THE "WHAT IF?" GAME

One of, if not my very least favorite games is the "What If?" game. "What if you couldn't read or write?" "What if I had taken up a different trade?" "What if Colt McCoy hadn't gotten injured in the fifth play?" What if? Does it matter? It's not that way. Why add stress to an already stressful life?

Steph and I outlawed the "What If?" game a long time ago when we were dating. This is why:

The "What If?" game always, without fail, brings about three things this world can and should do without - doubt, fear, and worry.

When we doubt, we doubt God's promise to work in our lives. We doubt His power, grace, and authority. We doubt His love.

Our fear drives us to do things we never would have thought of otherwise. We lie, cheat, deceive. We beat up, tear down, destroy. We turn to ourselves and away from God.

Max Lucado describes our worry problem best in his book Traveling Light:

     No one has to remind you of the high cost of anxiety. (But I will anyway.) Worry divides the mind. The biblical word for worry (merimnao) is a compound of two Greek words, merizo ("to divide") and nous ("the mind"). Anxiety splits our energy between today's priorities and tomorrow's problems. Part of our mind is on the now; the rest is on the not yet. The result is half-minded living.


     That's not the only result. Worrying is not a disease, but it causes diseases. It has been connected to high blood pressure, heart trouble, blindness, migraine headaches, thyroid malfunctions, and a host of stomach disorders.


     Anxiety is an expensive habit. Of course, it might be worth the cost if it worked. But it doesn't. Our frets are futile. Worry has never brightened a day, solved a problem, or cured a disease.

So, next time you decide to play the "What If?" game, take a moment to think of how you will feel afterward. It just might change your mind.

Your thoughts?

Peace, Love, and Dark Chocolate