Spiritual Formation 201 - Part 11 - Learning to Live Without Worry

Last week’s soul training - Deaccumulation

Give 3 things away. Not your junk. Good things that would bless someone else.

The object is to be 3 things lighter by next Sunday. Think about how much of a blessing they could be in the hands of the right person. Ask God to direct you in this.

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Q: What do you suppose is the best way to sell newspapers and magazines or to increase the ratings for evening news?

A: Play on people’s fears, but do so under the pretext of responsible journalism.

We have all seen and heard it. “That little freckle on your arm could be a ticking time bomb! — Story at 10”

Or...

“Our exclusive report on why drinking too much water could send you to the emergency room”

These kind of headlines hook us immediately.

It is everywhere we look. The media plays on our fears in order to boost their ratings and sales numbers. Just about every ad we see is trying to make us afraid. Afraid of getting old. Afraid of missing out. Afraid of the future.

Some call it the fear for profit syndrome. Advertisers, executives, and politicians all use fear to motivate and manipulate us. Television news programs survive on “scares” Many news producers live by the dictum, “If it bleeds it leads.” Drug, crime, and disaster stories make up most of the news portion of the broadcasts.

I read a stat this week that said “ Between 1990 and 1998, when the nations murder rate declined by 20%, the number of murder stories on network newscasts increased 600%!

But the truth is, even if we never read a newspaper or watch the news on TV we still have enough to worry about. I wonder if we can ever get to a place where we can do what Jesus commanded us to do:

“Do not worry.”

Matthew 6:25 - 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

Before we get too far this morning, and before we look at the source of worry, I want to make sure we understand the difference between caution and worry. They are similar but worry is not the same as being cautious or careful. We need to be concerned about many things, locking doors, managing our money wisely and driving carefully on slippery roads. But this is not the same as worry.

Worry is what we do after we have planned, prepared and acted properly.

When we continue to stew about something, we crossed over into the world of worry.

Worry Defined: Worry is a disproportionate level of concern based on an inappropriate measure of fear.

Concern, caution and care are all acceptable and even necessary, but worry is what happens when we go beyond these and become afraid of what we cannot control. Worry often leads to anxiety; it is impossible to be anxious without having first worried. When we feel anxious, we can be sure that we are no longer being careful; we are worrying.

We need to be concerned about things worth being concerned about, like wearing a seatbelt COULD save your life so we are wise to do so. Regular hand washing, wearing sunscreen, looking both ways before crossing the street all legitimate things to pay attention to.

Jesus is not addressing how to avoid legitimate dangers and things we can do to mitigate bad outcomes. He is explaining how worry is both futile (it changes nothing) and it is opposed to kingdom living. When we cross the line from being responsible to being anxious, we have turned our focus away from God and His providence. And we do this because we have bought into the lie that worrying helps us.

Which leads us to the false narrative the drives worry:

False Narrative: Worrying PREVENTS PAIN

We have bought into the idea that if I worry enough about something, I will prevent bad things from happening.

It goes something like this. We have some concern and we do what we can to take care of the potential problem, and we don’t worry about it....at first. Then something goes wrong or unexpected and we tell ourselves, “If I had been more concerned about that I could have prevented it from happening. Then, when we are faced with some other concern, instead of letting go of the situation once we have done what we could, we continue to worry and fret, night and day. Then the worry turns out to be wrong. One would think that would make us worry less in the future, but no. In fact we often say, “Man why did I worry so much about that? What a waste of time!”

But at the very next opportunity....we worry more. Why?

Our narcissistic and superstitious minds interpret events in another way. We think, “My worrying prevented that from happening. Next time I will worry more to prevent harm.”

It sounds silly but this narrative is indelibly marked on the souls of many people. Every time we worry and something bad happens anyway, we overlook the incident.

These are counternarratives, instances where dominate narratives are challenged. We usually disregard counternarratives, so the old narrative stays in place.

