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Parish Mission - Give Up Worry for Lent 2020
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Summary of Parish Mission with Gary Zimak
Gary Zimak, nationally known Catholic expert on overcoming anxiety and worry, spoke at St. Jude Church’s Parish Mission on March 1-3. Gary’s expertise does not come from a psychology degree but from a lifelong battle with anxiety. Being a hypochondriac and worrier since he was a child and having been rushed to the ER on six separate occasions with panic attacks, it took a “mystery illness” in 2004 and the personal conviction that he was dying to make him turn to the Lord in a truly powerful way – and for the first time in his life, he found peace. Gary learned firsthand that only by nurturing a very deep relationship with Christ can we overcome the anxieties that plague us and live a life of peace and hope.
Fear is morally neutral and has a purpose, he explained. It can lead us to productive responses that improve our situation. Worry, however, is a useless, unproductive response to fear. We may think we’re being productive, reviewing in our minds everything that could possibly happen so that we might be prepared with a response. But this is an over-reaction to stimulus, and in many cases, a sign that we lack sufficient trust in God to take care of us.
What Jesus Said about Worry
Gary peppered his talks with a stream of Scripture verses in which Jesus taught us not to worry and to trust in Him. “My mission,” Gary said, “is to fire you up and get you to go to Jesus. Keep your focus always on Jesus.”
The most obvious illustration of needing to keep our eyes on Christ is the story of Peter walking on water (Matt 14). When the disciples in the boat saw Jesus walking across the water towards them, they feared it was a ghost. When He identified Himself as Jesus, Peter said the most outrageous thing: “If it is you, bid me come to you on the water.” “Come,” Jesus replied. And Peter came! He walked on the water…until he noticed the wind, became frightened, and began to sink. He had taken his eyes off Jesus.
But then he did the right thing. He cried to Jesus for help— “Lord, save me!” —and Jesus instantly caught him. What did Jesus say to him? “Oh you of little faith. Why did you doubt?” This may sound harsh, but as Gary pointed out, Jesus acknowledged Peter had faith – he did step out into the water, after all! But he needed more faith in order to keep trusting and not doubt. Notice, too, that the wind did not die down as soon as Jesus caught Peter. They had to walk back to the boat together in that wind.
Our Lord did not promise there would be no trials; in fact, quite the opposite: “In this world you will have trouble. But take courage; I have conquered the world.” (John 16:33)Take courage.
In order to overcome our anxieties and worries, we must acknowledge consciously that Jesus is our Lord and Savior, that He has conquered the world, and that we can do all things in Christ who strengthens us. (Phil 4:13) This knowledge is the source of our courage.
St. John Paul II said in his writings that, though we receive grace in baptism, it’s possible for that grace to be “bound up” unless we consciously decide to accept the gift of grace, walk with Jesus, and acknowledge our loving Father in heaven, who has only good plans for us – “plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jer. 29:11) God never wills that bad things happen to us, but if He allows them, it is so that He can draw us closer to Him and bless us in some way. When storms come, we should turn to the Lord in trust. The house built on rock withstood the winds, rains, and floods of life; the house built on sand fell. (Matt. 7:24) Unbelievers worry because they are built on sand, Gary explained. We who are built on Christ, the Rock, will withstand all of life’s trials.
Practical Advice to Overcome Worry
“The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe the Good News.” (Mark 1:15) In Greek, the word “repent” is “metanoia,” which really means “change the way you think.” This is what Gary challenged us to do. The vast majority of worriers do not suffer from physical or mental causes for our anxiety; we just need a change of thinking. But everyone, whether we have a medicalcause or not, can benefit from these tips.
- Turn off the news: “There’s so much bad news – if you’re looking at that every day, you’re gonna be depressed!” We should seek to be informed but limit our access to bad news if we tend to get worked up.
- Read Scripture daily: If you’ve ever thought, “God never speaks to me,” remember that the Bible is the Word of God. If you’ve read or heard the Bible, He’s spoken to you. Pick it up and read a little every day and you’ll hear His voice more clearly and know Him as someone real in your life.
- Frequent the Sacraments: Go to Confession often. Receive Jesus in Communion frequently. Visit Him in the Blessed Sacrament and just sit and be with Him in the tabernacle. He’s here with us, just as surely as He was with the Apostles 2000 years ago.
- Pray for what you need: God knows what we need before we ask, but he wants us to ask, anyway. “If you need a new car, pray for a new car,” Gary advises. “Just don’t pray for a Jaguar.” Do what you can to solve the problem and leave the rest up to God.
- Take a leap of faith: Sometimes God asks us to do scary things. If you’ve prayed about something and you’re 75% sure you know what to do, “get out of the boat” as Peter did. Take the step and Jesus will hold you up. Gary shared the incredible story of a “couple of knuckleheads,” as he called them, who took on the entire Philistine army (1 Sam 14). Jonathan, the son of King Saul, said to his armor-bearer, “Come, let us go over to that outpost of the uncircumcised. Perhaps the Lord will help us, because it is no more difficult for the Lord to grant victory by means of a few than it is by means of many.” Jonathan recognized that God was all-powerful and could do whatever He wanted. So the two of them attacked the outpost, killing 20 men and spreading terror through the entire army, which then began to panic and kill each other! While Gary didn’t promise us such results, he did promise that, if we trust in God, God will help us and we will have peace.
Take the Step
Gary encouraged us to take action now. “Now’s the time. We can’t always assume we will have time.” These are not comforting words to a worrier! But they are an important reminder. There’s no need to keep living in fear, anxiety, and worry. There is a solution. That solution is peace flowing from a deep, loving relationship with Christ. As Gary reminded us, “Jesus is pure love.”
Gary wrote a number of books to help us apply his principles. Give Up Worry for Lent sold out on Amazon both last year and again this year (though it has since been restocked). Other powerful titles include Worriers Guide to the Bible, From Fear to Faith, Find a Real Friend in Jesus: Ten Amazingly Easy Steps, and Listen to Your Blessed Mother. Learn about these and other titles on Gary’s website, www.followthetruth.com.
Jeannette Williams, Communication Coordinator, St. Jude Church and Shrine, Chalfont PA
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Give Up Worry for Lent
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Previous Presentations
- Parish Movie Night: Breakthrough! - July 31, 2019
- Cyber Safety for Children - April 15, 16, 17 2019 see our summary of the presentation
- Internet Safety for Children - January 31, 2019 - see our summary of the presentation
- Vaping Presentation - November 29, 2018 - see the article on our website: Vaping - The New Gateway Drug
- Opioid Workshop - October 23, 2018 - see our resources page: Help for Addiction
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