"The Antidote for Anxiety"
Psalms 37:1-8
Psalms 37:1 A Psalm of David. Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.
Introduction: A few weeks ago I heard a message on the subject of worry and anxiety that seemed to be tailor made just for me. It got all over my "toes" so to speak. Have you ever had one like that? Unfortunately this is not the first time the Lord has spoken to my heart about this subject. He has done it through sermons (just mentioned) the counsel of friends and a variety of other ways. The fact that I have had so many reminders means either I am a slow learner or very stubborn. I'll let you be the judge of those two options! Interestingly enough the Bible has a great deal to this subject and even the Lord Jesus addressed it on several occasions in His preaching and teaching. It needs to be said that all worry and anxiety is rooted in fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of the future, fear of rejection and the list goes on. In our text this morning David is admonished three times not to "fret,"
First:
I. We Are to Refrain from Fretting
The word fret is translated "worry" and the Bible has a lot to say about this subject, especially our Lord and we find this passage in the first Gospel:
Mat 6:25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Let me give you three good reasons not to worry or fret:
a. Fretting corrupts your spirit
It robs us of sleep, rest, contentment, peace etc...it causes us to waste worrying when we could use that time for something constructive! God has not given us the "spirit of fear"...but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2Ti 1:7
ILL - Some people buy things on the "lay awake plan." They lay awake each evening trying to figure out how they will pay for it!
ILL - I heard about a young lawyer who was called in from the big city to represent a large railroad company that was being sued by a farmer. It seems that the farmer's prize cow was missing from a field through which the railroad passed, and the farmer was suing for the value of the cow. Before the case was to be tried, the lawyer cornered the farmer and convinced him to settle out of court for half of what he originally wanted. The farmer signed the necessary papers and then accepted the check. The young lawyer could not resist gloating a bit about his success. He said to the farmer, "You know, I couldn't have won this case if it had gone to trial. The engineer was asleep and the fireman was in the caboose when the train passed through your farm that morning. I didn't have a single witness to put on the stand!" With a wry smile, the old farmer replied, "Well, I tell you young feller, I was a little worried about winning that case myself because that cow came home this morning."
b. Fretting is contagious to the saints
Have you ever been around someone who could "rain on your parade "in just a minute? I mean that you can be perfectly fine and with just a word they can have you all upset and fretful. I have and believe me it is no fun! They walk around with a black cloud hovering over them and gloom and doom in their words!
ILL - There was a fellow who was about to jump from a bridge. An alert police officer slowly and methodically moved toward him, talking with him all the time. When the officer got within inches of the man he said, "Surely nothing could be bad enough for you to take your life. Tell me about it. Talk to me." The would-be jumper told how his wife had left him, how his business had gone bankrupt, and how his friends had deserted him. Everything in life had lost meaning. For thirty minutes he told the sad story--then they both jumped.
c. Fretting is confusing to sinners
Unsaved people see and hear professing Christians who fretful, fearful and worrisome. Let me tell you that this is a terrible testimony!
HUNTING MICE
It is amazing how we can focus on things that don't matter and neglect the most important things in life. We need to learn how to choose our battles better. Leonard Ravenhill said it best: "Many of us are hunting MICE...while LIONS are devouring the land!"
II. We Are to Rely on His Faithfulness
a. Rely on Him to supply what we don't have
Php 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
"Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow; it only saps today of its joy."--Leo Buscaglia
YOU CAN WORRY TO DEATH
Chronic worry can cause serious physical problems, such as ulcers, heart attacks, and high blood pressure. Dr. Charles Mayo, of the famous Mayo Clinic, wrote, "Worry affects the circulation, the heart, the glands and the whole nervous system. I have never met a man or known a man to die of overwork, but I have known a lot who died of worry." You can literally worry yourself to death.
(From a sermon by Jonathan McLeod, "You Can't Control the Future" 2/16/2009)
I am convinced that the reason that many professing Christians do not tithe and support the church financially is because of worry and fear!
ILL - W.A. Criswell tells of an ambitious young man who told his pastor he'd promised God a tithe of his income. They prayed for God to bless his career. At that time he was making $40.00 per week and tithing $4.00. God did just that and in a few years his income increased and he was tithing $500.00 per week.
