EVICTING WORRY

INTRODUCTION

OPENING POINT: WORRY HAPPENS WHEM MY NEED > THAN MY RESOURCES. IN FACT, THE NAME OF THE LAND, THE TERRITORY BETWEEN NEED AND RESOURCES IS CALLED THE LAND OF NO CONTROL. WHEN MY NEED IS GREATER THAN MY RESOURCES I AM IN THE LAND OF NO CONTROL.

APPLICATIONS: NEED FOR A HEALTHY MARRIAGE. YOU’RE DOING THE BEST YOU CAN, BUT YOUR MARRIAGE IS NOT GOING WELL, AND YOUR SPOUSE IS NOT HANDLING THEIR BUSINESS. YOU CAN’T CONTROL THAT, AND YOU’RE FILLED WITH WORRY. YOU JUST FOUND OUT THAT YOU HAVE SOME PHYSICAL DISEASE AND YOU HAVE A NEED FOR HEALTH, BUT YOU CAN’T MAKE YOURSELF BETTER AND THE PROGNOSIS LOOKS GRIM. THIS EQUALS WORRY. SITTING ON AN AIRPLANE AND TURBULENCE HITS. YOU HAVE A NEED FOR CALMNESS, BUT YOU CAN’T CONTROL THAT. WANT TO GET PREGNANT, BUT YOU DON’T HAVE THE RESOURCES TO JUST MAKE YOURSELF PREGNANT/INADEQUATE RESOURCES. THERE’S WORRY.

BRIDGE TO TEXT: TWO STORIES AND AT THE EPICENTER OF BOTH IS A NEED THE DISCIPLES HAVE BUT THEY DON’T HAVE THE RESOURCES. FIRST STORY IS THERE’S A NEED FOR 5K MEN, ABOUT 20K PEOPLE TO EAT. THEY DON’T HAVE THE RESOURCES. THERE’S ANXIETY- VERSE 7. SECOND STORY THERE’S A NEED TO GET THROUGH THIS STORM. THEY DON’T HAVE THE RESOURCES. THERE’S ANXIETY- 19. IN BOTH SITUATIONS THEY’RE IN A PLACE WHERE THEY CAN’T CONTROL.

WWII ILLUSTRATION: 93% OF PILOTS EXPRESSED HAPPINESS AND SATISFACTION IN THEIR JOB EVEN THOUGH THEY HAD A 50% MORTALITY RATE. WHY? CONTROL.

LESSON- ANXIETY INCREASES AS PERCEIVED CONTROL DECREASES- MAX LUCADO.

AND THIS IS A HUGE PROBLEM FOR US BECAUSE WE ARE ALL INTENSE CONTROL FREAKS:

IT WAS THE GREAT PHILOSOPHER RONALD DWORKIN WHO SAID THAT THE VERY MARROW OF WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HUMAN IS TO BE AUTONOMOUS, TO BE IN THE DRIVERS SEAT OF OUR LIVES. IN A 1986 ESSAY HE WROTE: “The value of autonomy…lies in the scheme of responsibility it creates: autonomy makes each of us responsible for shaping his own life according to some coherent and distinctive sense of character, conviction and interest. It allows us to lead our own lives rather than be led along them, so that each of us can be, to the extent such a scheme of rights can make this possible, what he has made himself”- Ronald Dworkin. WE ARE CONTROL FREAKS, ALL OFUS.

EXAMPLES: THIS IS WHY WE SAVE, DO OUR BEST TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE MEDICAL INSURANCE, PUT SOMETHING AWAY FOR RETIREMENT…WE WANT TO BE IN CONTROL, AND WE HATE THE THOUGHT OF BEING HELPLESS OF BEING IN THE LAND OF NO CONTROL...

REFERENCE THE BOOK I’M READING, BEING MORTAL, AND HOW IT’S FREAKING ME OUT. WHY? I WON’T BE ABLE TO CONTROL MY EXIT.

