Do you get anxious about the festivities happening around your household during Easter? Are you overwhelmed juggling all your preparations? Well, you are not alone. Millions of Americans are faced with this same challenge every Easter. Webster defines worry as being “a mental distress or agitation resulting from concern usually for something impending or anticipated." If you tend to gravitate towards being a worrywart here are three tips to creating a worry-free Easter:

1. Focus on what matters in life.

Building relationships with other people should be your most important focus during any holiday. What better way to get together and share life’s stories than during this period of time. Although all those preparations in your household for the upcoming festivities are important, a more meaningful and life changing gift to your family and your friends is your presence. Your time is precious. Avoid falling into the common trap of having to complete your list of tasks within your self-imposed deadlines. Let go of that need to be in control and fretting over making everything perfect. Focus rather on building those core relationships in your life.

2. Positive self-talk.

We can easily get caught up in the negative stress that may engulf us around any festive occasion. Should you find yourself dwelling on the negative, quickly change your thought process by telling yourself to stop. A simple statement to tell your mind is: “Thank you for sharing. Now let me move on to more positive thoughts." Every time that you find yourself drifting back to the dark side, create a bright positive image in your mind’s eye of what really matters. Give yourself a little pep talk to refocus your thoughts.

3. Being in a state of gratitude

Worrying doesn’t increase the amount of abundance that you will attract. Worrying doesn’t increase God’s abundance for you or your status in his eyes. Avoid putting what you are worrying about in your heart. Rather, put God’s abundance for you in your heart. In other words, operate from a position of gratitude. Be thankful for everything that has come into your life. Take a moment now to acknowledge your gratitude for your core relationships, the benefits of your current lifestyle, the rewards of your present career path, or your physical well-being. Write your top ten points down. Then either post them on the fridge or slip them into your pocket as a friendly reminder as you carry out your day-to-day activities this Easter.

As Alice Caldwell Rice said, “It ain’t no use putting up your umbrella till it rains." In other words, there is no use in worrying about all those things that you cannot control. Take control of your life now by focusing on what really matters in life, spending quality time with loved ones and friends. Enjoy this festive season. You deserve to have the best that it has to offer.