He called the pastor to see if he could be released from his tithing promise, it was too costly now. The pastor replied, "I don't see how you can be released from your promise, but we can ask God to reduce your income to $40.00 a week, then you'd have no problem tithing $4.00."
b. Rely on Him to sustain what we do have
Heb 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
Duet. 29:5 And I have led you forty years in the wilderness: your clothes are not waxen old upon you, and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot.
c. Rely on Him to satisfy us about what we will not have.
1Ti 6:6 But godliness with contentment is great gain.
Php 4:11 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.
One of the things that we will do in heaven is to thank God for prayers when He said no!
2Co 3:5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;
2Co 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
III. We Are to Rejoice in His Fellowship
Ever heard the expression, "first things first?" That is a principle that certainly is true when it comes to the antidote for anxiety. If we keep life in perspective with all things in their proper place we will be able to live a relatively worry free life! In our text we are given a priority and if we will put "first things first," it will work. If:
a. Our delight should be in His person
The antidote to worry and anxiety is God himself, to "delight" yourself in Him, to give Him first place in your life; that is the answer!
Psa 73:28 But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.
b. Our desires will be consistent with His purposes
Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Psalms 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
12 O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.
c. Our destiny is realized in His promises
The "bottom line" is that we should not worry or fret because we can trust God! Whatever He promises will come to pass. One of the most blessed portions of Scripture is found in the phrase "...and it came to pass..."
THE LAW OF THE PENDULUM
ILL - In college a student was asked to prepare a lesson to teach his speech class. He was to be graded on creativity and ability to drive home a point in a memorable way. The title of his talk was, "The Law of the Pendulum." He spent twenty minutes carefully teaching the physical principle that governs a swinging pendulum. The law of the pendulum is: A pendulum can never return to a point higher than the point from which it was released. Because of friction and gravity, when the pendulum returns, it will fall short of its original release point. Each time it swings it makes less and less of an arc, until finally it is at rest. This point of rest is called the state of equilibrium, where all forces acting on the pendulum are equal.
The student attached a three-foot string to a child's toy top and secured it to the top the blackboard with a thumbtack. He pulled the top to one side and made a mark on the blackboard where he let it go. Each time it swung back he made a new mark. It took less than a minute for the top to complete its swinging and come to rest. When he finished the demonstration, the markings on the blackboard proved the law of the pendulum.
The student then asked how many people in the room believed the law of the pendulum was true. All of his classmates raised their hands and so did the teacher. The teacher started to walk to the front of the room thinking the class was over. In reality it had only begun. Hanging from the steal beams in the middle of the room was a large, crude but functional pendulum made from 250 pounds of metal weights tied to four strands of 500 pound test parachute cord. The student invited the instructor to climb up on a table and sit in a chair with back of his head against a cement wall. Then the student brought the 250 pounds of metal up to the teachers' nose. Holding the huge pendulum just a fraction of an inch from the teacher's face, the student once again explained the law of the pendulum he had applauded only moments before, "If the law of the pendulum is true, then when I release this mass of metal, it will swing across the room and return short of the release point. Your nose will be in no danger."
After that final restatement of this law, the student looked his teacher in the eye and asked, "Sir, do you believe this law is true?" There was a long pause. Huge beads of sweat formed on his upper lip and then weakly he nodded and whispered, "Yes."
The student released the pendulum. It made a swishing sound as it arced across the room. At the far end of its swing, it paused momentarily and started back. The student later testified that he had never seen a man move so fast in his entire life as the teacher literally dove from the table.
(Ken Davis, How To Speak To Youth, pp 104-106).
It was easy for this teacher to believe in the law of the pendulum when it was all theoretical. But when his life literally depended on the law of the pendulum he showed that his belief was only theoretical. How easy it is for us to believe in God's sufficiency in church on Sunday morning or in a Bible study. But in the real world where our lives are on the line too many of us demonstrate that our belief was only theoretical.
ILL - Chuck Swindoll stated in Laugh Again, "Worry about nothing...pray about everything, and rest" (page 203).
He says that the three substitutes for worry are:
1. Rejoice
2. Relax
3. Rest
*Gleaned from an outline by Dr. Junior Hill
