This post is based upon our pastor’s series Anxious for Nothing and as I was taking notes on Sunday, God impressed on me some things during the sermon. I then began to study this week what God laid on my heart and He gave scriptures to show me and teach me what He wanted me to learn. The pastor’s sermon was on the Sources of our Anxiety.
Worry is distracting care of an actual or potential problem. The word distraction got my attention and was a keyword. Distraction takes away our focus on God. When we totally focus on God, then worry is not part of the equation. Our focus on God helps us put our mind and perspectives on God and we put our trust in Him because we know He has our best interest at His heart. Worry is a “state of mind” and we are concerned about our own needs. Worry is “self-focus” where trust is “God-focus”.
Our pastor listed some root causes of worry:
1. Control – we have the need to control everything. When we try to be in control of everything, then we are relying on our self instead of turning the control over to God.
What does the Bible have to say about control? The word “dominion” means supreme authority, power of governing and controlling. The Bible tells us who has this authority and power – it is God Himself. Job 25:2 “ Dominion and awe belong to God; he established order in the heights of heaven. “ Psalm 145:13 “Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations.” Psalm 103:22 “Praise the Lord, all his works, everywhere in his dominion.” So scripture points us to God, who has dominion or control over everything because He establishes all things. Everything is under God’s control.
Matthew, Mark, and Luke all state in scripture that we are not to worry. They even pose the question… Can anyone of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? This question helps us to understand that our ability to worry, in essence, has “no” ability to change or control what we are worrying about.
Why is it easier for us to “worry” than to “trust”? We go back to what we stated earlier. Worry is “self-focus” and trust is “God-focus”. When we worry, we are relying on our self instead of trusting in God.
2. Scarcity – another root cause of worry. We fear we will not have enough. We do not recognize God has “abundance”. God never runs out. Abundance is listed 33 times in the Bible so God must want us to recognize He has abundance. When we don’t acknowledge that God has abundance and that Jesus is enough, then we in our humanness experience fear. Faith and fear cannot exist together. In faith we are trusting God in every part of our life and understanding that God is working out the details of our lives and that He knows our needs and by His power, He grants us “enough”. He grants His abundance to us. Psalm 56:3 states “When I am afraid, I will trust in You (God).”
Let’s look at what the Scripture tells us about “abundance”. Job 36:31 tells us that God governs the nations and provides food in “abundance. Psalm 36:8 tells us that through God’s unfailing love, we feast on the abundance of God’s house. Psalm 65:11 tells us of God’s goodness – He crowns his year with bounty and His carts overflow with abundance. Satan would like to distract us from knowing that our God provides for us and that He overflows with abundance. Scarcity is not part of God’s vocabulary. Jesus is “enough”
3. Failure – We fear failure. We know our shortcomings. When we fear failure, we are focusing on “our” abilities and focusing on “our” shortcomings. We are not focusing or relying on God and His ability. We are again turning our focus on ourselves. When we focus on God instead of ourselves, then we learn that “God does not fail. He has never failed and He will never fail. Psalm 73:26 tell us that our heart and flesh may “fail” but God is our strength and portion forever. Joshua 23:14 “Not one of all the good promises the Lord your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled, not one has failed.” 1Kings 8:56 “Not one word has failed of all the good promises He gave to his servant Moses”.
When we recognize that God does not fail, we understand that He will give us the ability to carry out His plan. We must focus on God’s abilities and not our abilities. Again, our focus must not be self-focused but must be God-focused.
We must then ask ourselves “Do we trust the Father or not? Are we going to be self-focused or God-focused? Do we choose to trust and not fear? Are we willing to rely on God instead of relying on our self? Are we willing to turn our fears and our worries over to God?
Help us dear Father to trust You. Help us to be God-focused and help us to not fear. Help us Lord to rely on you Lord and not ourselves. Help us to turn our fears and worries over to You. We know in our hearts that you have power and dominion over everything and that our worry does not add one hour to our lives. We recognize that you “never” fail and that You are our strength and portion forever. We acknowledge that You grant Your abundance to us and that your cart overflows with abundance. Thank you Heavenly Father that we can put our trust in You. Amen.