(AND YET, WHILE WE CANNOT CONTROL OUR CIRCUMSTANCES, WE CAN CONTROL OUR RESPONSE TO THEM. THIS IS WHAT OUR STORY TEACHES US, VALUABLE LESSONS ON HOW TO EVICT WORRY FROM OUR LIVES.)

EVICTING WORRY- DO WHAT YOU CAN

EXPLANATION: (MAKE SURE TO POINT OUT HOW IN BOTH STORIES THEY WERE RIGHT WHERE THEY SHOULD BE)IF YOU’VE BEEN AROUND CHURCH FOR AWHILE, THIS FIRST STORY MAY STRIKE YOU AS FAMILIAR. IT SHOULD SINCE IT’S THE ONLY MIRACLE STORY OUTSIDE OF THE RESURRECTION RECOUNTED BY ALL FOUR GOSPEL WRITERS. RECAP THE ESSENCE OF THE STORY. SOMEONE COMES UP WITH WHAT LOOKS LIKE A DUMB IDEA- A LITTLE BOY HAS A FEW LOAVES OF BREAD AND A FEW PIECES OF FISH. 20K PEOPLE! THIS SEEMS SO DUMB. JESUS SAYS I’LL TAKE WHAT YOU HAVE. NOTICE JESUS DOESN’T SAY JUST SIT BACK AND DO NOTHING AND WATCH ME. NO, IN ESSENCE HE SAYS GIVE ME YOUR BEST. GIVE ME WHAT YOU GOT. DO WHAT YOU CAN. SECOND STORY, STORM HITS, BUT THEY DON’T STOP ROWING, THEY KEEP ROWING. DO WHAT YOU CAN.

APPLICATION: SOUNDS SO SIMPLE, BUT YOU NEED TO KNOW THAT HUMAN WISDOM AND DIVINE INTERVENTION DON’T ALWAYS CONFLICT, IN FACT, FOR THE MOST PART THEY RUN ON PARALLEL TRACKS. IF YOU’RE WORRIED ABOUT YOUR MARRIAGE, GO TO COUNSELING. IF YOU’RE WORRIED ABOUT YOUR HEALTH GO TO THE DOCTOR. IF YOU’RE WORRIED ABOUT YOUR FUTURE, STOP BUYING EXPENSIVE CARS AND SET SOME MONEY ASIDE. DO WHAT YOU CAN. THIS STORY SHOWS US THAT JESUS WORKS WITH WHAT WE GIVE HIM, TO GET US WHAT WE NEED.

STORY OF THE MAN WHO WAS DROWNING AND WAITING ON JESUS!

EVICTING WORRY- RELINQUISH CONTROL.

EXPLANATION: SO HERE WE ARE WITH THE DISCIPLES IN A SITUATION WHERE THEIR NEED IS GREATER THAN WHAT THEY HAVE, AND IT’S HERE WHERE THINGS TAKE A FUNNY BUT NOT SO FUNNY TURN IN VERSE 5. LOOKING OUT ON THE CROWD JESUS SAYS, ‘HEY PHIL, WHAT DO YOU THINK WE OUGHT TO DO?’ NOW I DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU, BUT TO HAVE JESUS, THE SON OF GOD, LIKE THE EXPERT, ALL KNOWING GOD ASK ME A QUESTION LIKE WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO IS GOING TO FREAK ME OUT. LIKE A PILOT IN A STORM LEAVING THE COCKPIT ASKING THE PEOPLE ON BOARD, WHAT DO YOU THINK WE SHOULD DO…BOY IF YOU DON’T GET BACK…OR A DOCTOR STOPPING SURGERY TO TALK TO THE FAMILY AND FRIENDS SAYING, IT’S WORSE THAN WHAT I THOUGHT, WHAT DO YOU THINK WE SHOULD DO. GIRL IF YOU DON’T...

