Introduction
Fearless the series continues- last installment.
We will be addressing the topic of worry today.
Much to worry about today and even be fearful of.
How do we master our fears/concerns as Christians?
How do we worry well?
Do you know someone who worries? Do you worry?
What do you worry about/Why do you worry?
We want to understand what the Bible says about worry and how the Bible teaches us to respond.
Many believe- always wrong for a Christian to worry.
If go to- Christian friends- tell them you are worried- you will hear clichés that may not be biblical …
you should not worry,
worry is a sin,
you need to have more faith in God.
(NOTES): Worry
Sometimes, worry can be a good thing.
Worry, concern, are natural responses to life.
Worry can serve some good purposes in our lives …
it can heighten our awareness of danger,
cause us to turn to the Lord, or
motivate us- take care of something neglected.
Worry can also paralyze us and consume us.
Lets look at how the Bible uses the word worry …
Jesus- Mtt 6 Do not worry- what eat/drink/wear
Paul in Phil 4:6 Don’t worry about anything;
But there are other Bible verses that translate the same Greek word for worry very differently.
2 Cor 11:27-29
Concern- same word translated as worry, but there is no sense that Paul is sinning.
When-Bible says do not worry-not saying do not have those thoughts, but do not be consumed by them.
Second thing we need to understand about worry …
(NOTES) We cannot control our feelings, but we can control our response.
Cannot control if we suddenly feel worried about something, but we can control what you do about it
People respond differently to life …
some go through life and nothing bothers them,
others are sensitive to everything that happens.
Regardless of how we are wired, we want to learn to respond properly to feelings of concern and worry.
External circumstances do not determine our response
Have you ever known someone who got angry and then afterwards said, “I couldn’t help it.”
It is not the external situation that causes my response,
it is the result of how I evaluate it inside and
what I chose to do with it inside
that determines my outward response.
We need to take responsibility for our actions and not blame them on circumstances or people.
(NOTES): How to Worry Well
Phil 4:4-6 NLT
This is not is a command that says-do not worry- shame, shame on you.
In the Greek it says, do not continue on in your worry, and here is how you can prevent excessive worry.
Phil 4:7 NLT
Is it not God’s peace that we are looking for?
We are not always looking for a solution as much as the assurance that everything will be okay.
Phil 4:8-9 NLT
Paul is telling us that there is a pathway to this peace (assurance) that everything will be okay.
That pathway involves …
1. how we pray,
2. our focus (how we think), and
3. how we live.
(NOTES): 1. The right kind of Prayer.
Phil 4:6 NLT
When-problem arises-reasonable response- can I fix it
If it is out of our control, then we bring it to the Lord.
(NOTES): > Tell God exactly what you want.
There is nothing too small, too selfish, or too unimportant to bring to God.
Jesus did not teach us to pray by beating around the bush or that we only bring the bigger things to God
Rom 8:15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!" NASU
Encouraged- approach God as a son would his father.
I often cringe when we talk about God as our daddy.
There is such little respect in our culture for authority.
What this is really saying is that …
We do not approach God through our theology, but through our relationship. Larry Osborne
Most children have no reservation about asking their father for something they want.
They ask what is on their mind at that moment, regardless of how small, trivial, or selfish it is.
We have the same freedom to bring everything to God
Have you ever talked w/boss or someone you were intimidated by and you were afraid to be too blunt so you kind of dance around the subject.
When you are finished w/that kind of conversation you are never quite sure you were understood.
This is one reason it is important to be clear and specific when we pray so we can go away knowing God has heard what is on our heart.
Important to us, so we can experience His peace.
(NOTES): Thank God for all He has already done.
Not only do we present our needs to God, but we take time to thank God for what He has already done.
This is not for God’s benefit, it is for our benefit.
When we remember what God has done in the past, today’s crisis always seem smaller.
If I look at a glass half full of water and all I notice is what is missing, I tend to forget …
the water God provided that I already used and the water that is still in the glass.
If we do not remember what God has done in the past, with each new crisis, we are not sure He can help.
Thanksgiving fuels our faith.
Let’s look at another reason why we give thanks …
1 Thess 5:16-18
Christians- always chasing God’s will for our lives …
is it God’s will for me to go this college,
marry this person, take this job.
Here, thanksgiving is clearly defined as God’s Will.
In God’s eyes it more important to be thankful than where we go to school or what job we have.
(NOTES): Pray this prayer as often as you need to.
That may be many times a day/hour- if we are worried
Again, we do not ask out of our theology, we ask out of our relationship, as a child would ask his father.
Lk 18:1-7
The judge grants the request …
not because it is a good request or
because he wanted to, but
because he was tired of hearing it- persistence.
As you pray be …
Specific, Thankful, and Persistent
(NOTES): 2. The right kind of FOCUS (thinking).
Phil 4:8 NLT
After telling us how to pray, he tells us how to think and what we should focus our minds on.
(NOTES):What we focus on determines what we see
Have you noticed that the more you focus on what you are worried about the more worried you get.
Paul is saying, be aware of problem, but think on other things- what is true, honorable, etc.
Have you ever bought a new car and then suddenly you see that car everywhere? Never saw it before.
Our brains focus on that car because it has become important to us- what are you focusing on?
Studies show that people who watch more news live in neighborhoods- more unsafe than others.
Is that because they live in a bad neighborhood?
Studies show, when people watch the news, bad things that happened far away- seem close to home
There is a burglar on the loose in north Florida, and I lock my doors because I suddenly do not feel safe.
You can watch anything you want, but if you are consumed w/worry, consider what you think about.
(NOTES): Focus on the facts and not the what ifs.
The what-ifs will always kill us.
It is easy to worry when- hear about future calamities.
Y2K in 1999- perfect example- of a “what if” that never materialized, but many were very fearful.
So many “what ifs” never come true.
Even in the church- I have lived through many words about God’s judgment coming on the US-
floods, famines, etc., that never happened.
(Prophetic prediction in May of 1974 by a lady in Guatemala of tidal wave to hit Florida)
Some will view you as foolish if you believe such things, others, who are into the prophetic, will
consider you a fool if you do not listen.
So often we choose to let the hell be scared out of us by what we put into our minds and hearts-what ifs.
I am not saying do not listen to the news or prophetic words, but what is the fruit in our lives.
What are you thinking on, are you rejoicing in the Lord, giving thanks, praying without ceasing?
When we/focus on- “what ifs,”- we imagine ourselves fighting future battles in today’s strength.
God will give us His grace when we need it.
If someone had told me a year before TS Fay-we were going to face- flooded house-no way, sink my ship.
But when it happened- grace/mercy of Jesus was there
Pray right, focus or think right, and thirdly …
(NOTES): 3. The right kind of LIFE.
Phil 4:9 NLT
If we look at Paul’s life and live as he lived, then the peace of God will be with us.
(NOTES): Obedience breeds confidence, and guilt produces fear.
It is impossible to experience the peace of God …
when we are not doing what God has asked or
doing something God does not want us to do.
We inherently know God knows- cannot find peace.
The church teaches us how to manage sin and not eradicate sin. We teach people how close they can walk to sin and not step over the edge, instead of how to walk close to the throne of God. John Paul Jackson.
As a child did you ever do something bad and thought you got away with it- only to be caught later?
You were not afraid you would no longer be a son or daughter, but you were afraid of the discipline.
(NOTES): Sin removes God’s protection.
In the spiritual realm we …
can never earn our salvation and
will not lose it by and act of disobedience,
but we lose- rewards in heaven
we lose- quality of the relationship we could have with God now, and
we lose God’s protecting peace and
instead face His discipline.
To experience peace, God must be-director of our life.
Conclusion
If you want peace in difficult times, approach God …
openly and candidly- pray about everything,
be thankful to God for what He has done,
focus on the right things,
do the right things, live in obedience, then
the God of peace will be with you.
