Illus: "So far today, God, I’ve done alright. I haven’t gossiped, I haven’t lost my temper. I haven’t been grumpy or nasty or selfish. I’m really glad of that. But in a few minutes God, I’m going to get out of bed, and from then on, I’m probably going to need a lot of help.”
We all need a lot of help, especially in the area of trusting the Lord daily and not living a life of worry! We live in a world where many are ADDICTED TO WORRY.
When we think of addictions, we generally think about drugs. There are literally millions today that are addicted to legal and illegal drugs.
• Most of those who are on illegal drugs head for the streets each day to purchase drugs from the drug peddlers because they have an addiction AND THEY KNOW THEY HAVE AN ADDICTION!
• We have millions that are on legal drugs that are constantly heading for the doctor’s office to get their drugs. They are addicted to legal drugs and they DO NOT KNOW THEY HAVE AN ADDICTION.
The only difference between many legal and illegal drug addicts is that they have different suppliers.
Illus: Psychiatry students were in their college class one day when their professor began a discussion to prove a point.
• "What we’re going to talk about today," the professor said, "are the emotional extremes that many mentally disturbed people go through."
• “What’s the opposite of joy?" he asked one student.
• "Sadness," the student answered.
• "The opposite of depression?" he asked a young lady.
• "Elation," she replied.
• Turning to a young man from Texas he asked, "the opposite of woe?"
• "Well, now," the Texan replied "I suppose the opposite of woe, would be giddy up."
It seems that when we talk about the addiction of worry, many do not know what they are talking about. Without a doubt, the biggest addiction in the world today is the addiction of WORRY!
This addiction has a chokehold on mankind and is literally squeezing the life out of many.
Illus: A story is told about a man that came face to face with the dangers of worry: Death was walking toward a city one morning and a man asked, "What are you going to do?"
• Death said, "I’m going to take 100 people out of this city today,"
• The man said, "That’s horrible!"
• Death said, “That may be true, but that is what I do."
• The man hurried to warn everyone he could about Death’s plan. As evening fell, he met Death again. He said, "You told me you were going to take 100 people, why did 1,000 die?"
• Death said, "I kept my word, I only took 100 people. Worry took the others."
The addiction of worry is one of the most costly addictions among mankind. We are told that:
• 43% of all adults suffer health effects due to worry and stress
• 75% of all visits to primary care physicians are stress-related complaints or disorders
• Worry has been linked to all the leading causes of death including heart disease, cancer, lung ailments, accidents, cirrhosis and suicide
• An estimated 1 million workers are absent on an average workday because of stress related complaints
• Stress is said to be responsible for more than half of the 550 million workdays lost annually because of absenteeism
• 43% of all employee turn-over is related to job stress. Mental distress can even lead to death.
Consider the mental fatigue of nights without sleep and days without peace, and we get a glimpse of the havoc worry plays in destroying the quality and quantity of life.
Let’s take a closer look at this business of worrying. We need to consider THREE things:
I. THE FOCUS FACTOR
Let’s focus in on worry! WHAT IS WORRYING? Worry is something that clings to us and we can not get rid of it.
Illus: The great comedian, Carl Hurley, tells the story about trying to throw a trash can away. He said it’s the one thing you can’t get the garbage man to pick up.
He said, "I set an old rusty garbage can out at the street one morning thinking the garbage man would understand that it needed to be thrown away." He said, "When I came back that afternoon the can was stacked up with the rest of my empty trash cans."
"Well the next week I put it out again and this time I turned it upside down so they could see that the bottom had several holes in it and it needed to be thrown away. When I came home, it was stacked up next to the empty cans again."
"The next week I took a sledgehammer and I beat the can in pretty good and I left it out front and when I came home, not only was it stacked up next to the other empty trash cans but the garbage man had actually tried to beat it back into shape."
"And so," he said, "finally I did the only thing I could do. I went to the hardware store and bought a heavy duty chain and a padlock and I chained the old can to a large tree in my front yard. AND SURE ENOUGH, THAT NIGHT SOMEBODY STOLE IT."
Many have things in their life they can not get rid of. These things cling to them each day and they do not seem to be able to shed them.
Illus: Helen Hayes was a famous American actress many years ago. She and her husband had only one daughter. That daughter died at the age of 18 from polio. A few years later, Helen’s husband died at a young age; however Helen lived to be in her eighties. When asked why her husband died at such an early age, she said it was because he could not get over asking why. He worried about their daughter’s death until it killed him.
