5 Gratitude Strategies for When You Worry
When you worry, it’s good to have gratitude strategies so your troubles can be turned to victory. David was faced with a terrifying situation when he fled from his son, Absalom. When he looked to the Lord, he discovered that God worked for his good though the situation was less than the best.
Have you ever faced circumstances that cause your mind to go into overload as the details are constantly swirling in your brain?
Maybe, it’s a recurring situation or a relational one. It might even be a terrifying one that changed everything in a moment of time.
I often find myself in Psalms when life gives lemons and a few years back was no exception.
I found some amazing gratitude strategies in Psalm 3 when David fled Absalom that will teach us how to deal with our own trials.
In 2 Samuel 15:13-23 the story of David fleeing from Absalom unfolds. Absalom was David’s third son born to his wife Maacah.
If you have ever had a difficult situation with one of your kids, you will identify with this true story. David loved God with all his heart but he definitely wasn’t perfect.
I love Psalm 3 because it showed David’s response to Absalom as he allowed God to work in his situation.
God showed Himself strong and was able to work in David’s heart.
5 Gratitude Strategies for when You Worry
Get these Scripture Memory Cards on Worry HERE!
1 Thank God for Who He is!
Having gratitude strategies is the last thing on most people’s minds when things go wrong as it often did for David.
If you have ever read through 2 Samuel, you are probably familiar with David’s sin with Bathsheba. He wasn’t perfect and yet when we repent, God transfers His righteousness to us.
I am thankful that God has forgiven me of all of my sins! He can do the same for you!
David starts off this psalm by verbally fretting to God about the many foes that were surrounding him. It looked like a hopeless situation that others even thought was beyond hopeless.
If you have ever been in a situation that led to fretting, it was probably not long before you were in an outright storm of anxiety. When the gale-forces of life are swirling around you, and solutions aren’t clear. What are you to do?
Remember God!
The first gratitude strategy is to start thanking God for Who He is! That is what David does in this Psalm.
But you, O Lord, are a shield about me,
my glory, and the lifter of my head.
I cried aloud to the Lord,
and he answered me from his holy hill. Selah
I lay down and slept;
I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.
I will not be afraid of many thousands of people
who have set themselves against me all around. Psalm 3:3-6
- Thank God because of His might!
- Thank Him because of the vast universe He created!
- Thank Him because He hears you!
- Thank Him for how He is working in your situation!
2 Thank God for Your Troubles!
David’s whole problem with Absalom stemmed from issues because he went directly against God’s specific commands. He had 8 wives and 7 sons which was a recipe for disaster that played out over his life.
We can relate to David because we have sinned too.
We can choose the gratitude strategy and thank God for our troubles.
3 Thank God for Sustaining Strength!
Have you ever worked yourself up with worry to the extent that you were terrified?
David was in a terrifying situation with a favorite son.
David saw God as a shield about him for protection. He was not relying on himself for strength.
David saw God as the One to lift his head. In other words, to lift his spirits and direction he should go.
He cried out to the Lord, not by complaining but by sharing his problem with God and asking for solutions.
4 Stop Fretting and worrying!
These five gratitude strategies will equip you for when your problems seem insurmountable.
The psalmists were real people facing very real dilemmas that we can relate to. Over and over they showed us that God cares for our little and big problems.
There are so many similarities between our trials and those that the psalmist faced.
God does not want you to fret! That is why we are told not to fret or worry countless times in the Psalms.
Just to name a few . . . toggle these references!
- Psalm 3:3
- Psalm 37:1
- Psalm 38:8
5 Thank God for Hearing our Cry!
David is writing about fretting which means that it’s nothing new. It has happened back then and it still happens today.
Just as God cared enough to show David that He cared, he cares about what you are fretting about too. God isn’t a stranger to problems. He knows and cares about what’s going on in your life.
The Lord hears your cry and knows why you are weeping.
- Psalm 3:4
- Psalm 4:1,3
- Psalm 5″3
- Psalm: 8-9
Even in the thick of our fret, we never find God indifferent or helpless or caught by surprise. ~Jonathan Purnell~
You can be encouraged further by learning how to get the most out of Psalms by reading what I shared here.
Do any of these 5 gratitude strategies resonate with you? How can I pray for you?
