Untitled Sermon (4)

I AM…NEAR- Finding God Through Our Anxiety

(NIV)

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

Amen! I will rejoice in the Lord. When it is easy to rejoice. Many of you know that this verse comes from the book of Philippians. Paul writes this letter to the church of Philippi while he is in chains in prison. His situation was bleak. I’m sure he had some anxious moments yet he was able to rejoice.

How many of you rejoice today? I will rejoice in the Lord…

5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

How many of you would be able to rejoice if you were the author who wrote these verses? Many of you know that this verse comes from the book of Philippians. Paul writes this letter to the church of Philippi while he is in chains in prison. His situation was bleak. I’m sure he had some anxious moments yet he was able to rejoice.

Q. What lies at the bottom of the ocean and twitches? A. A nervous wreck.

He continues…

I know many of you have had things in your life happen recently that makes you a nervous wreck.

5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Have you ever woken up out of a deep sleep, wide awake, and filled with worry? You look at your clock and see that it is 3 o’clock. You try to close your eyes and go back to sleep, but it is no use. You are wide awake. Your anxiety is at an all time high as you sit there thinking about what was or what will be.

I want to take a moment before I go any further and pray. (pray for peace the transcends all understanding)

These last few weeks have been a whirlwind. Our community was dealt a blow with the future closing of two hospitals. People close to me that I love very much trying to figure out what their next steps will be. Many of you are wondering what the future holds. You have lost your doctors, and some have lost your jobs.

Mongoose

I have been to the hospitals to visit people these last two weeks who are anxious about test that are being run or procedures being done.

I am… anxious

I have talked to many of you who have sent your kids off to college for their first time or in my case sending my baby to high school. Kids are anxious about starting a new school year with different teachers and some at different schools altogether.

Q. What lies at the bottom of the ocean and twitches? A. A nervous wreck.

Parents are anxious about sending their kids into somebody else’s care. People that you know could never care us much about them as you do. You ask yourself if you have prepared them enough. Are they ready?

I know many of you have had things in your life happen recently that makes you a nervous wreck. Your anxiety level is at an all-time high.

Recent statistics show that you are not alone. In fact, recent research has shown that Generation Z (our kids in school right now) are the most stressed generation ever.

Today, I want to talk to you about finding God through our anxiety.

Anxiety is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all others thoughts are drained.

Have you ever woken up out of a deep sleep, wide awake, and filled with worry? You look at your clock and see that it is 3 o’clock. You try to close your eyes and go back to sleep, but it is no use. You are wide awake. Your anxiety is at an all time high as you sit there thinking about what was or what will be.

Arthur Somers Roche.

These last few weeks have been a whirlwind. Our community was dealt a blow with the future closing of two hospitals. People close to me that I love very much trying to figure out what their next steps will be. Many of you are wondering what the future holds. You have lost your doctors, and some have lost your jobs.

So, we all deal with anxiety. In fact, a recent study broke down the focus of our anxiety.

I have been to the hospitals to visit people these last two weeks who are anxious about test that are being run or procedures being done.

An average person's anxiety is focused on :

I have talked to many of you who have sent your kids off to college for their first time or in my case sending my baby to high school. Kids are anxious about starting a new school year with different teachers and some at different schools altogether.

40% -- things that will never happen 30% -- things about the past that can't be changed 12% -- things about criticism by others, mostly untrue 10% -- about health, which gets worse with stress 8% -- about real problems that will be faced

Parents are anxious about sending their kids into somebody else’s care. People that you know could never care us much about them as you do. You ask yourself if you have prepared them enough. Are they ready?

Just recently I started to feel super anxious about how fast life was coming at me. I recently turned 40, I have a son who is a junior, my baby girl is a freshman, and my niece just went to college. I talked to a beautiful couple from the church that asked me to start doing pre-marital counselling for them. The girl that is getting married was in one of the first classes that I ever taught. It was a preschool class. Wow!

Recent statistics show that you are not alone. In fact, recent research has shown that Generation Z (our kids in school right now) are the most stressed generation ever.

Many of you can relate. You have other anxiety that you struggle with. The struggle is real! What are you anxious about? I am anxious…

Anxiety is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all others thoughts are drained.

So where can we find comfort? How do we deal with anxiety? How do we become more like the apostle Paul who was rejoicing in the middle of a raging storm in his life?

Arthur Somers Roche.

(NIV)

So, we all deal with anxiety. In fact, a recent study broke down the focus of our anxiety.

Elijah Flees to Horeb

An average person's anxiety is focused on :

19 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.”

40% -- things that will never happen 30% -- things about the past that can't be changed 12% -- things about criticism by others, mostly untrue 10% -- about health, which gets worse with stress 8% -- about real problems that will be faced

3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, 4 while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.

