What is the best wisdom or advice you received from your father, or father-figure?
For me, the single greatest wisdom/advice I received from my dad that continues to stick with me is to not worry.
When I was a child and as the result of my dad's alcoholism, my mom left him. He hit rock-bottom but thankfully, instead of turning to more alcohol, he turned to God. He read the Bible from cover to cover and one of the things he took from it was to not worry.
In fact, did you know the Bible tells us to not worry 365 times? Given there are 365 days in the year I find this to be so cool, but I think God is super cool so this shouldn't surprise me. This isn't to say God expects us to never be concerned or not have worrisome thoughts. I'm pretty sure He knew we would, which is why He talks so much about it in the Bible. What it does mean is when we do worry, the antidote is always prayer. One of my favorite worry quotes is by the rapper 50 Cent, "You can either worry or you can pray, but you cant do both." Brilliant! Thank you 50!
Ultimately, we cannot worry because worry takes away our precious heartbeats. We do not know how many heartbeats God has gifted us, so taking full advantage of each one is critical for living our fullest and most incredible life. I get it. There is plenty to worry about, but there will always be plenty to worry about. I actually think this means the opportunity to pray and let go of what we can't control is even greater. Remember this: we get what we focus on and what consumes our mind, consumes our life. And so, let's make an agreement with ourselves to move all your worries to prayer so we don't waste a single heartbeat on worry. Actually, let's just follow this scripture and we'll all be able to enjoy summer and life full of bold, fun and beautiful heartbeats.
"Don't be anxious about things; instead pray. Pray about everything. He longs to hear your requests, so talk to God about your needs and be thankful for what has come. And know that the peace of God will stand watch over your hearts and minds. Finally, fill your minds with beauty and truth. Meditate on whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is good, whatever is virtuous, and praise-worthy." Philippians 4: 6 - 8
Happy Father's Day to your wonderful father's and husbands. Love, Neissa