Some people are so addicted to worrying that they will worry over ANYTHING and EVERYTHING.
Illus: They are like the patient in the mental hospital, holding his ear close to the wall, listening intently.
• The nurse finally approaches him and says “What are you doing?” “Shhh!" he says.
• He keeps listening. And finally the patient beckons the nurse over and says, “Listen.”
• The nurse presses hers ear to the wall for a long time. And she finally says, "I can’t hear a thing."
• The patient says, "Yea, and it’s been like that all day!"
Many are worrying themselves to death and do not even realize what they are doing to themselves. This addiction of worry constantly drains the energy God gives us to face daily problems and to fulfill our many responsibilities.
It has been defined as "...a mental distress of being uneasy or apprehensive about what may happen."
The word worry comes from the word "mer-iz-o" which means, "To divide." That is, the mind is divided spiritually and mentally.
• Part of the mind says, "Trust God;"
• Part of the mind says, “Don't be a fool, God doesn't have time for you."
Can we truly trust God?
Illus: Have you ever placed a small two year old child on a table and told him to jump and that you would catch him? That child looked at you unsure if he should jump. You can almost see the divided mind working in that child. He is thinking:
• If I jump will he catch me?
• If I jump will he miss me?
Worry is a mental and spiritual division of the mind.
Basically it is thinking, "I HAVE THIS PROBLEM THAT IS TOO MUCH FOR ME OR ANYONE I KNOW. IT IS SO HUGE EVEN GOD CAN NOT HELP ME!" When a person thinks like this they have a PROBLEM!
Today let's look at what Jesus says about worry.
Look at Mathew 6:25, we read, "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?"
Jesus is speaking to a large crowd of people on the mountainside. He is talking about the most basic things of life that people worry a great deal about these days.
• Food
• Clothing
• Shelter
These are the most basic needs of man, and the Lord says we are to FOCUS IN ON HIM TO PROVIDE THESE NEEDS.
Illus: Kim Reichelm is the “extreme skiing” world champion. You may have seen him on television skiing down from the peak of a treacherous mountain that looks like certain death for anyone trying to go down it on snow shoes, let alone skis.
The November 1999 issue of Outside magazine, an article entitled “The Trees: Lovely, Dark, and Deep,” says that one of the favorite extremes of skiers is running through a stand of trees after a fresh, deep snow.
It is extremely dangerous, as Sonny Bono and Michael Kennedy, both of whom died after crashing into trees while skiing, found out.
Tim Etchells, the writer of the article says, “What you focus your eyes on becomes critical in the woods. Look at the spaces between the trees — the exits where you hope to be traveling.”
Reichelm, the expert in the sport says, “The secret is not to stare at what you don’t want to hit.”
We must remember the “Focus Factor”. When worried, you are out of focus.
We see THE FOCUS FACTOR and -
II. THE FUTURE FACTOR
Why does God tell us to FOCUS IN ON HIM each day for our daily needs? When we as the children of God live a life of worry each day, two things happen.
(1) WORRY INSULTS
WHO DOES IT INSULT? It insults God the Father.
Illus: How would you feel if your child was at a neighbors house and looked worried and your neighbor said to your child, "Honey, you look so worried, what is wrong?” Then your child tells your neighbor they are worried because they do not know if you as their parents will provide the food, clothing and shelter they need.
Of course the neighbor would try to reassure the child that you are good parents and that you will lovingly provide these things.
But the child looks the neighbor in the eyes and says, “I would like to believe what you are saying, but I am not sure I can trust my parents to provide for my needs!”
That would be a terrible embarrassment to any parent.
It is a terrible embarrassment to God the Father when we walk around worrying as if we can't trust Him. Our worrying embarrasses God the Father, but also does something else.
(2) WORRY INJURES
WHO DOES IT INJURE? It injures those that worry. God never intended for us to live our life carrying the load that many carry.
Illus: A man worked on a barge on the Mississippi river.
• He was carrying something and fell overboard and cried for help.
• He went under and came back up and cried again for help.
• He went under and came up again and said, "If somebody doesn’t help me I’m gonna have to drop one of these anvils!"
If you are carrying the sin of worry you are carrying a load that will sink you sooner or later. So, here we are today. Many of us have a load of care under each arm, more than God wanted us to carry, and we wonder why we’re going under!
