Overwhelming Worry

Overwhelming Worry

Jeffery Anselmi / General

Core 52 / Anxiety; Stress / Philippians 4:6

We all face life; the question is, how will we face it? We will be overwhelmed by anxiety or is there a better way?

INTRODUCTION

- Decades ago, in the waiting room of a Minneapolis hospital, three expectant fathers nervously paced while they anxiously awaited news from beyond the swinging double doors.

- The nurse came in and announced to the first father that he was now the proud daddy of two beautiful twins.

- “That’s quite a coincidence,” he responded, “I play for the Minnesota Twins!”

- A few minutes later, another nurse came in and announced to the second man, “Your wife has just given birth to triplets.”

- “That’s amazing,” he exclaimed, “I work for the 3M Company!”

- At this point, the third man passed out and fell out of his chair.

- The nurse quickly attended to the man. As he came to, she asked, “Are you feeling ill?” He said, “No, but I work for 7-up.”

- (Dan Raymond Core 52 message)

- The message today may be difficult for most of us to relate to because I know none of us deal with worry, stress, and anxiety in our lives.

- Maybe you heard some preacher tell you that if you come to Jesus, you will not experience stress, anxiety, and worry in your life because God will not let anything bad happen to you IF you love Jesus enough.

- Because of the world we live in until we get to Heaven, life can and will throw a lot at us.

- In reality, overwhelming worry is an issue we all face or will face in life.

- We live in a day when worry is assumed to be a normal part of life.

- Anxiety is expected. We all worry sometimes, but what is alarming is how often worry cripples our ability to live life.

- 43% of adults suffer adverse health problems because of worry, and these numbers are mushrooming among Generation Z or the Generation, those aged about 8 to 23.

- Did you know that half of all people in the hospital at any given time can be diagnosed as chronic worriers?

- 75% of all visits to primary care doctors are stress-related.

- 275 million workdays are lost every year to worry related absenteeism.

- Thirty-one million Americans suffer from insomnia, and anxiety plays a significant role in that.

- The bottom line is worry is killing us. (Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), Forbes Health, and other mental health research organizations)

- One thing I want to acknowledge before we dive too deep.

- Life can be so beautiful; when it is, all is good, and it is easy to love God.

- However, the other side of the coin is that life can be tragic.

- So many things can go wrong in life, and sometimes, the pain and questions of life can potentially destroy us.

- This morning, I desire not to give you a Sunday School answer for your worries, anxiety, and stress in life.

- My goal this morning is not to guilt you if you are struggling with your faith or racked with overwhelming worry but rather to help you deal with life in a better, more healthy way.

- When life is difficult, when tragedy strikes, it is the most difficult time to love and trust God.

- One thing to take note of is that we cannot love God only when things go our way; we must also love and trust Him when they do not.

- Imagine marrying someone who only loves you when things are going well.

- We all face life; the question is, how will we face it?

- We will be overwhelmed by anxiety, or is there a better way?

- Let’s look at that better way.

Philippians 4:6 (NET 2nd ed.)

6 Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God.

SERMON

I. How we are called to respond to the stresses of life.

- Don’t you love the simplicity of scripture?

- How do I respond to stress, anxiety, and worry?

- Charlie Brown explained, "I've developed a new philosophy: I dread only one day at a time." Reader's Digest, November 2014, p.28

- Don’t be anxious about anything!

- Wow, that was easy.

- What a short sermon!

- The verb rendered “be anxious” is translated as “deep concern” in Philippians 2:20

Philippians 2:20 (NET 2nd ed.)

20 For there is no one here like him who will readily demonstrate his deep concern for you.

- In this verse the verb is used in a positive manner, to care deeply for someone, in our passage it is used in a negative connotation.