Pleasing God, Making Disciples of Jesus Christ

Dealing With Worry and Anxiety God’s Ways

PSALM 37:1-7 – Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!”

Happens to all of us. Sure, some suffer more than others, but none is immune. They may come upon us suddenly like a gust of wind or simply simmer in our hearts like a slow-cooking meal. The “they” are those painful emotions and experiences of worry and anxiety. And they are difficult to drive away. Worry and anxiety sometimes seem like flies at a picnic on a hot summer day. Swat all we want, those unwelcome guests keep coming back. It feels like a losing battle not only on a picnic but also in the inward struggles of getting rid of worry and anxiety. Yet, God gives us the ways to do so. His Word not only directs us to His Son, the Lord Jesus, and salvation but also to handling life with all its various temptations to worry and be anxious. That direction comes in today’s scripture in the form of five commands. To defeat worry and anxiety . .

Refuse to fret over anything–“fret not yourself.” Twice in this portion of scripture we are told “no fretting.” When it comes to fretting it is caused by our realization we are in control of nothing or no one and that leaves us greatly unsettled or fretting. The problem with this sin, yes, fretting (worrying) is sin, it changes nothing. We are not in control of anything and that will never change. So, we begin defeating worry and anxiety by surrendering to Him who is really in control.

Next, make conscious decisions to trust in the Lord–“trust in the Lord.” Don’t let the exercise of faith be based on our wavering feelings. Circumstances don’t determine our faith. Christ does. Remember we walk with a personal Lord who is not only trustworthy, but deserves our trust. Feelings before faith is blasphemous.

A third way, God’s way, to overcome worry and anxiety is–“delight in the Lord.” What does that mean? Well think about life. Think about the things and the people we delight in. Don’t they get a huge amount of our thinking and affections? Absolutely. Who and what we delight in occupies our minds and hearts. Should we learn to delight ourselves in the Lord, we will find no room in our minds and hearts for worry and anxiety. There will be a “no vacancy” sign in both places!

The fourth direction God gives in dealing with worry and anxiety is to–“commit your way to the Lord.” Whatever or whomever is tempting us to be anxious and worry, immediately cast it upon the strong shoulders of the Lord. He is far more capable of dealing with all those situations wanting to spiritually paralyze us with worry and anxiety. Oh, remember as we do this, we are not fishing. No casting our cares on Christ then reeling them back in upon ourselves!

Finally, God directs us to – Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him. Don’t try to change our circumstances or the people in our lives drawing us to worrisome minds and anxious hearts. Slow down, take a “spiritual breath” through prayer and meditation and let God work in us and our circumstances. In such attitudes of stillness and submission, the sins of worry and anxiety cannot exist. They only thrive where unbelief and busyness are found in the heart.

Worry and anxiety. Part of the fall in the Garden of Eden, but God in His love and mercy has given us clear instructions on how to deal with both. May we be quick to learn how He would have us approach worry and anxiety.

PRAYER: “Father, help me to respond to all temptations to worry and anxiety in Your ways and not my wasted energy ways.”

QUOTE: “God’s Word is not only our direction for salvation but also for handling the many emotions in our lives.”

Because of Him,

Pastor Jim