EVER FOUND YOURSELF IN A SITUATION WHERE YOU NEEDED AN ANSWER QUICK FAST AND IN A HURRY AND JESUS DOESN’T GIVE IT? WHY?

EXPLANATION CONTINUED: VERSE 6. TO TEST. TEST MEANS TO REVEAL WHAT’S REALLY THERE. USED OF GOLD THAT WENT THROUGH THE FIRE. WHY THE TEST? CROWD FOLLOWING HIM FOR WRONG REASONS/FELT NEEDS. HE’S HEALED THEIR AUNTIES AND COUSINS…JESUS WANTS TO KNOW IF THE DISCIPLES ARE ONLY IN IT FOR THE BENEFITS, AND THE ONLY WAY TO GET AT THIS IS TO GO THROUGH A PERIOD OF TESTING WHERE THEY HAVE NO CONTROL.

ILLUSTRATION. KID FINALLY COMES, THEY GIVE BIRTH AND THEN GOD SAYS KILL HIM. HE DID THIS TO TEST HIM. WHY ARE YOU REALLY IN THIS? FOR THE KID OR FOR ME.

APPLICATION: WHY DO WE GO THROUGH SEASONS OF BEING OUT OF CONTROL WHERE OUR NEEDS ARE GREATER THAN WHAT WE HAVE? GOD COMES AFTER THE THINGS WE HOLD THE CLOSEST TO ALLOW US TO SEE OUR REAL MOTIVES. WHY THE HEALTH SCARE? MAYBE YOU LOST FOCUS AND LOVE THIS LIFE MORE THAN THE GIVER OF LIFE? WHY IS THE COMPANY YOU’VE HUNG ALL YOUR HOPES IN CLOSE TO SHUTTING DOWN OR LAYING YOU OFF? BECAUSE YOU PUT ALL YOUR HOPES IN...

EXPLANATION: AND YET AS OUT OF CONTROL AS THINGS MAY SEEM TO BE, THE REST OF VERSE 6 BLESSES ME- HE HIMSELF KNEW WHAT HE WOULD DO. JESUS NEVER ASKS A QUESTION HE DOESN’T ALREADY KNOW THE ANSWER. AND THERE’S NOT A SITUATION IN YOUR LIFE THAT HE HASN’T ALREADY WORKED OUT A SOLUTION.

ILLUSTRATION: MOM GREW UP IN THE HOOD. ME THE SUBURBS. SHE THOUGHT WE WERE SOFT, SO SHE DECIDED ONE DAY, UNANNOUNCED TO JUST MARCH US ONTO A BUS, PAY THE FARE AND WAVE GOODBYE. I WAS ABOUT NINE AND MY SISTER WAS FIVE. AND I’M NOT GOING TO LIE. WHEN I LOOKED AROUND AND SAW ALL THESE PEOPLE WHO DIDN’T LIVE ON MY CULDESAC. I GOT SCARED AND WORRIED, AND ME AND MY SISTER HUGGED AND HELD EACH OTHER AND JUST CRIED. I MEAN BOO HOOED UGLY CRY. THEN I LOOKED BACK AND I COULDN’T BELIEVE IT. MAMA WAS FOLLOWING US. EVEN THOUGH I WAS IN A STRANGE PLACE, THE SIGHT OF MAMA KNOWING MY SITUATION AND BEING THERE CHANGED THE GAME. I GOT OFF THE BUS AND WAS TALKING BIG. YEH, LET’S DO IT AGAIN. JESUS IS WITH YOU.

EXPLANATION: NOW HE SAYS TO THE BOY, GIVE ME WHAT YOU HAVE. TRUST ME WITH IT. RELINQUISH CONTROL. IMAGINE THIS CONVERSATION. JESUS PROBABLY BENDS DOWN TO EYE LEVEL…BOY PROBABLY WAS COUNTING ON THIS FOOD FOR LUNCH. YOU WANT ME TO GIVE UP CONTROL? YEP. AND IT’S NOT A ONE AND DONE BUT A SEVERAL TIME DECISION.

