I wonder if it’s Kosher to steal your pastor’s sermon for a blog post? I hope so, but if not, I’ve always been somewhat of a rebel. However, I don’t think he’d mind.

In the spring when I was six, there were numerous tornadoes in our area, and every time someone was interviewed (there was even a segment on Queen for a Day–how many of you remember that program–) about surviving the storm, the person would describe the tornado as sounding like a freight train or a big jet warming up to take off.

Well, it just so happened that I lived near the Memphis airport. Yep, every time one of those big jets fired up, it sounded like distant thunder. And to make matters worse, the older boy across the street from me discovered the sound terrified me, and he would yell, “Run! There’s a tornado coming!”

Well, my little six-year-old heart would go into overdrive and my stomach would clench even on a clear day, and off I’d run home to hide with tears streaming down my face. (I often wonder whatever happened to that kid…got into serious trouble, I’m sure…)

I wish I could tell you that I depended on Jesus to help me, but at that point, I knew little about Him. No, eventually I got a little older, and learn ed that storms didn’t generally come out of a blue sky. It was only later in life that I found Jesus and Philippians 4:6.

Philippians 4:6 is one of my go-to verses even when I’m not anxious. But how does one not be anxious with everything that’s going on in the world? Some of those reports send my heart racing like the rumble of jets did when I was six. And it’s not only world happenings–how about those personal events, and for writers, deadlines? How do you shut everything off at night and go to sleep?

For starters, I would stop watching the news. Or what passes for the news. Years ago, we found out what was happening when we tuned into a thirty-minute broadcast at 6 p.m. from one of four TV stations or caught an occasional report on the radio.

Now the news is called entertainment, and every report is sensationalized. We’re bombarded with all the terrible happenings 24/7. If we choose.

And don’t get me started on social media. I know, it’s great for keeping up with family, but there’s something much better–like sitting down around the dinner table and everyone talking about how their day went. Again, it’s a matter of what you choose.

It’s no wonder we have such a hard time going to sleep at night. So what do you do when you can’t turn your mind off at night?

I don’t know about you, but I’ve found that when negative thoughts bombard me and keep sleep at bay, running Scripture verses through my mind helps calm it down. Or, I’ll pick up my Bible and read a few psalms.

If that fails, I start with A and go through the alphabet praising God. For example, Almighty God, Blessed Savior, Christ the Lord…you get the idea. By the time I get to Z, my heart is lifted up and my mind is calm.

How about you? What ways do you suggest to stop anxiety from squeezing the breath out of you?