High Anxiety

High Anxiety, Mark 4:35-41

How many of you are chronic worriers? You say, I never worry. I just suffer from anxiety. Some of you worry all the time. And if you don't have anything to worry about, you go out and invent something to worry about. I am temped to worry as much as anyone. But God has shown me over and over again that He loves me. And when I have His perspective, I also feel secure, and tend to feel less anxious than I otherwise

would have. These are very anxious times in which we live. Its hard not to be anxious-about your future, your families, etc. In the title of my message Jesus helps us to calm our high anxiety, by saying before the journey begins: Let’s cross over to the

other side, peace be still, and helps us to examine our own hearts by asking, “Why are you so fearful?”

I.First of all, we hear Jesus saying, "Let us cross over to the other side." Now, understand that whenever Jesus said something, there is more to be understood by it than just at face value. Every word He said was not only truth, but filled with meaning.

If Jesus looked out of the Sea of Galillee and somehow sensed or felt that they were not going to make it when they got into the boat, I doubt very seriously He would have allowed His disciples to get into it. There was purpose to cross over to the other side.

There was the Father's work that needed to be done. There were people to preach the Gospel to over in Decapolis. There were demons over there that needed to be cast out, and people who needed to be healed. Jesus said, "Let us cross over to the other side,"

because He knew the future. He could see what was coming and had every confidence that He was going where the Father wanted Him to be.

You say, "well, that is all very well and good, but I don't know the future, and I don't know what is going to happen." But you do know. At the very least, if you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, you know the very one who not only

knows the future-He controls the future. My friends, that is even better, because of what good would it do you if you knew the future, and you couldn't do anything about it? And before you can even comprehend what it all means, there is something you will

need to do, and that is make a committment. Make a committment to what? Make the same commitment that the Disciples of Jesus Christ made when they decided to get into that boat with Jesus.They obeyed what He said, "Let us cross over to the other side."

To the other side? To the other side of what? You see, there was more than just a sea that needed to be crossed that day. These men had to cross over in their hearts from having control over their own lives to placing their lives into the hands of Almighty God. That is the first step to overcoming anxiety. Understand, up to this point, it had been fairly

easy for the disciples to follow Jesus. Other than the fact that Jesus had extended a call to them, there had not been that many demands placed upon them. They were what we call, "apprentice disciples." They were disciples who just listened to what Jesus said as

He spoke and taught. They had watched Jesus heal people. They had witnessed Him raising the dead.They had seen Him cast out demons,and do other mighty works in the context of that preaching and teaching. But all this activity never really required anything of them until Jesus said, "Let us cross over to the other side." That was when it was time to move up to the next level. It was time to move from being an apprentice disciple, to a journeyman. It was time to participate and know that what Jesus taught was true and real.

And I want to ask you this morning, "What is Jesus asking you now?" Is He saying to you, "Its time to cross over to the other side?" Is it time for you to move from being a spectator to being a minister? Is it time to cross over from being a pew-sitter to

being a participant? Just coming to hear good messages and Bible studies is not enough; for in order for any of the wonderful things that we hear about week in and week out about the life and ministry of Jesus Christ we have to apply and to put into practice for

them to do anything meaningful. It is not only a commitment to cross over, but also a commitment to go forward. Jesus said “No man who puts his hand first to the plow and then looks back is fit for the kingdom of Heaven.” Some people say they have