ON COPING WITH WORRY--Philippians 4:4-9
Proposition: "When we put our full confidence in the Lord, He will help us cope with worry in our lives and give us peace since He is “the God of peace.”
Objective: My purpose is to challenge God’s people to fully trust Him in every experience of life.
INTRODUCTION:
Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength. Corrie Ten Boom
Dr. Charles Mayo, of the famed Mayo Clinic, says, "Worry affects the circulation, the heart, the glands, the whole nervous system, and it profoundly affects the health of us all." He continues by sharing, "I very rarely met anybody who died from overwork, but I have known many people who have died from worry."
There is a rabbinic story about a burdened old man who, along his difficult journey in life, met an angel. The old man was bent under the enormous weight of a great burlap sack across his shoulders and on his back. The angel said, "What have you got in there?" The man replied, "In there are my worries." The angel said, "Empty them out and let me see." The old man lowered the sack to the ground and turned out the contents. Out came first yesterday, and then tomorrow. The angel picked up yesterday, threw it aside and said, "You don’t need that anymore, because yesterday is in the hands of God, and no amount of worrying will change it." Then the angel picked up tomorrow, threw it aside and said, "You don’t need this either, because tomorrow is in the hands of God, and no amount of worrying will change it." And the legend says that the old man smiled, stood up straight, breathed freedom for the first time in a long time, and went on his way. Yes, there are two days in every week that we do not have to worry about--yesterday and tomorrow. Do not let your epitaph read: Hurried, Worried, Buried.
If anybody had an excuse for worrying, it was the Apostle Paul. His beloved Christian friends at Philippi were disagreeing with one another, and he was not there to help them. We have no idea what Euodia and Syntyche were disputing about, but whatever it was, it was bringing division into the church. Along with the potential division at Philippi, Paul had to face division among the believers at Rome (Phil. 1:14-17). Also, Paul was in prison awaiting a trial that could cost him his life. Yes, Paul had a good excuse to worry—but he did not! Instead, he took time to explain to us the secret of victory over worry.
If you ask, What is worry? The Greek word translated “anxious” (careful) in Philippians 4:6 means “to be pulled in different directions.” Our hopes pull us in one direction; our fears pull us the opposite direction; and we are pulled apart! The Old English root from which we get our word “worry” means “to strangle.” If you have ever really worried, you know how it does strangle a person! In fact, worry has definite physical consequences: headaches, neck pains, ulcers, even back pains. Worry affects our thinking, our digestion, and even our coordination.
Worry is an “inside job,” and it takes more than good intentions to get the victory. God is our Protector and offers His peace to stand as a guard like a soldier through our relationship to the Lord Jesus Christ. With that kind of protection—why worry? As someone has said, "99% of what we worry about never happens."
I. PRAISE unto GOD (v. 4) “rejoice in the Lord”-- The note of joy runs throughout the letter. If Christ is who we hold Him to be, then Christ offers more to make us glad than anyone or anything else can do to make us sorry. Paul can issue the call to rejoice as they remember his suffering and imprisonment at Philippi on his first visit was the occasion of an impressive victory of faith and joy over despair (Acts 16:25). Wms: “By the help of the Lord always keep up the glad spirit; yes, I will repeat it, keep up the glad spirit."
1. An exhortation “Rejoice in the Lord”-- It is the Philippians "faith in the Lord" that makes rejoicing even in the agonizing struggle with opposition a glorious possibility. Distressing thoughts are overcome by thoughts of the Lord and His love, goodness, wisdom, power and care.
2. An earnestness “Again I will say, rejoice”-- The Lord is too wise to make any mistakes, too loving to be unkind, too powerful to be thwarted and too involved in all that concerns us to be aloof. How can we think of the Lord and not rejoice? No matter how dark the circumstances of life may be, it is always possible for the Christian to rejoice in the Lord.
Illus: Hans Christian Andersen, author of such well-known fairy tales as "The Emperor’s New Clothes," had a phobia of being buried alive. As a result, he always carried a note in his pocket telling anyone who might find him unconscious not to assume he was dead. He often left another note on his bedside table stating, "I only seem dead." Such was his anxiety until he finally succumbed to cancer in 1875.
II. PATIENCE from GOD (v. 5) “Let your gentleness be known”- “Let your forbearing spirit be known to everybody.” “Moderation” in v. 5 means “sweet reasonableness.” It is wonderful when Christians can have convictions and yet be easy to get along with! If we keep in mind that the Lord is with us in every circumstance, then it is easy to obey Him and get along with other people. If we would but rejoice in Him and get our eyes on Him instead of on people, we would have His joy and peace.
1. The restraint (v. 5a) “Let your gentleness be known”—The word "moderation (gentleness)" means yieldingness, moderation, forbearance, con-siderateness, softness and gentleness. This word was used to express the disposition which contented itself with less than its due and shrank from insisting on its strict rights. It expressed a mind-set opposed to the eager overrating of personal worth or objects and opposed to the arrogance that insists on its will. This describes the attitude which forgets self in favor of others and willingly yields purely personal claims. It denotes the spirit that enables Christians to bear injuries with patience and to resist demanding all that is rightly their due (1 Cor. 6:7).
