Neal looked at a subject that many of us suffer with and struggle with – Worry!
The good news is that Jesus tackles this subject head on and gives us good advice on how we should deal with worrying in our lives – the very fact he tackles it shows he knows it’s a problem for us and that should give us hope!
Matthew 6 vs 25-34 is the passage we looked at.
From this passage we looked at four things that we can learn;
1. Worry is Pointless – To worry about something you can change is pointless – just act and change the circumstance to stop the worry. To worry about something you have no control over is pointless! Vs 32 – Your heavenly father knows your needs - we can read that but do we act as though it is true?
2. Worry is not for us as Christians – VS 32 – These things dominate the thoughts of the gentiles – but your heavenly father knows all your needs – let the world worry – as Christians we have God`s promises to hold onto and he cares for us more than he cares for the birds of the air vs 26
3. Worry is Unhelpful – Worry doesn’t change anything – it just has the ability to make you unhappy and fearful – vs 27 – Can all your worries add a single moment to your life – No of course not – so why do it!
4. Worry is Unnecessary – vs 30 – Jesus looks again at nature – look at the lilies of the field – why do you have little faith? This is partly a faith issue for us!
So how do we stop!
1. Get to know God and his love for you more and more and as you do you will begin to learn that you do not need to worry – You are sons and daughters of the King with access to his presence and he cares for you! 1 Peter 5 vs 7-8 – Cast all you anxieties on him – Why? Because he Cares for you!!
It`s no co-incidence that this verse is followed directly by vs 8 which says – Stay alert – Watch out for the Devil for he prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour! Stand firm against him – be strong in your faith.
2. Seek Gods Kingdom and think differently – Sounds good but how do I do it?
Phillipians 4 vs 6-9 – Pray about everything, Tell God what you need, Thank him for all he has done – FIX your thoughts on what is true, honourable, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and worthy of praise – Jesus? What happens when you do this?
Vs 7 –His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
3. Live one day at a time – Jesus tells us not to worry about tomorrow – Quote – “Planning for tomorrow is time well spent, worrying about tomorrow is time wasted” Don’t let your plans interfere with your relationship with God!
4. Trust God to care for you! – The bible is full of God`s promises to us and we need to know these and use them when we need them! Its goods to remind ourselves of how much God loves us and wants to protect us.
Some promises can be found in: Phillipians 4 vs 19, Hebrews 13 vs 5-6, Romans 12vs 2
To finish we read a quote from Dr Martyn Lloyd Jones – “If you want to seek anything, if you want to be anxious about anything, be anxious about your spiritual condition, your nearness to God and your relationship to him. If you put that first, worry will go, that is the result. This great concern about your relationship to God will drive out every lesser concern about food and clothing…”
Questions for this week
1. Bill Johnson says “Worry is essentially about control – we are trying to control the uncontrollable and so we worry because we can`t influence what we are worried about – worry never solves anything!” – How do you feel about this statement and do you think its true?
2. Although we know that God loves us and cares for us – why do we continue to worry about so many things! – What can make this change?
3. 1 Peter 5 vs 7-8 Tell us to cast all our anxieties on God because he cares for us – How often do we do this fully and how often do we do this and them take them all back and start worrying again? What can we do to stop this?
4. The quote from Lloyd Jones I found to be very helpful – What we sh
