WORRY less

“Maayo pa ang among panghugas sa plato kay may JOY. Ako kay wala na gyud. Kasamok aning quarantine oy!”

The Enhanced Community Quarantine due to COVID-19 might be extended up to April 30 as stated by the president on his national address last night, April 6, 2020. But what if instead of being quarantined, we are imprisoned?

“Ada oy, mura naman gihapon ta ug piniriso ani atong kahimtang,” you might say. But let’s differentiate quarantine and imprisonment. If you are quarantined, looking at the experience we are having right now, we still have the privilege to go out the street to at least give our eyes a quick refreshing view. We have the privilege to go and buy some essential items we need at home. We are able to communicate freely through various means of communication being offered by today’s technology. We spend each passing day with our family in the comfort of our homes. But if you are imprisoned, you can’t do all of those you could do if you are quarantined. You could only embrace the cold prison bars away from your family and home.

It seems strange that a man in prison would be telling a church to rejoice (Philippians 4:4). But Paul’s attitude teaches us an important lesson: Our inner attitudes do not have to reflect our outward circumstances. He was full of joy because he knew that no matter what happened to him, Jesus Christ was with him. It’s easy to get discouraged about the unpleasant circumstance we are facing today. If you haven’t been joyful lately, you may not be looking life from the right perspective.

Ultimate joy comes from Christ dwelling within us. Christ is near, and at his second coming we will fully realize this ultimate joy. He who lives within us will fulfil his final purposes for us.

“Natural naman siguro nga mabalaka mi. Maayo man ka kay maestra, dako imuhang sweldo unya gi sweldohan kag sayo karon sa Abril. Naa pa gyud kay clothing allowance. Unya kami ani?”

We could all list down all our worries and fill a sheet of paper with it. But, imagine never worrying about anything! “That’s impossible,” you might say. But Paul’s advice is to turn our worries into prayers. Through this, we will find peace in Christ which is far more different than the peace offered by this world. True peace is not found in positive thinking, in absence of conflict, or in good feelings. It comes from knowing that God is in control.

Worries turned into prayers causes us to let God’s peace guard our hearts against anxiety. So if you want to worry less, pray more!