Consider The Lilies! (Hix)

A lady went to the butcher shop looking for a chicken for dinner. She asked the butcher to see his selection. He only had one chicken left but did not disclose this to the lady. He kept the chickens in the bin below the showcase and so he reached down and pulled out his last chicken. He put it on the scale, the lady eyed the weight and asked if he had one a little larger.

"Yes," he replied. He took the chicken and lowered it down to the empty bin, shook it against the side and brought it back out. This time when he placed it on the scale his trained thumb hung just a little bit on the edge of the scale.

The lady eyed the weight and said, "that is fine, I'll take both of them."

Verse 25-Christians like to pretend that they don’t worry. They just call their worries, prayer concerns.

A ninety-five year old woman at the nursing home received a visit from one of her fellow church members.

"How are you feeling?" the visitor asked.

"Oh," said the lady, "I'm just worried sick!"

"What are you worried about, dear?" her friend asked. "You look rather well and healthy today. Are they taking good care of you here?"

"Oh, yes, they’re taking very good care of me."

"Are you in any pain?" she asked.

"No, I’m not in any pain at all."

"Well then, what are you worried about?" her friend asked again.

The lady leaned back in her rocking chair, sighed a heavy sigh, then slowly explained her major worry. "Every close friend I ever had has already died and gone on to heaven. I'm afraid they're all wondering where I went."

The word worry in the Greek, means to be divided. The Greek word is formed by two root words “divided” and “mind.”

To worry means to be pulled in many different directions.

Back and forth your mind goes.

If we keep this up we soon get pulled apart; we can literally worry ourselves sick.

Verse 26-A man decides to join the circus. He shows up to demonstrate his skills to the Circus Master.

"I have the most unusual act," he announces. "I'm sure it will amaze you."

He proceeds to climb a tall tower, and jumps off. He flaps his arms wildly, and finally his fall slows. He soars forward, then swoops upward, turns and swoops back again. Finally he stops in mid air and gently lowers himself to the ground landing softly on the toe of one foot.

The Circus Master stares blankly at him for a long time. Finally he says, "Is that all you've got? Bird imitations?"

They sing and they work

Verse 27-It will not add an inch to your height or a hour to your life. The simple truth is that worrying doesn’t ADD it SUBTRACTS from your life.

It can subtract hours from your day, but even more it can subtract days, months and years from your life.

Worry is a bad investment of time and energy no matter how you look at it.

Vance Havner-Worry is like a rocking chair, it will give you something to do but it won’t get you anywhere!

Verse 28-29-If we concentrate on blooming in the midst of our situations we might stop wasting our time laboring and spinning in ways contrary to what God intends!

Many flowers bloom when they are in the sunlight.

Are helping or hindering people from receiving the Son light?

Are we casting a shadow? Shadow of doubt, Shadow of fear….?

Consider The Lily.

Lilies don’t grow on the mountains. But the lily grows down in the valley.

The lily grows in the valley. Maybe there is a reason that God allows them to grow in the valley. Because in between every mountain, in between every difficulty, in between every situation, every obstacle there is a valley.

And it is good to know that when you are in the valley there can be beauty and purpose!

We never see the lily being planted but we know that they just show up time and time again.

They may be down on one day and you see them on a another day they have a smile on their face.

It’s not because of what they know but it is because of Who they know!

We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; sometimes we are cast down, but not forsaken

Verse 30-32-When your worried take a walk outside….The squirrel that is gathering nuts, the birds that are building nest and eating from the ground, the ants as the carry food to their mound.

For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.