Young People's Group

“DO NOT FRET…”

by Pastor Mitch
May 15, 2005

The Detrimental Problem Of Fretting

Fretting never profits anyone. On the contrary, it only causes harm. When we are faced with the challenges and difficulties of life, it is so easy to end up worrying and being troubled. And the more we fret, the worse things become. The Psalmist recognised this predicament when he sought to tell people not to fret.

“Do not fret – it only causes harm.”
Psalm 37:8

Fretting eats away at our spiritual strength and joy. It may cause us to feel depressed to such an extent that we lose the will to live. Young people, it is vital that we do not allow fretting to get the better of us.

Vigorously Fighting Against Fretting

How can we deal with the problem of fretting?

1. Cease Fretting

It is mentioned three times in the text of Psalm 37 that we are not to fret.

“Do not fret…”
Psalm 37:1, 7b, 8b

The first step to dealing with our worries is to stop worrying. Constantly, we must tell ourselves to stop fretting. Even after we have committed our problems to the Lord in prayer, we must consciously stop ourselves from fretting.

2. Choose To Trust And Do Good

“Trust in the Lord, and do good…”
Psalm 37:3

We must make it a conscious choice to trust in the Lord. We must determine to rest in the Lord rather than to complain and fret. Real trust will cause us to act in faith. We will practise trust by doing good. Trust causes us to focus on helping other people rather than our problems. Let’s do our part in helping others. Let’s display trust in God by being more concerned for others.

3. Continue To Live By Feeding On God’s Faithfulness

“Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.”
Psalm 37:3

The word “dwell” means to live in the land. The encouragement from the Psalmist was to choose to dwell in the land. We do not need to think of running away from problems or be overwhelmed by them. We can do this by remembering God’s faithfulness to us. He has been ever faithful in watching over us and protecting us. We can “feed” on God’s faithfulness.

4. Commit Our Ways To God

“Commit your way to the Lord, 
Trust also in Him, 
And He shall bring it to pass.”
Psalm 37:5

Let’s also learn to pray and commit all things to God. Instead of fretting, we can pray and trust in the Lord. The Lord will bring all things to pass. He will lead us through our difficulties. When we practise trust like this, we will not need to fret. Let’s have the confidence that the Lord will see us through any challenge or problem.

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