Solution for Overthinking

"I realized that in the months since Helen had died, I hadn't been paying much attention to the things like the sunrise, but that old sun had been coming up anyway. It didn't really care how I felt, it was going to rise and set regardless of whether I noticed it, and if I was going to enjoy it, that was up to me." 

~Jeannette Walls, "Half Broke Horses."

I recently finished this book and couldn't stop talking about it. I retold stories from it at mealtimes to my family and read direct sections because there's so much to tell. I easily gave it 5 stars on Goodreads. 

The quote above especially jumped out at me. I'm sure we can all agree the world has been getting increasingly crazy. Unfortunately I had been letting it all get to me. Anxious thoughts, fretting, and worrying was piling up in my brain. It's not a very pleasant place to be in, but when I read this section of the book, this paragraph seemed so applicable. No matter how I feel, the sun keeps rising. Life does keep going on. There is good around us whether we dwell on it or not, but it's our choice to find and dwell on it. Despite the world events nearby or on the other side of the ocean, the sun keeps rising. 

Around this time I also saw another quote:

"You're overthinking again. Talk to me. -God."

I'm a pro at overthinking. My oh my. Anyone else identify?

It's school time, so I've been researching overthinking history curriculum. Yep, last minute, and if you're a homeschooler, you know exactly what I'm talking about when I say we can overthink curriculum. We research, watch reviews on YouTube, compare and double compare, ponder which one is best, which one fits our teaching style, and it goes on. and on. and on. 

That's just one example. And, fairly innocent. 

But there are BIG subjects to overthink about these days. World events. A scamdemic. Vaccines. Mandates. Regulations. Politics. Natural disasters. 

Let alone, closer to home there are always prayer requests coming in from all sides. It might be relationships, parenting, health issues, finances, or business related. All worthy things to pray about, but instead, I tend to overthink about. 

When I saw that phrase though, it convicted me that overthinking is a form of worrying. It's a version of not trusting the Lord. Rather than letting my circling thoughts and questions continue, I can just pray. I know exactly when I'm caught in a period of overthinking...the questions and what-if's start swirling. So when I notice I'm caught in that downward spiral of brain overload, I switch my thoughts to prayers. 

It's super simple, but it has really changed my mindset the past couple weeks. 

God is completely aware of the world's events and which curriculum I'm going to choose for history this year. He doesn't want me to carry these burdens when he has it all under control. 

He's the one who created the sun to keep rising every morning. 

I can't think of anyone I'd rather trust with all my overthinking.