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The sin of worry has been cloaked with justifications that all flow from our ability to control our lives and the world around us. While or finger-biting and scheming do indeed produce results, they cannot compare to the freedom found in trusting the Lord with our lives.
Definition:
- Worry is giving way to anxiety or unease; to allow one’s mind to dwell on fears, difficulties, or troubles
- Worry is a restless heart that has moved from trust-in-God to trust-in-self
Observations: Worry is a maladjustment to:
- The source of your security
- The source of your support
- The source of your stress
- The source of your strength
- The source of your definition of “straight”
Conclusions:
- At its core, worry has to do with the source of control
- The sin of worry removes glory from God
- Yielding control to God results in a deeper relationship with God
Application:
- Identify the sin of worry in your life as control
- Change your prayers
- Practice the frequent reminder of your ownership – the Lord is my shepherd
Matthew 6:25
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
Matthew 6:31
“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’”
John 17:13-18
“I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.”
Psalm 23
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
John 14:1-2
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?”
Isaiah 40:28-31
“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”