As new year begins, do not worry about tomorrow; just control what you can

I am an evangelical Christian. Scripture is the inerrant word of God. I believe Christ was born of a virgin in a manger, that he lived a perfect life, that he died a terrible death and that he rose again.

Although that belief is still the majority belief in the country and celebrated by more than 1 billion people globally, it is not just a diminishing view, but in much of sophisticated society people would argue only a fool would believe it. Count me a fool.

My wife’s cancer diagnosis changed our family’s perspective on life

Credit: Erick Erickson

Credit: Erick Erickson

But also let me deal with reality.

A few days before Christmas in 2006, a biopsy of my wife’s lungs was misdiagnosed and she was given six months to live. Our daughter was only 1 year old at the time. That misdiagnosis was a Christmas gift because, without it, 10 years later we would not have known my wife had lung cancer.

Doctors at the Mayo Clinic, who confirmed the condition was benign in 2006, by 2016 had enough research to know that benign conditions often metastases and called my wife to inform her.

My wife has a genetic and incurable form of lung cancer. It is stage four. My family, each day, has a sword of Damocles hanging over us by a horse hair worrying the hair will snap and the sword will fall.

My wife’s mother died of cancer when my wife was young. In 2016, my wife was given two years to live. Two years ago, she held my hand as we watched our oldest graduate from high school. Now, our youngest is in his junior year and we hope my wife will be here for that graduation in 2027.

We all like to worry about tomorrow. Confronting mortality helps us focus on today. We do not know what tomorrow will bring. This sword that dangles over my family helps us, most often, focus on the here and the now. It makes us focus on building memories.

Here at Christmas this year, I can offer only gratitude for having my wife still with me. It is not always easy. She takes an oral chemotherapy daily. She often feels bad. She is susceptible to illness. As I write, she is just getting over the flu. COVID, last year, left her in bed for a week. Still, I would rather her with me than any present wrapped under the tree. Ironically, the specter of cancer forces me not to worry. Jesus says worrying is a sin. My brain tells me if I dwell on the worry, it will consume me.

From that daily reality in the Erickson household, please just consider this: Tomorrow is mostly outside your control. Worrying about what is coming is a waste of energy. Instead, control what you can. Jesus also said to love your neighbor as yourself. You can control that. You can pour your energies into the lives of your community instead of worrying about tomorrow or the happenings of Washington.

We must seek to seek happiness by building community together

In the post-COVID world, so many of us are more isolated than ever. Data constantly shows the people most involved in churches and community are the happiest. If you feel overwhelmed or miserable this season, go help the local food bank or soup kitchen. Volunteer in your community. Meet your neighbors where they are and do what you can to love them.

As a Christian, I believe God came down at Christmas to live with us because he wants a relationship with us so much. We do not get an escape from this world. My wife gets no escape from cancer. But Christians believe God did not escape this world either. He died on a cross and conquered death that we might be welcomed into eternity.

But we are not there yet. We are only almost to 2026. We cannot control what comes. We can prepare, though. That preparation should be here, in the community in which you are reading these words.

As Jeremiah wrote to the exiled Jews in Babylon, seek the welfare of your community because that is where you will find your welfare. It is where you will see the face of God. It is where you will find the rest from your troubles and the escape from your worries.

Merry Christmas.

Erick Erickson is host of the nationally syndicated “Erick Erickson Show,” heard weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. on WSB radio. He is also now an opinion contributor to the AJC.