And to make matters worse, every time we worry and the bad thing doesn’t happen, the false narrative is reinforced. In time, we are convinced that worrying is a helpful strategy that keeps us from harm. Even though we SAY we want to worry less, we can’t imagine living without it.

So, when we encounter Jesus’ command, “I tell you, do not worry about your life.”, it seems like He is asking us to let go of the one thing that gives us a feeling of control. And that is exactly what He IS doing!

The TRUTH

Worry harms our relationship with God.

Worry causes physical discomfort.

Worry destroys Joy.

We can do nothing better WITH worry than WITHOUT it. So why worry

So in the sermon on the mount, Jesus narrative is do not worry. And He even gives us some specific things not to worry about.

So right after discussing the dangers of avarice, Jesus addresses the subject of worry with two illustrations: Have a look at Matthew 6 and verse 19.

Matthew 6:25–32 - 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

Jesus says we are not to worry about food and clothing. These two things are natural human concerns and I think Jesus uses these because they are primary human life needs.

Let me ask you. When Jesus tells you not to worry about food and clothing, is there something inside you that does not take that seriously? Like, what do you mean don’t worry about food and clothing? Without those, I will die. I MUST worry about food and clothing Jesus, that is just unreasonable.

But don’t miss what Jesus is saying here. He did not say “Don’t be concerned about food and clothing, He said don’t worry about it.

Jesus is not saying as some would tell you, “You don’t need to worry about food or clothing - just have faith! God will provide them for you.” The implication there is that with simple faith God will drop food into our mouth and fill our closet with expensive clothes.

But the reality is that many faithful men, women and children starve every day.

Jesus is not saying that people who are indeed poor and hungry - the kind of people He is addressing in this sermon - lack faith and need to trust God more. Telling impoverished people they need to have more faith would be cruel and utterly wrong.

So what is Jesus saying?

Well, as is common with much of what Jesus taught, His words opposed the dominate narratives of His culture and many of ours as well.

The Rabbis of Jesus day often contrasted the carefree life of animals with the constant burden placed on humans to earn their bread by the sweat of their brow.

Jesus uses the example of the birds to show that while they neither sow nor reap, they are provided for. His point?: Don’t worry.

This teaching is not about having           FAITH                          .

Jesus’ point?         DON’T                                       WORRY                                     !

The same is true with the teaching about flowers or grass, it is to show how fleeting and fragile human life is:

Isaiah 40:6–7 - 6 A voice says, “Cry!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. 7 The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it; surely the people are grass.”

So when Jesus mentions flowers, His listeners would have expected Him to say, “Just as the flowers are here today and gone tomorrow, so shall you be. Your life is brief. Make the most of it.”

Instead of that, He is teaching, “If God takes such great pains to make a little insignificant flower beautiful, then how much more will He take care of the people He made in His own image”.

We may be tempted to think that Jesus is telling us to trust God with our needs without our help. Birds as we know are not lazy creatures. They actually work very hard. They don’t just sit around in their nests and wait for God to bring them seeds and berries. They are constantly and actively seeking their sustenance. But they do this without worrying. Jesus point is clear: You are worth far more then a bird. Jesus is simply arguing from the lesser to the greater. If the birds who are not so valuable and neither sow nor reap, are provided for, how much more will my Father provide for you, His precious and priceless ones, who work hard for what you have.

Jesus is asking us a profound question here: If God provides for the smallest and most insignificant creatures, don’t you think He can provide for you, His most precious and important creatures? It is a logical question that helps us move away from worry and into trust.

Worry has a tendency to keep me focused on my own limited resources. This is why worry cannot exist in the kingdom of God.

Worry happens when I am on the throne of my life, when I live in the Kingdom of ME.

But we trust when God is on the throne of our lives and we live in HIS kingdom.

That is why the solution to worry is to seek first the kingdom. In fact, I would say that Matthew 6:33 is the key to the entire sermon on the mount.

Matthew 6:33 - 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

If we understood and applied this verse, every single teaching that has come before and after it would naturally fall into place.

The principle - seeking the kingdom first -is the cure for all of the common human struggles we have looked at so far.

