Worry for a Christian is irrational because it is as a Christian you're someone who says
God I trust you with all of eternity with all of my life all of my sin I trust you with all
of it God I just don't trust you with Thursday you say that's irrational it doesn't make sense
it's a human experience that grabs all of us but it is an irrational thing Jesus I trust you with
it all just not tomorrow and not this worry is the destructive process of occupying our minds
with thoughts that are contrary to God's love care provision and protection notice
worry is a powerfully destructive process it's never constructive the word worry comes from
the Anglo-Saxon word that means to choke or to strangle and that's what worry does it tries to
choke or strangle us Jesus reminded us that worry never changes anything it's never productive he
said can any of you by worrying at a single hour to your life when we worry we often envision the
worst case scenario we take a little thing and make it a huge thing we take a molehill and make
it into a mountain worry gives a small thing a big shadow and when we worry we're almost always
thinking what if and it's usually a negative future that we're envisioning what if I lose
my job what if my child starts running around with the wrong crowd what if the doctor's report is bad
and as a physician I can tell you that worry is a toxic emotion that affects our health
when we consistently worry it takes up our mental and emotional energy in other words worry exhaust
us have you ever heard the expression worried sick you see worry can make us sick from
ulcers in our stomach to sleepless nights to all sorts of illness that have illnesses that have
been directly related to worry and stress well what do we do when we're faced with the temptation
of worry let's look at our passage in Philippians 4 starting in verse 6 don't worry about anything
instead pray about everything tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done then you
will experience God's peace which exceeds anything we can understand his peace will guard your hearts
and minds as you live in Christ Jesus this passage tells us that we shouldn't allow
ourselves to worry about anything think about that nothing instead we should recognize that
worry is a destructive force that's coming against us we should recognize that worry is a trap the
enemy is trying to get a foothold in our life so that he can choke choke us and steal our joy and
peace we need to simply turn the things that we're worrying about over to God talk to him about what
we're going through tell him every detail of what we need turn your worry list into a prayer list
you'll never worry your way to a solution Paul said don't be anxious don't worry
about anything that sounds good but if you're not going to worry what do you do
do not be anxious about anything but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving present
your request God everything means everything the picture is in your little anxious moments and in
your monster anxiety attacks approach it the same way with prayer thanksgiving and worship
that's not your normal reaction you try to fix things and manage the crisis in nothing should
you worry and everything you should pray too often we do the opposite we worry instead of
pray little things cause you to should cause you to pray not worry big things should cause
you to pray not worry in this passage Paul doesn't say that your concerns aren't legitimate that is
not the sense or feel of this in fact it's the total opposite Paul says go ahead make the list
acknowledge all of it everything that worries you and siphons off your joy make the list but
when you're all done with the list change the heading instead of things I am worried about
things God can handle see because he looks at that whole list and there's not one thing on there
that has God nervous intimidated or afraid he can handle all of that
worry about nothing pray about everything isn't it funny how you and I are comfortable making
hundreds of decisions every day we never talk to the Lord one lick about we never even attempted to
and then we wonder why we're encountering things that we are God says I want you in everything
by prayer and supplication when you're anxious here's what I want you to do talk to God
you're not gonna have peace any other way the verse clearly and Paul clearly is saying like
hey when you're overwhelmed pray tell God hey this is what I'm overwhelmed this is what's
going on God will you please change this and if not I trust you and you will experience peace
Peter says it like this cast every worry you have upon him because he cares for you
and the Psalmist says cast your burden on the Lord releasing the weight of it and he will sustain you
see when we pray we simply cast the weight of our worries unto God we release
the weight of our worries from our hands and turn them over to God's hands when we're dealing with
anxiety and depression at high levels one of the first things that goes is hope and
we start to feel like we start to believe this lie that says you're always going to be that way
it's just your lot in life you're never going to be able to change your loved one's never going to
be able to change it's just who you are it's just who they are we're just stuck and I just don't
believe that's that's the case and I want you to start to get something already on the inside
of you today that goes I'm going to believe my God for more amen listen to this may the god of
Hope and I love this may the God of hope because like I said hopelessness is one of the things
that we start to experience first when anxiety gets bad God says that's not what I have for you I
have different for you I have more for you I am the God of hope and I want to fill you with all
joy and peace as you trust in him notice that's the opposite of anxiety that's the opposite of
depression the God of hope will fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him so that you may
overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit he says I don't want you to just get by anymore I
don't want you to just make it through your day I don't want you to just eek through life I want you
to be overflowing with peace and joy and hope not only so it changes your life but so that your life
change starts to leak on everybody around you and it begins to change people's lives everywhere you
go it says I got more in store for you the promise we have when we choose to pray and cast our cares
instead of worrying the promise we have that when we choose to be thankful instead of worry is found
in verse 7 then you will experience God's peace which exceeds anything that we can understand his
peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus received by faith God's peace that
exceeds anything we can understand have you ever experienced that peace that is absolutely
indescribable when the circumstances are screaming you should be overwhelmed and worried and yet
there is a peace that is beyond description friends there is a supernatural peace that God
has available to us that's beyond anything that we could ask think or imagine or even understand
in the natural so here's my encouragement to you tonight when we're tempted let's make a choice
not to give in to worry let's make our worry list our prayer list and pray and cast our cares on God
even in the midst of difficulty let's maintain our attitude of gratitude and as we do that by faith
let's receive God's supernatural peace and let it guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus