble, cystitis, colitis, backaches, ulcers, depression, digestive disorders and yes, even death. Add to that list the mental fatigue of nights without sleep and days

without peace, and we get a glimpse of the havoc worry plays in destroying the quality and quantity of life. Worry is, and always will be, a fatal disease of the heart, for its beginning signals the end of faith. Worry intrudes on God’s compassionate ability to provide. When we allow our problems to overshadow God’s promises, we unknowingly doom ourselves to a defeat that we never part of God’s eternal plans. Release the regrets of yesterday, refuse the fears of tomorrow and receive instead, the peace of today. Yes, my friend, simply let go and let God.

Read the following poem:

As children bring their broken toys

With tears for us to mend,

I brought my broken dreams to God

Because He was my friend.

But then, instead of leaving Him

In peace to work alone,

I hung around and tried to help

With ways that were my own.

At last I snatched them back and cried, “How can you be so slow?”
“My child,” He said, “what could I do? You never did let go.”

“Therefore do not worry, saying ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, And all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” Matthew 31-34

Author unknown. If anyone has a proprietary interest in this story please authenticate and I will be happy to credit, or remove, as the circumstances dictate.

Thanks to Sherry M. Keith-Rudd SMKeith@aol.com