ILLUSTRATION: WIFE MAKES ME MAD. CANDY DISH RIGHT BY OUR KEYS. WHICH MEANS SEVERAL TIMES THROUGHOUT THE DAY WHEN I DROP OFF MY KEYS OR PICK UP MY KEYS I HAVE TO PEER INTO THAT DISH FILLED WITH GOOD STUFF TOO AND SAY, I’M NOT PICKIN YOU UP TODAY!

APPLICATION: I KNOW I’M WAITING ON THE TEST, BUT WORRY I’M NOT PICKING YOU UP TODAY. I KNOW I’M WAITING TO HEAR ABOUT THAT JOB, BUT ANXIETY I’M NOT PICKING YOU UP TODAY…RELINQUISH CONTROL AND LEAVE IT THERE!

REMEMBER YOUR BASKET-

EXPLANATION: SO IT’S TURNED OVER TO JESUS, CONTROL IS GIVEN UP. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE TURN IT OVER TO JESUS, WE POSITION OURSELVES FOR MIRACLES TO HAPPEN, AND JESUS TO GO TO WORK. AND BOY DOES IT HAPPEN AS 20K PEOPLE GET FED. THEN THERE WERE 12 BASKETS LEFT OVER. GOD IS NOT A GOD OF LACK OR WASTE SO WHAT’S UP? ONE SCHOLAR SAYS THAT IT WAS THE CUSTOM OF THE TIME AROUND MEALS FOR THE PEOPLE WHO SERVED TO EAT LAST. THE DISCIPLES ARE CLEARLY SERVING THE PEOPLE, AND THESE BASKETS REPRESENT THEIR PORTION, ONE FOR EACH. NOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT. A FEW MOMENTS LATER THEY ARE IN ANOTHER TRIAL, THIS TIME IN A BOAT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SEA IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STORM. IN ALL LIKELIHOOD WHAT’S IN THE BOAT ARE THE BASKETS LITERALLY HOLDING THEIR MIRACLE. AND HOW ARE THEY REACTING? FREAKING OUT!

APPLICATION: ISN’T THIS JUST LIKE US? WE SEE GOD’S PROVISION IN ONE TRIAL, THEN THERE’S ANOTHER TRIAL AND WE FREAK OUT FORGETTING WHAT HE JUST DID? HOW DO I EVICT WORRY? REMEMBER YOUR BASKET. THE BASKET REPRESENTS PAST MOVEMENTS OF GOD WHO FILLED IN THE GAP BETWEEN WHAT YOU NEED AND WHAT YOU HAVE.

BASKET VISUAL. WALK THROUGH APPLICATIONS...

CONCLUSION:

NOT ULTIMATELY ABOUT US…VERSE 14, SIGN. FIRST STORY POINTS TO THE WILDERNESS AND MANNA. PEOPLE CONNECTED THE DOTS, CALL HIM PROPHET WHY? JESUS IS SHOWING HIS GODNESS BY SHOWING THROUGH THE MIRACLE HE IS THE BREAD OF LIFE, THE TRUE MANNA FROM HEAVEN. SECOND, HE DISPLAYS HIS GODNESS BY WALKING ON THE VERY THINGS THAT WERE TROUBLING THEM.

POINT: YOUR TRIAL IS NOT ABOUT YOUR TRIAL, SO MUCH MORE. IT’S ABOUT THE GLORY OF GOD. SO WHEN I’M GOING THROUGH THE REAL QUESTION IS NOT WILL HE GET ME THROUGH, BUT WILL I NAVIGATE IT IN SUCH A WAY THAT I WILL SHOW HIM TO BE GOD BY MY REFUSAL TO WORRY!

THEY’RE GLAD.

CHECKERS ILLUSTRATION: NO MATTER HOW BAD I’M OUT NUMBERED, IF I CAN GET A KING I’M GOOD. IF THE KING IS ON MY SIDE I’M GOOD.