Illus: "Let all the world know you will meet a person halfway."
Illus: A man who was a member of our church in Texas who was upset because of what someone said about him. I reminded him of the forgiveness of Jesus towards those who offended him. All he would say is, "I know that, but I still cannot forgive him."
2. The reason (v. 5b) “The Lord is at hand”— This speaks either of Christ’s coming again or His nearness to His people in every situation. We must remember that the Lord is near in the sense of His abiding presence with Christians. Note the admonitions Paul gives: stand fast in the Lord; be of one mind in the Lord; rejoice in the Lord; the Lord is near at hand! This is "practicing the presence of Christ," seeing Him in every situation of life, and letting Him work out His perfect will.
Illus: If You Were to Take an Airplane to Athens, Greece And Then Take an Ocean Liner Eight Hours Into the Mediterranean Sea You Would Find Yourself on the Island of Naxos. Naxos is One of the Most Primitive of the Greek Islands, and It Has Been the Least Affected by Tourism But One of the Things the Island is Known for are "WORRY BEADS"-- From the Moment You Step Foot on the Island, You Can See People Everywhere Fingering and Manipulating "WORRY BEADS"-- These "WORRY BEADS" Come in Different Shapes, and Sizes and Colors-- And Everyone on the Island of Naxos Has Them-- The Old People and the Middle Aged People and the Young People All Have "WORRY BEADS"-- At the Coast and in the City and in the Mountains and Everywhere Else You Go in Naxos, You Will Find People Fingering and Manipulating "WORRY BEADS" (No, these beads do not make you worry! On the contrary, they help stay calm when dealing with the worries, anxiety and stress that seem to plague many of us daily. So I’ve renamed them "Comfort Beads". Just run your fingers over the beads, play with them, make shapes with them, and see if it doesn’t help you feel comforted!)-- I Haven’t Met Many Americans Who Carry "WORRY BEADS" Around With Them-- But I Have Met Many Who... ...And Pace the Floor...And Lie Awake at Night Staring at the Ceiling--...Because of This Problem Called "WORRY"
III. PRAYER to GOD (v. 6) “by prayer…let your requests be made known to God”- “Stop being worried about anything, but always, in prayer and entreaty, and with thanksgiving, keep on making your wants known to God.” (Williams NT) It is both an act and an atmosphere. Be “anxious in nothing, prayerful in everything, thankful for anything.” God is still God. God will bring His purposes to bear in our lives.
1. Proper Realization “Be anxious for nothing”—“Be anxious in nothing”-- ’Worry’ comes from an Anglo-Saxon word, "to strangle" or "to choke." So worry can get a strangle hold on us, and literally cut off the air supply that allows us to breathe emotionally! Worry, anxiety, concern and apprehension keep us from living our lives to the very fullest because we are filled with fear that something awful will happen. Worry wastes a lot of emotional energy. Have you analyzed how few of the things we worry about actually happen? One survey says 40% of the things we worry about never happen; another 30% of our worries are in the past, and we can’t do anything about them. 12% concern other people, and are really none of our business anyway. 10% are about sickness which we can do very little to control. Only 8% of the things we worry about are worth worrying about. The Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans studied 500 consecutive admissions and found that 77 percent were there because of anxiety. Maybe that’s the reason some people say that they’re ’worried sick.’ So worry, like a rocking chair, it doesn’t get us anywhere. You know the little ditty about this: “Worry never climbed a hill. Worry never paid a bill. Worry never dried a tear. Worry never calmed a fear.” Worry is to be pulled apart and means a divided mind. It describes the mind as looking two ways and not being able to find a place where it can settle down. To care is a virtue; but to be overanxious, destructive. Worry is the greatest thief of joy. Worry is an "inside job," and it takes more than good intentions to get the victory.
Illus: Astronaut Jim Lovell was in command of the Apollo 13 spacecraft when it experienced an explosion on its way to the moon. Their oxygen was almost gone; their electrical system was out, and their spaceship was plunging toward lunar orbit. They were destined to be lost in space, thousands of miles from home. During a press conference after their safe return, Lovell was asked, “Were you worried?” and he gave an answer that surprised almost everyone in the room. “No, not really.” He continued, “Worry is a useless emotion. I was too busy fixing the problem to worry about it.”
2. Pointed requests “In everything by prayer and supplication…let your requests be known to God” “Be prayerful in everything”-- Prayer carries the idea of adoration, devotion and worship. Whenever we find our- selves worrying, our first action ought to be to get alone with God and worship Him. Adoration is what is needed of the greatness and majesty of God! We need to approach His throne calmly and in deepest reverence in adoration.
A child may take anything, great or small, to a parent, sure that what-ever happens to him is of interests there, his little triumphs and disappointments, his passing cuts and bruises; we may in exactly the same way take anything to God, sure of His interest and concern.