Just recently I started to feel super anxious about how fast life was coming at me. I recently turned 40, I have a son who is a junior, my baby girl is a freshman, and my niece just went to college. I talked to a beautiful couple from the church that asked me to start doing pre-marital counselling for them. The girl that is getting married was in one of the first classes that I ever taught. It was a preschool class. Wow!

All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.

Many of you can relate. You have other anxiety that you struggle with. The struggle is real! What are you anxious about?

7 The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” 8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.

So where can we find comfort? How do we deal with anxiety? How do we become more like the apostle Paul who was rejoicing in the middle of a raging storm in his life?

The Lord Appears to Elijah

(NIV)

And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Elijah Flees to Horeb

10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”

19 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.”

Our first reaction to anxiety most of the time is to run. Elijah was Forrest Gump’s inspiration. Notice something else…he ran for forty days and forty nights. We become irrational and just run as far away from whatever is causing us to be anxious. We go and find a cave somewhere to hide out in. We also have a way of thinking that we are all alone. There has never been a person who has ever been through what you are going through. There is no hope.

3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, 4 while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.

The entire time we are dealing with our anxiety, our worries, and fears. Just like the Israelites who wondered in the wilderness for 40 years to remind them something, or Elijah who wondered for 40 days to remind him something, God is trying to remind us the same thing today.

All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.

So, what is His message to us today?

7 The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” 8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.

11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

The Lord Appears to Elijah

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

You are not alone! “I Am” is near!

10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”

God wasn’t in the wind.

Our first reaction to anxiety most of the time is to run. Elijah was Forrest Gump’s inspiration. We become irrational and just run as far away from whatever is causing us to be anxious. We go and find a cave somewhere to hide out in. We also have a way of thinking that we are all alone. There has never been a person who has ever been through what you are going through. There is no hope.

He wasn’t in the earthquake.

So, what is His message to us today?

He wasn’t in the fire.

11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

But God wasn’t in any of that. When life gets loud you can almost guarantee that Satan is the one causing all the noise.

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

You see sometimes our anxieties, fears, and worries get loud in our lives. The first thing we want to do is run and let our minds think the worst possible outcome, but God is near.

God wasn’t in the wind.

Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

He wasn’t in the earthquake.

14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”

He wasn’t in the fire.

15 The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. 16 Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. 17 Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. 18 Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”

God wasn’t in any of that. When life gets loud you can almost guarantee that Satan is the one causing all the noise.

You are not alone.

You see sometimes our anxieties, fears, and worries get loud in our lives. The first thing we want to do is run and let our minds think the worst possible outcome, but God is near.

(NIV)

38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

(NIV)

Why would God come in the gentle whisper? I mean when I think of God

6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

I think of how powerful that he is. Surely, my God would be found in hurricane type wind…my God is so powerful that He would be found in an earthquake that would shape the Earth…my God is so powerful that He would be found in a blazing inferno.

So why would He make himself known to Elijah in a gentle whisper?

8 Come near to God and he will come near to you.

The answer is… He is near.

Why would God come in the gentle whisper? I mean when I think of God

You see when somebody whispers to you two things have to happen for somebody to hear them.

I think of how powerful that he is. Surely, my God would be found in hurricane type wind…my God is so powerful that He would be found in an earthquake that would shape the Earth…my God is so powerful that He would be found in a blazing inferno.

They must be close and the person that is being talked to must block out all of the noise around them and lean in and focus on the One that is standing right next to them in order to hear them.

So why would He make himself known to Elijah in a gentle whisper?

God is near!

The answer is… He is near.

You are not alone! “I Am” is near

You see when somebody whispers to you two things have to happen for somebody to hear them.

(NIV)

They must be close and the person that is being talked to has to block out all of the noise around them and lean in and focus on the One that is standing right next to them in order to hear them.

More Than Conquerors

God is near!

31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;

we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Notice something else…he ran for forty days and forty nights.

Just like the Israelites who were too scared to fight the giants in the promised land wondered in the wilderness for 40 years to remind them something, or Elijah who wondered for 40 days to remind him something, God is trying to remind us the same thing today. The entire time we are dealing with our anxiety, our worries, and fears God is sending us a message.

(NIV)

Joshua to Succeed Moses

31 Then Moses went out and spoke these words to all Israel: 2 “I am now a hundred and twenty years old and I am no longer able to lead you. The Lord has said to me, ‘You shall not cross the Jordan.’ 3 The Lord your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua also will cross over ahead of you, as the Lord said. 4 And the Lord will do to them what he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, whom he destroyed along with their land. 5 The Lord will deliver them to you, and you must do to them all that I have commanded you. 6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

7 Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the Lord swore to their ancestors to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. 8 The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

8 Come near to God and he will come near to you.