HoHum:
Heard about the Coronavirus but unconcerned because that was over in China. Then heard that it went to other countries, Italy shut down along with much of Europe. Several cases in Washington State and by weeks end 4 cases confirmed at UC West Chester. Friday, President declared a state of emergency for the country over COVID- 19. Since I work in hospice among people who have compromised immune systems and usually elderly, by the way anyone over the age of 60 is the most vulnerable to this virus, had several meetings about this pandemic. Told that nursing facilities cracking down on guests and this might include hospice workers. On Thursday had several nursing homes take my temperature and ask me detailed questions about my whereabouts, whom I am have seen, what I do, and my health. Thankfully, had all my visits to nursing homes except one done by the end of Thursday. Friday morning I was told to call any place I go to schedule visits because of all of the restrictions. Called my remaining nursing home but no answer, left a voicemail but no return call. Only about 5 miles away so I went. Posted on the door were the guidelines and the current restrictions. Rang the doorbell, the administrator came to the door and told me that they are no longer accepting any outside personnel and that I should have called. Explained that I did call, the administrator apologized, and as I was leaving hung a sign that said no guests admitted because of the coronavirus.
WBTU:
Listened to a town hall meeting in my company, USMM, about the situation. They took calls at the end and in the questions could hear the fear and worry in many of my co workers. Sick days, what happens if I get the illness, what happens if I am in a home where they have coronavirus, how will this affect my family, my job, and my life. Many worries
We can be overwhelmed with all of these concerns. What is going to happen? Don’t know.
We need to be informed and do what is best but God does not want us to worry about anything.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6, NIV. Christian Standard says “Don’t worry about anything.” Nothing, nada, zip, zero. We can pray or panic. We can worry or worship.
Don’t worry- why? Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives us 5 reasons why worry is worthless.
Thesis: 5 reasons God says we should never worry about anything from Matthew 6:25-34
For instances:
1. Worry is unreasonable.
Vs. 25- Why is worry illogical, irrational, unreasonable? 3 reasons why it is unreasonable
We worry about the wrong things. We worry about the little stuff that means nothing in a few years. “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:18, NIV. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33, NIV.
We worry about things we cannot change. If we can change it, then change it. If we can’t change it, so what? Can’t do anything about it. Like this coronavirus, very few things we can change. We often worry about things beyond our control because we think that worry is actually a form of control. We think by worrying about something, we are actually controlling the situation. It doesn’t change anything to worry about things beyond our control.
When we worry about something it becomes bigger in our minds. Someone has said something that gets our goat and we keep worrying about this. In time, we think that person has some diabolical plan to ruin us, when in actuality, they did not mean anything by this and have forgotten about that comment. “The whole world is against me.”- no probably not even thinking about us.
2. Worry is unnatural
Human beings are the only beings in God’s universe that worry. Cows don’t worry. Horses don’t worry. My dog or cat does not worry. The only thing that has worry are humans.
“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” Matthew 6:26, NIV.- Birds never think, “Do I have enough to live on?” Birds are beautiful in appearance and in their songs. God says, “Look, the birds are not worried. Aren't you more valuable than the birds? I take care of them and I’ll take care of you.”
““And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these.” Matthew 6:28, 29, NIV.- Just an ordinary wildflower is magnificent. God says, “Look, they’re beautiful just the way they are. They don’t have to put on makeup. They don’t have to get fancy. They don’t have to worry about how they appear to everybody else. They’re not worried about their appliance. They’re just who they are and it’s beautiful.” Even Solomon with all of his money and resources did not look as beautiful as these simple flowers. Birds and buds do not worry because they trust in God. See God saying, “All of creation trusts my care except humans.” This just isn’t natural. Some people think, “Well, I was born a worrier and I’ll always be that way.” No, worry is learned. We learned it by watching other people worry. A baby does not worry unless it is worried because the parents or other adults are worried- learns worries from others. Anything that is learned can be unlearned.
