When Worry Clouds Your Vision

Three days before the wedding...

From my journal.

"What happens if the chairs don't show up," I said as I scraped supper remnants off the plates. "Or the photographer. What if HE doesn't show up?"

"What if we run out of food?" I continued. "What will we do? What happens then?"

My mother put the milk in the refrigerator and closed the door. She looked at me.

"What happens then?" she said.

She paused. I waited for it, her words of wisdom.

"What happens then?" she repeated. Then smiled. "They will be married."

"They will be married."

Strangely, those four simple words gave me peace.  I had allowed the worry of the smaller details to cloud the main goal - the marriage.

Whether you are planning a wedding, trying to finish a project at work or helping a child with homework, the main goal can be lost in the overwhelming worry of the little details.

What To Do When Worry Clouds Your Vision

1. Make a list.

Write down everything. Once the thought is on paper, it no longer has to take space in your brain. Then you can prioritize and decide what needs to be done, what can be postponed or eliminated and what you can delegate to others.

2. Face the Worse-Case Scenario.

Realize that nothing will go perfectly and have a plan B in mind. Realize that nothing will go perfectly and don't have a plan B in mind -- be okay with that.

3. Let Go of Things You Can't Control.

You have no control over others' reactions, the weather, the driver in front of you, people who forget to return phone calls, the stock market and who's going to get voted off American Idol.

4. Keep the Main Thing, the Main Thing.

Remember what the main goal is. Write it on a sticky note and plaster it to your forehead, if necessary. When friends, co-workers and strangers constantly ask you about the note on your head, it will keep you from getting sidetracked.

5. Pray.

It never hurts to go to Someone who is wiser and has a bigger perspective. "Do not worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks." - Phil. 4:6 ncv

And I try to keep this thought in mind, some wisdom I read a long time ago-- If you worry about something and then it happens, you have to live through it twice.

Once is enough.

What do you do when you are overwhelmed and worried?