Is Worry in the Way?
(Road Repair continued)
In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’”
As we continue to look for ways to clear debris out of the road between us and God, today we will look at this command from Jesus:
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? (Matt.6:25-27)
Jesus commands us here; “do not worry”. He does not say ‘try not to worry’. He does not say ‘only worry when things are really bad’. He says, plainly, “do not worry”. And I can say it too; to you and to myself. So can you. It’s easy; “Do not worry”. Well, it is easy to say. But most of us find it difficult to accomplish. And yet, we do want to be obedient to Jesus, and we do realize that what He calls us to do is better for us, right? Thankfully, God’s Word does not leave it there:
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4: 1-7)
We hear that God has peace that transcends our understanding, but what are we to do with that? You may well have heard me say this before; this, this passage, is God’s recipe for peace:
Rejoice in the Lord…
Do not be anxious about anything…
But in everything… present your requests to God.
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
First, we must rejoice. Regardless of our circumstance, we must rejoice.
We must be willing to be obedient, to continue the steps to not be anxious.
I think this next step is key; we must present “everything” to God. We are prone to asking for help with a particular issue, while we run everything else. But God is neither our co-pilot nor our assistant. If we want to take control of part of our circumstances we must be prepared to take them all. If we want God’s help, we must be willing to turn everything over to Him. Everything. If we do, then we can receive the promise of peace, peace greater than we can understand. And that peace, which will come to us, is peace that dwells in the heart of Christ, will guard our hearts and minds, guard what we think and guard what we love. And then…peace.
Until tomorrow…peace. Pastor Jim
P.S. If you need a starting place for spiritual discipline, consider the following: Starting today, and then first thing tomorrow morning, I challenge you to listen to God, with this five-minute exercise:
1) Do this as soon as you wake up. Set your clock a few minutes early if that is what you need to get up ahead of the household noise. Lay your Bible by your bed as a reminder. 2) Go to the quietest place in your house, outside, your kitchen, your bathroom...wherever. 3) Pray for 1 minute that God would speak to you. Audibly, out loud, ask Him to remove Satan from your presence for this time. Ask Him to remove distractions and mental clutter. During this time, do not ask Him for anything else, do not thank Him for anything else, do not pray for anyone else (but please find another prayer time for all these things). 4) Open your Bible and read for 2 minutes. This is God talking to you through His Word. Listen to Him. 5) Close your Bible and be silent for 3 minutes. Listen for Him. He may come as a thought, a nudge, an idea. For a while, He may seem hard to hear. There is so much clutter in our minds! Keep listening.
This may seem difficult. You will hear every creaking tree branch. You will hear every barking dog. But like Elijah's time in the cave, God is not in the tree branch, God is not in the dog. Persevere. Listen for the gentle whisper.
No comments:
Post a Comment