Warts

When I was about eleven years old, I had a wart on my knee.

Because I was an active child, I was always bumping it and making it bleed. My mother tried all kinds of treatments to get rid of it, but it insisted on staying put.

I even dabbed it with milkweed juice to no avail.

Then I heard of an old wives’ remedy to make it disappear.

I was supposed to secretly bury a piece of string in the ground.

One day I did just that, and the next thing I knew, the wart was gone and never came back. I am sure its disappearance had nothing to do with the secret burial, but it is still a funny story—especially since I have now become a worrywart instead.

I have tried so many ways to let go of worry without success.

It is not a Christian virtue to hang on to, so it demands dealing with it. I do not worry over food, drink, or clothes, as listed in Matthew 6:25–33.

It is verse 34, quoted above, that gets me down.

I worry over the troubles I have with my computer, printer, cell phone, passwords, Zoom meetings, and all things techy.

This is not the world many of us grew up in, and we are left behind.

What do you worry about? There are so many issues that upset our daily lives, including our health, relationships, climate change, floods, droughts, fires, inflation, politics, wars, gun violence, pandemics, and new viruses! Listening to the news every day probably is not a good thing to do, but we all want to know what’s going on in our world.

Maybe the best thing for me to do is bury my worries deep in the ground since I cannot change the world of technology or most of the other things listed above.

When I find myself worrying unduly, my favorite Bible promise comes to mind: Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths (Proverbs 3:5, 6, NKJV).

God understands all things, including technology.

The closer we get to the end of all things, the more we need to trust our lives with God and let Him take our worries away. He is faithful, and His promises are sure. More trustworthy than an old wives’ remedy!

Donna J. Voth