Worry is not only a sin against God the Father but also it is a sin that:
• Will destroy your testimony
• Will destroy your health
It may seem harmless, but it is deadly and you need to learn how to get rid of it.
Illus: Fog can be frightening, and obscure vision, causing accidents. Do you know how much actual water is in fog? We are told:
• 7 city blocks could be covered in fog 100 feet deep, and yet it’s less water than an 8 oz. drinking glass of water.
• And worry is like a thick fog that will settle in and shut you down, but there’s really nothing to it!
For many it has become "normal" to worry. We are asked, "Aren't you WORRIED ABOUT THIS OR THAT?"
Worry has never been a solution to anything and never will be. Worry only compounds our problems and makes them more severe.
Illus: We hear so much about our world’s ecology, and the need for balance. Well, God has a perfect ecology for your life, too.
He has a certain number of problems assigned to your life for each day. But you go adding days together and it will mount up on you! You say, "I thought God loves me?" Yes, that’s why He sends just the right amount of problems.
"What?" You ask. Well, we don’t like storms and rain, but what do you call a place that has no rain and all sunshine? A desert!
God knows the balance we need, and we get it all out of balance when we borrow tomorrow’s problems.
Jesus was saying God has built into His Creation the means by which all things are cared for.
• The birds are fed because they diligently work to maintain their lives. They do not store up great amounts of food, but continually work!
• The lilies grow daily through a natural process. Therefore an individual need not be anxious about his existence
We have looked at THE FOCUS FACTOR and THE FUTURE FACTOR. Now look at -
III. THE FATHER FACTOR
If you want something to worry about, Satan will make sure you have a lot of things to worry about.
Illus: Story: A business manager went on holiday to an island in Greece.
As he was pacing up and down waiting for a return phone call, he came across a fisherman that was asleep. The fisherman woke up and the manager decided to talk to him.
The businessman said “The weather is great and there’s lots of fish. So how come you are sitting about here - when you could be out there - catching more fish?”
Quietly, the fisherman replied: “Because I caught enough this morning.” “But just imagine,” the manager replied, “if you went out twice a day, you could bring home twice as much fish. And do you know what could happen?"
Puzzled, the fisherman shook his head.
The businessman said - waxing lyrical to his theme “You could buy yourself a motorboat. And then, after say a couple of years you could buy a second one. Then perhaps after three years you could have a whole fleet of fishing boats."
"You could then sit down calmly on the beach, dozing in the sun and looking at the beautiful ocean.”
The fisherman said, “Well, my friend, what do you think I am doing now?”
Three times this passage tells us, “Take no thought…” That means don’t worry.
We have a problem with some of the environmentalists because they will show more love for animals and birds than they do for people.
We are Superior to plants and animals! God takes care of them; He surely will take care of us.
HOW DO WE KEEP FROM WORRYING! We do this by RE-DIRECTING OUR THOUGHTS! We replace BAD THOUGHTS WITH GOOD THOUGHTS. We think:
• If God takes care of the fowl of air and He loves me enough to die for me, He will take care of me.
• If God takes care of the lilies of the field and He loves me enough to die for me, He will take care of me also.
When we are worrying our Thinking isn’t right. We overcome worry by replacing BAD THOUGHTS with GOOD THOUGHTS!
God’s Word tells us, in Philippians 4:8, "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."
Some people have good hobbies that they enjoy and when worries attack their mind, they immediately switch over to these hobbies.
God said we are to think on anything honest, just, pure, lovely, or of good report. Worry is a choice; choose not to worry but to trust God for your needs.
Conclusion:
Illus: Some men were talking.
• “I have a mountain of credit card debt”, one man told another. “I have lost my job. My car is being repossessed and our house is in foreclosure, but I am not worried about it.”
• His friend said, "With all these things happening to you, you are not worried?"
• The man said, “No, not the slightest bit. I’ve hired a professional worrier. He does all my worrying for me, and that way I don’t have to think about it.”
• “That’s fantastic! How much does your professional worrier charge for his services?”
• “$50,000 a year”, he replied.
• “$50,000 a year? Where are you going to get that kind of money?”
• “I don’t know”, was the reply. “That’s his worry.”
We do not have to worry, we have a loving heavenly Father who can and will take care of us. We looked at -
I. The Focus Factor
II. The Future Factor
III. The Father Factor