Notice vs. 26 again- “your heavenly Father”- does not say the birds father- Our Father. We are in a different category. God is not the Father of birds. We are made in God’s image which gives us the capacity to trust Him, to love him. Dogs do not worship because it is not in their nature. God cares for us like a Father cares for his children. Children get special privileges more than the other things in creation.
3. Worry is unhelpful
What does that mean? It is useless, worthless. Nothing changes when we worry. “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” Matthew 6:27, NIV.- worry cannot make us taller, shorter, bigger, smaller, thinner, fatter. Worry cannot add anything to our lives. Worry is stewing without doing. It’s investing emotional energy for something that is doing nothing. It’s like a rocking chair- it gives us something to do but we are going nowhere. The only thing that worry can do is make us miserable and this will shorten our lives.
Worry cannot change anything in our past. Worry cannot control our future. If it can’t change the past and it can’t control our future, what does it do? Messes up today- ruins the present. It zaps the strength out of our body. “An anxious heart weighs a man down” Proverbs 12:25, NIV.
Start to worry about something, then we get discouraged. We start to get depressed and in despair. Our bodies were not designed to worry. Every time we wallow in worry, our stomach keeps score, or our back, or our headaches- bad for our health. People say, “I’m worried sick” That’s right! Worry causes fatigue more than work. Put in a full days work, come home just so dog tired, lay down and sleep. “The sleep of a laborer is sweet” Ecclesiastes 5:12, NIV. Worrying all day, come home and sleep will not come. “The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of a rich man permits him no sleep.” Ecclesiastes 5:12, NIV. Why no sleep? Worried about what he has or does not have.
“A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” Proverbs 14:30, NIV. Want to be healthier? Stop worrying.
4. Worry is unnecessary
When I was coming up and had a need, go to my Dad and he would say Yes or No. Trusted him. Worry is assuming responsibility that God never intended for us to have. Every time we worry, it’s a warning like, “I’m playing God. I’m acting like God. I’m thinking it all depends on me.” God is our heavenly Father and we trust Him.
“If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” Matthew 6:30, NIV.- God takes care of flowers which are so temporary, will he not take care of us who have so much more value than flowers? How much value do we have? Look at the cross. We are not junk, we are not worthless. We are valuable to God because he wants us to be his child. Made a way for us to be his child. We often misunderstand the goodness of God. “The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.” Psalms 145:9, NIV. God is good all the time and all the time God is good. Worry is a warning sign. It’s a yellow caution light beeping that’s saying, “I’m forgetting how good God is. I’m forgetting that God promises to take care of me.” Many of us are Christians. We stepped across the line and trusted Jesus Christ to forgive us and to save us by his grace, not by our works. When we are immersed we trust God to save us because he loves us, he wants to forgive us, he sent Jesus to die for us. When Jesus died on the cross for us, he solved our biggest problem, eternity. If we trusted Jesus for our eternity, can we trust him for smaller things?
5. Worry is unbelief
Worry is doubting God. “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19, NIV. “For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.” Matthew 6:32, NIV.- Many people are not trusting God for what they need. The starting point is a humble attitude, “God is God and I’m not...” When we understand that, all of a sudden the worry starts draining out of our lives. Beautiful phrase here, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them”- He knows what we need. How many times do we act like God doesn’t know what we need? When we worry, we are acting like an atheist. We are acting like there is no God. Worry is practical atheism. We really don’t believe that God can get us out of this mess. When we start depending on ourselves and we assume that we have to figure it all out rather than trusting, that’s called playing God. That’s a poor testimony. If we claim to be a follower of Jesus Christ and we are worried all the time, that’s a lousy witness to the world.
“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:34, NIV.- One day at a time sweet Jesus- 2 days of the week should never worry about, yesterday and tomorrow. Don’t worry about the future until we successfully learn to manage today.
Invitation: We can call worry, sin. We have all sinned. Here is the good news: “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners--” 1 Timothy 1:15, NIV. Need to step across that line and become a child of God. “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God--” John 1:12, NIV.