Illus: "There is nothing too great for God’s power; and nothing too small for His fatherly care."
3. Personal recognition “with thanksgiving” “Be thankful for everything”-- Paul insists that we must give thanks in everything, in sorrows and in joys alike. This implies two things. It implies gratitude and also perfect submission to the will of God. It is only when we are fully convinced that God is working all things together for our good that we can really feel to Him the perfect gratitude which believing prayer demands.
Illus: The story is told of Tauler, a German Mystic, who was walking down a road. Along the way he met a beggar and the following conversation ensued: “God give you a good day, my friend?” Tauler said. The beggar answered, “I thank God I never had a bad one.” Then Tauler said, “God give you a happy life, my friend.” “I thank God,” said the beggar, “I am never unhappy.” Tauler in amazement said, “What do you mean?” “Well,” said the beggar, “when it is fine, I thank God; when it rains, I thank God; when I have plenty, I thank God; when I am hungry, I thank God; and since God’s will is my will, and whatever pleases him pleases me, why should I say I am unhappy when I am not?” Tauler looked at the man in astonishment. “Who are you?” Tauler asked. “I am a king,” said the beggar. “Where then is your kingdom?” asked Tauler. The beggar answered quietly: “In my heart.”
IV. PEACE OF GOD “And the peace of God”—When the exhortations of these verses are heeded, the peace of God will flood one’s troubled soul. Every child of God has peace with God through justification by faith.
1. Personal possession "the peace of God"--Peace springs
from a sense of the Lord’s nearness and the practice of a face-to-face praying in which everything is laid out in the open before Him. The peace of God is not a negative quality. It is the peace of superior might, the calm of absolute adequacy.
Illus: For several years a woman had been having trouble getting to sleep at night because she feared burglars. One night her husband heard a noise in the house, so he went downstairs to investigate. When he got there, he did find a burglar. "Good evening," said the man of the house. "I am pleased to see you. Come upstairs and meet my wife. She has been waiting 10 years to meet you."
2. Precious promise "Surpasses all knowledge"--This does not mean that the peace of God is such a mystery that man’s mind cannot understand it, although that is true. It means that the peace of God is so precious that man’s mind, with all its skill and all its knowledge, can never produce it. it can never be of man’s contriving; it is only of God’s giving.
3. Powerful protection "will guard"--The result of
believing prayer is that the peace of God will stand like a sentinel on guard upon our hearts. We remember that Paul was chained to a Roman soldier, guarded day and night. In like manner, "the peace of God" stands guard over the two areas that create worry--the heart (wrong feeling) and the mind (wrong thinking). This meant a quiet confidence within, regardless of circumstances, people or things.
Illus: In a little pamphlet Miss Marie Monsen, a Norwegian missionary to China, related her experience as a captive for the twenty-three days on a ship commandeered by pirates in April, 1929. She unfolds an amazing testimony of God’s faithfulness during all those days when her life was in constant danger from the robbers who looted and plundered the fishing craft that plied the waters near Tientsin. After this hideous nightmare to this lone foreign woman among passengers held by over fifty pirates, she used this as her title, "Resting in God’s Faithfulness." She had found the peace that passes all our comprehension and understanding.
CONCLUSION: In closing, let us remember that:
1. Worry is unnecessary. Remember that, “Anxiety is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all others thoughts are drained.” Arthur Somers Roche.
2. Faith can help you replace your fears. George Muller stated, “ The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety.”
3. The Lord will give you peace in your heart when you fully trust the Lord. Wiersbe states, When we give our hearts to Christ in salvation, we experience “peace with God” (Rom. 5:1); but the “peace of God” takes us a step farther into His blessings. This does not mean the absence of trials on the outside, but it does mean a quiet confidence within, regardless of circumstances, people, or things.
4. The Lord will strengthen us as we experience joy in the Lord as we serve Him.
Illus: A minister was helping a man who seemed to be a hopeless alcoholic. He put him in the care of a New York physician who put him in a hospital. After he became sober and psychotherapy sessions, he was released. The Doctor said, “I’ve done what I can do for you and I think you’re better. But there is a part of your personality I can’t get at—That 5% will trip you sooner or later.” “Is there someone who can help me, anyone at all?” “There is a Doctor, but He’s very expensive. He’ll take all you have. I think you know what I mean.” The man left the hospital on a cold, rainy miserable winter night for walking. There was a part of him that wanted a drink desperately. It was not just 5% but 95% that wanted it. He came to a church and found himself by a church door. A part of him wanted to go in, but a stronger part held him back. He stood in the rain unable to touch the door. In desperation, he took one of his business cards and wrote this: “Dear Dr. Jesus, please help me!” He dropped the card into the letter slot and he burst into tears. Do you know what? Jesus did help him and the desire for drink was gone & never to come back. That is the solution to coping with worry. Let Dr. Jesus help you!!!
Prepared by: Gerald R. Steffy
6206 N. Hamilton Rd., Peoria, IL 61614
E-Mail: grsteffy@yahoo.com to receive
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