5 Words to Combat Worry

In a broken world that fights against faith, we can find ourselves spiraling out in our minds with disruptive thoughts, negative self talk, and worse, lies from Satan. After living some life, I’ve found 5 words to combat worry. And, no shocker here, these five words are pulled from scripture. In a condensed, short speak version of Philippians 4:6-8, I’m able to stop thoughts that aren’t from God, and focus back onto Him. With practice, you can train your brain to detect the lies of the enemy, and combat them with the truth of the Bible. Let me show you how I do this.

I know that we’re currently in our Summer Thrive Guide mini series, and worry seems like an odd man out with all the pool parties, festivities, and fun. Here’s what I know. When my kids are away at camps, I can tend to worry about how they’re doing. If we’re all at a pool party, I know every mama is keeping eyes on kids because of the fear of the worst happening.

When we have to go to jobs and leave our tweens and teens at home to fend for themselves, worry can creep in. Will they choke while they eat lunch? What if a bad guy poses as an Amazon delivery person? What are they actually doing while I’m away? Worry is all around us, and Satan is absolutely going to send it our way every chance he gets. God has put it on my heart to share these 5 words to combat worry. I had a whole other post that was supposed to come out this week, but God said, “Pump the brakes, sister. Do this instead.” So here ya go!

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Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. These are the 5 words to combat worry. If I had a dollar for how many times I use this verse and/or these 5 words for me or for someone else, I’d be a billionaire. This five step process walking through Philippians 4:6-8 has been an absolute game changer for me and my headspace. From personal experience walking through life and all its up and downs, I know that the devil comes knocking on my door with unfriendly lies that try to pull me away from God.

Before I go further, know this. Trust me, I was not always sunshine and happy faces. I was in a deep, dark pit, and my mind was so warped with non-truths, that I couldn’t get out on my own. I’ve seen some things and I have lived some life. I’ve mismanaged feelings and events, and my mind spiraled for far too long. With these 5 words to combat worry, I can recognize the lies of the enemy quickly. Yes, it takes practice. With time, you too can shut down toxic thoughts, and actually think about things that are good for you.

Fun fact: With this particular verse and these 5 words to combat worry, I have a memory peg system that I’ll walk you through. This a TPR, or Total Physical Response, memorization tactic. I can nerd out all day with memorizing scripture strategies, so I made a thing just for you that serves that purpose because that’s a whole other episode that’s coming later this fall. It’s linked HERE and you can check that out if you’re wanting to get better at remembering Bible verses (or remembering anything for that matter).

A Quick Shout Out

Shout out to Episode 294 for diving into the four things that got me out of that funk in that I was in a couple decades ago! That’s a nod to my Read, Pray, Talk, Tell method. When we read our Bibles, pray regularly, spend time in Biblical community, and tell others about Jesus, we draw ourselves closer to God and away from the lies of the enemy. Dear listener, if I could go back and tell younger Brooke something it would be to Read, Pray, Talk, Tell, and fully step into Philippians 4:6-8 which says:

⁶ Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ⁷ Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. ⁸ And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Philippians 4:6-8

From this scripture, I pulled my 5 words to combat worry into simple terms, and it has forever changed the way I think. First, I recommend to memorize these three verses, but if that’s too much for your brain right now, can you memorize five words? I’ll give them to you multiple times throughout this blog post (along with reading the scripture), to maximize retention potential. Here the 5 words to combat worry:

• Stop
• Pray
• Ask
• Thank
• Think

Step #1: Stop

Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. We’re going to break these verses down one step at a time. The very first words in this scripture are, “Don’t worry about anything.” Cool, no sweat, God. Here I am just not going to worry about anything the rest of my life. Wait, that’s not how human nature and naturally sinful brains work.

Remember, Satan is trying to constantly throw worrisome ideas at you and sees what sticks. When the scripture says, “Don’t worry about anything.”, that tells me that I need to stop. Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. When we can notice the enemy at work with worry, we need to stop that thought. Simple step to understand, and it’s the hardest one to catch if you’re out of practice or not in tune with being aware of what’s going on in between your ears.

I recently saw a statistic that said 97% of the things we worry about, don’t even come true. 97%! What?! That means worry is like a rocking chair. You can rock all day, but you’re going absolutely nowhere. When satan can get us stuck on the rocking chair of worry, we burn our brain power on something that isn’t furthering the kingdom, and is 97% likely to never happen. Now that’s a tricky tactic! We see you, Satan, and we’re going to shut you down with stop, pray, ask, thank, think.

Memory Peg Memorization:

• Stop: imagine grabbing a thought over the top of your head with both of your hands
• Pray
• Ask
• Thank
• Think

I promise you the science and research backs memory pegs, so just roll with me on this. Repetition is key. Do it with me. Take both of your hands and capture that worrisome thought that Satan is trying to throw at you. It should look like you one-time clapping over your head. Stop.

