So, what is the WORST that can happen? Really...

~Tracy Frederick

Our daughter was a very smart little girl. She walked very early, talked in complete sentences when she started speaking, and was reading long before she entered kindergarten. I say all of that to let you into a little insight into her personality. She seemed to be a 30 year old in a 3 year old body. That meant that she worried quite a bit, and her tender heart was always at risk of breaking because of how someone was mistreated, or the possibilities of something happening that she could not control. In an attempt to help her learn to cope, I would always ask her: What is the WORST that could happen? That always ended up with us talking through the worst case scenarios, (some of them pretty comical) and eventually coming to understand that actually there was really nothing all that serious to worry about. Our discussions always went something like this: Ok, so what if you don't make a 100% on the spelling test and they kick you out of 1st grade because you aren't perfect? God still loves you so much that He gave His only Son just for YOU. Or: Ok, so what if you fail the exam and have to drop out of school and end up working at a fast food restaurant for the rest of your life? You still get to go to heaven, right? Or: Ok what is the WORST thing that can happen if you never meet a godly man to marry?You can still do amazing things in the work of the Lord teaching other children to follow Him, and you are still in a saved state and still get to go to heaven, right? wohoo! 

I admit that I am a worrier and my daughter gets it from me. My husband’s faith is so deep he can see the most important part immediately. He can brush off the problems and rest easy, I on the other hand have to have a good talk with myself and remind myself that whatever I am worrying about is really not that bad. I have had some health issues recently and have had to have a couple of surgeries and several “procedures” that have left me pretty frustrated. But, through it all, I have been encouraged by my sisters who are dealing with so much worse each and every day and continue with dignity and grace. They remind me: So, what is the WORST that could happen? I never rollerblade or exercise by jogging again (yeah, that didn’t happen before either)? I am unable to shop at Wal Mart for hours on end? Or I have to go through more surgeries for years? ….Nah, that’s not so bad. After all, I am in a saved state and I get to go to heaven! wohoo! Paul said it best: "...I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, to be content" Phil 4:11.

I hope those words bring you comfort too. I hope, dear sister that if you are struggling in your life, if you have physical ailments that have plagued you, or you have financial worries, etc. you too can finish that sentence with confidence (Acts 2:38) in knowing that the worst is not so bad (Mt 6:25-34) because the best is yet to come. I mean, seriously, what IS the worst that can happen?