Worries!

April 28, 2022

Worries!

I am an optimistic person who is focused on the goodness of God’s future for me and the people I lead.  Where others quickly experience anxiety and fear and worry, I see new opportunities, new possibilities, new ways.

I don’t worry a lot unless it seems like the way I am being led will likely cause harm to another person.  Then, I will miss sleep at night and peace in my soul.  Sometimes I will worry. 

Conversation with Jesus helps, worship with other Christ-followers helps, and reading the Bible helps.

Seeking the counsel of another believers helps, fasting helps, and being still helps.

A long walk near sunset helps, reading a devotional book helps, and sharing an iced tea with a friend helps.

However, there are still times when worry crushes my optimism, my hope, and my faith.  There are still times why worry destroys my joy, my strength, and my courage.  I don’t like those times much at all. 

I remember the words of Jesus reported by Matthew.  Here are two examples;

In Matthew 6:25 Jesus says; “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear.  Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?”

Jesus knows that we spend a lot of energy and time and prayer worrying about the practical things of life; things like food and drink and clothing.  Jesus says sometimes we even worry too much about our health.  Jesus invites us to focus our energy in other directions.  More specifically, Jesus invites us to keep our eyes on Him.

In Matthew 6:34 Jesus says; “So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own.  Today’s trouble is enough for today.”

Jesus knows that sometimes we invest our worry not in the concerns of today but in the anxieties of tomorrow.  Jesus reminds us that living fully today is much more important than filling today with worry about tomorrow.

During the first century, the Apostle Paul saw a problem with worry in the church at Philippi.  He offers the believers in that place the following advice.  In Philippians 4:6 Paul writes; “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

Worry is another expression of fear.  The opposite of fear is faith.  However, the faith that overcomes fear is not faith in myself or faith in another person or faith in things. 

The faith that overcomes fear is faith in Jesus as Lord.  Paul tells us that the way to increase your faith in the Lord is to fill your prayers and your worship and your conversations with gratitude and praise to God. 

When I trust Jesus as Lord of my life, I choose to believe Jesus is more powerful and more wise and more loving than anything about which I am worried today.  When I trust Jesus as Lord of life and Lord of my life, my heart is filled with delight even in the midst of a challenging situation.

Take Delight In The Lord!

Doug