Do you feel alone and excluded? - Seek the Kingdom first

Do you struggle with anger? - Seek the Kingdom first

Do you struggle with lust? - Seek the Kingdom first

Are you a habitual liar? - Seek the Kingdom first

Do you feel alone and excluded? - Seek the Kingdom first

Is retaliation your move when you are wronged? - Seek the Kingdom first

Do you struggle with vanity or avarice? - Seek the Kingdom first

Do you judge others harshly? - Seek the Kingdom first

But what does it mean to Seek the Kingdom first?

Well it turns out, it is not that difficult of a concept . It means making the reality and principles of God’s kingdom our first and primary concern. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t work hard. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t care about anything or be responsible stewards of our lives and possessions. It means we continually look to God and what He is doing in the midst of ordinary life. Seeking the Kingdom first means facing our trials and troubles not with anxiety but with trust that God can and will work in them.

There are a lot of things that will compete for our allegiance.

Should we care for the poor? Yes, but first we must seek the Kingdom.

Should we pray? Yes, but first we must seek the Kingdom.

Should we care for the poor? Yes, but first we must seek the Kingdom.

Should we fight injustice? Yes, but first we must seek the Kingdom.

Should we walk in the Spirit? Yes, but first we must seek the Kingdom.

Should we go to church and read our bibles and witness to others? Yes, but first we must seek the Kingdom.

Sometimes we focus all our attention on a cause, a discipline or even a commandment of God, which are ALL essential aspects of being Jesus’s apprentices. But the most important thing is to seek first the Kingdom of God. Then everything falls into its proper place. I pray, care for the poor, fight injustice and attend church not because my concern is prayer, poverty, injustice or worship, but because my primary concern is what God id doing. When I am concerned about God and His Kingdom, I will naturally do these things as they are needed. (Don’t force the soul training exercises just to get em done, but be on the lookout for opportunities to put them into practice, seek first the kingdom of God)

The moment I put any of them ahead of the kingdom of God, they become idols, even though they are good things.

This is why Jesus says with such authority, “Seek first the Kingdom of God”

The Kingdom of God id never in trouble. Individual minitries and churches come and go; even our vey lives are transient. LFB will only be viable in as much as we are connected to the kingdom. Our lives are strong and vibrant only as they are lived within the principles of the kingdom. Our wins and losses don’t define us. Who we are (indwelt by Christ) and where we live (in the kingdom of God) defines our live

Bottom line. Worry prevents us from seeking the Kingdom, just like serving money prevents us from serving God. They are mutually exclusive.

The certainty of kingdom provision led Paul to write these encouraging words:

Philippians 4:6–7 - 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

So, one day at a time beloved. Jesus final admonition in this sectioon of the sermon is not to worry about TOMORROW.

Matthew 6:34 - 34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

You can’t worry about tomorrow today because it is not here! Tomorrow will have enough problems. Let today’s troubles be enough for today.

Jesus says that the kingdom operates only in the present moment. That means we can only live in the kingdom today. We can’t live in it tomorrow.

A couple of good questions to continue to ask yourself are:

Who are you?

Where are you?

You are a child of God, one in whom Christ dwells.

You are living in the unshakable Kingdom of God.

When you come to terms with those tow realities, many of the problems that palgue you will diminish. Certainly that is true of worry. So, don’t worry.

This Week’s Soul Training

Prayer

Philippians 4:6–7 “6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Once we have done all we can do in a given situation, we simply turn the matter over to God.

Example: CS Lewis once said that a person who has weeds in his or her garden, should not pray about the weeds but should pull them up! But when we face situations that we cannot change by direct effort, such as a loved one who is ill or a financial problem that extends beyond our resources, then we turn the matter over to God.

Practical suggestions:

Each morning, set aside 10-15 minutes

Think about all the things you might be anxious about

write them down

Ask God what you can do to remedy each of these situations

Make a note to yourself todo the things you can do.

Turn everything else over to God.

Write your request to God and be very specific.

Closing Prayer