Step #2 Pray

Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. The first part of Philippians 4:6 says, “Don’t worry about anything (stop), instead, pray about everything (pray). First, we stop. Then, we pray. Stop the toxic thought and pray. Pray about what? Everything. Hey, if it’s in your head, wouldn’t you want to filter it through what God says anyway? As Jennie Allen says in her book Get Out of Your Head, “You don’t have to believe every thought you think.” We know an enemy is at work, and he’s trying to get you off task. That’s why he’s throwing anxiety and worry at you all day long. Let’s read the whole scripture again (because research also shows repetition matters):

⁶ Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ⁷ Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. ⁸ And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Philippians 4:6-8

It doesn’t have to be a big, fancy prayer spoken in the King James Version. Just pray how you regularly talk. A recent example for me was when my kids were going to our church’s VBS. It was Rhett’s first time to go, and if you’re new here, he’s five and at age three he was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. You can learn all about that in episode 185 to get the backstory. I’ve practiced Philippians 4:6-8 with my 5 words to combat worry many times, so I knew exactly what I needed to do. I think I’ve hit my 10,000 hours in this spiritual practice.

My worrisome thoughts ranged from his devices not working, to not getting the proper amount of insulin, to having low glucose seizures, to ER visits. Nah, not a worry at all, huh? As soon as I caught onto this negative spiraling, I followed the 5 words to combat worry: stop, pray, ask, thank, think.

Memory Peg Memorization:

• Stop: imagine grabbing a thought over the top of your head with both of your hands
• Pray: take your hands from above your head, down to your chest for a classic “praying hands”
• Ask
• Thank
• Think

Repetition is key, do it with me. Stop: grab that worry over your head. Pray: pull that worrisome thought down to praying hands, and take it to God. Here is how my prayer for Rhett and VBS went:

God, you know exactly what you’re doing, and you never mess up. I recognize that I have these thoughts flying into my headspace about Rhett and his glucose levels, and his insulin. You are the ultimate healer, so I know that you’ve got him. I know that I’m not supposed to worry in this situation, and I know that when I take these thoughts to you, you can give me peace. Thank you for being such a good father and protector. I know that you’ll provide everything that he needs.

You can bet your bottom dollar that this prayer or a variation of this prayer was prayed non-stop until VBS was over. And guess, what, God came through! More to the story in a bit. Let’s look at our next step.

Step #3 Ask

Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. First, stop the worry (grab that thought looming over you). Second, pray (take that worry straight to the only guy who can fix it). Third, ask. Let’s continue reading with verse 6:

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need…”

Philippians 4:6 (most of it)

Wait, Brooke, you mean I get to tell God what I need? Well, friend, according to the text…that’s a big, fat YES. There are multiple times the scripture talks about asking God for things (that’s a whole other episode). Today, we’re talking about the 5 words to combat worry. Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. Once we stop the worry, take it to God in prayer, go on and be bold in your ask. We know God is a good father who gives great gifts to His kids. He also knows what’s best, and He’s going to answer with a “yes”, “not yet”, or “I have something better”.

After praying to God about my worry with Rhett, I knew that this is the part where I could ask for something. I also am a specific prayer at times, and sometimes I don’t even know what I need, so I just tell Him that too. Here’s how that part of the prayer went:

God, I would love for Rhett to have a VBS counselor that is competent, confident, and in control of this whole Type 1 situation happening. I have never handed off devices to an untrained stranger before, but you know that. But, God, I’m literally handing over $4,000 worth of devices, so I’d love for those not to get lost, stolen, or broken. Please help him feel good and be safe with his body this week. Please help the counselor be patient and not be afraid to take charge, or call if they need something. I know you know what he needs better than I do, and I know I can’t orchestrate all of that, so could you just go ahead and do that for me please, God?

Memory Peg Memorization:

• Stop: imagine grabbing a thought over the top of your head with both of your hands
• Pray: take your hands from above your head, down to your chest for a classic “praying hands”
• Ask: keep your hands over your chest but switch from praying hands to interlaced fingers
• Thank
• Think

Repetition, my friends! Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. Stop that worry by grabbing it over your head. Pray by bringing those hand down to chest level, and take that worry to God. Interlace those fingers, and ask God for what you need. The 5 words to combat worry are starting to get engrained into your brain. I can feel it!

Step #4 Thank

Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. We’re on step #4 of the 5 words to combat worry. How ya doing so far? Stop the worry. Pray to God. Ask Him for what you need. Now let’s finish Philippians 4:6 below:

 “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.“

Philippians 4:6

Thank God for all He has done. Well, He sure has done a whole lot for us, so it won’t be hard to just begin rattling off a list. What I like to do specifically is to thank Him for what He’s doing in a particular situation, ahem, the one that I’m currently worried about. If you can’t think of anything. Take a deep breath, and then thank Him for the air that you just breathed in.

At this point in my prayer for Rhett and that whole situation, I’ve stopped my worrisome thought, taken it to God, and asked Him for what I needed and Rhett needed (a littler intercession action). Then, I began thanking Him. Here’s what that looked like:

God, thank you for modern medicine and technology. Thank you for the invention of insulin that comes in a vial, and that we can afford this 6th most expensive liquid in the world. Thanks for His sisters being able to go and keep and eye on him while they get to learn about you during their VBS experience. Thank you for a wonderful church staff who took him in even though Type 1 can be confusing and scary for a new person to manage. Thank you for this opportunity for me to grow as a mom, and let go for a couple hours at a time to trust someone else with all of this.

Memory Peg Memorization:

• Stop: imagine grabbing a thought over the top of your head with both of your hands
• Pray: take your hands from above your head, down to your chest for a classic “praying hands”
• Ask: keep your hands still over your chest but switch from praying hands to interlaced fingers
• Thank: take your hands apart and point up to God to thank Him for what He’s done
• Think

Can you guess what I’m about to say? Yes! Repetition! Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. Do your memory pegs movements with me. Stop the worry (grab the thought). Pray to God (praying hands). Ask for your needs (interlaced fingers). Thank Him (point up to Him).

Step #5 Think

Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. Buckle up, because watch how God comes through once we do the first four steps of the 5 words to combat worry. When we stop, pray, ask, and thank, see what happens in verse 7. I’ll start from the beginning of Philippians 4:6:

⁶ Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ⁷ Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. ⁸ And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Philippians 4:6-8

God keeps His promises, so when He says that we’ll experience His peace which exceeds anything we can understand, believe it with your whole dang heart. Man, isn’t He good, and there’s more! The verse goes on to say that this peace He gives us will guard our hearts and minds. I’ll take that any day! This amazing God move is a straight up throat punch to Satan’s worry tactics. Muahaha!

Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. Have you ever been told not to think about something, and then that’s all you can think about? For example, if I said, whatever you do, absolutely don’t think about gray elephants wearing pink bows. Don’t you dare even think about those pink bow wearing gray elephants. Not for one second. This is where verse 8 comes into play:

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.“

Philippians 4:8

Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. We know we’re not supposed to worry, so then what do we think about? Certainly not gray elephants wearing pink bows. We’re told to think about all the good things! God, is so nice. He knows that we can get so wiped out from worry that He’s made us a list. Hint: All of the list contains attributes of God. You can think of times when He’s been excellent or admirable. Or, you can think on how He’s played those attributes out in you life. Lovely could range from the beauty of nature to those sweet giggles from your kids. Think on the good stuff!

Memory Peg Memorization:

• Stop: imagine grabbing a thought over the top of your head with both of your hands
• Pray: take your hands from above your head, down to your chest for a classic “praying hands”
• Ask: keep your hands still over your chest but switch from praying hands to interlaced fingers
• Thank: take your hands apart and point up to God to thank Him for what He’s done
• Think: take your fingers from pointing up, and point them to your brain

Repetition competition time! Do you think you have the 5 words to combat worry memorized yet? I’ll give you a second to try to name the 5 words in order. Stop, pray, ask, thank, think. Did you get it right? If not, hit that rewind button a few times. Now, let’s see if you can remember the memory pegs that go with the 5 words to combat worry. Got it? Let’s double check. Stop my worry (grab thought over your head). Pray to God (hands down into praying hands). Ask for what you need (interlaced fingers). Thank Him for what He’s done (point up to God). Think on the good things (point fingers to brain). Did you get it? If not, rewind, rewind, rewind, a few times (or scroll back up).

Whew! You put in some hard work today! Good job! It’s not every day you get a brain workout while reading scripture. If your brain is melting, that’s okay! Take a breather, save this post for later, and give it a reread tomorrow. Bonus: pray and ask God to help you remember the 5 words to combat worry. He doesn’t want you to worry. He wants to give you peace. All you have to do is let Him.

That wraps up episode 299 of the Witty & Gritty podcast “The 5 Words to Combat Worry.” I highly recommend you save this episode, and send it to at least one friend. Everyone worries at some point, so you know they’ll need this info. Feel free to also send this to all your Enneagram 6 friends. Trust me. See ya next week!

Links from the Show

• Summer Thrive Guide Mini Series (ep 291-304)
• 12 Methods to Memorize Scripture
• Rhett’s Type 1 Diabetes episode 185
• Witty & Gritty on Instagram