Tag Archives: anxiety

If God Is For Us

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Romans 831b [widescreen]

Reading the Word

Romans 8:31–39 (ESV)

31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written,

“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Understanding and Applying the Word

Are you fearful? Are you worried? Consider that God sent his Son into the world to die for you. He sent his Son to suffer on a cross so that you could be saved and have eternal life. He did this so you could be his child. That is how much he cares about you and the things going on in your life.

If God loves us enough to go through the great lengths he has gone through to save us and make us his own, there is nothing that we need to fear. We can be certain that our God’s eyes are never off of us and we are always in his care. There is nothing that can separate us from the love of God. And if God is for us, who (or what) can be against us?

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Peace Surpassing All Understanding

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Philippians 46 [widescreen]

Reading the Word

Philippians 4:4–7 (ESV)

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Understanding and Applying the Word

We are living through circumstances right now that are unprecedented in our lifetimes. The whole world is facing the rapid spread of COVID-19, commonly referred to as Coronavirus. Many people are afraid because there are so many questions right now and very few answers. So how should we respond?

In our reading for today, we are told that we do not need to be anxious about anything. We can go to the Lord in prayer about the things that are troubling us. He hears us and he cares for us. When we pray to God, we pray to the Creator of all things and the One who is sovereign over all things. Romans 8:28 tells us that God works all things for the good of those who love him. So, while the world seems like it is in turmoil, we have a God we can talk to and we can have peace knowing he is in control that he is working for our good.

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The Lord Sustains Us

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woman lying on couch

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

 

Reading the Word

Psalm 3:1–8 (ESV)

1 O LORD, how many are my foes!
Many are rising against me;
2 many are saying of my soul,
“There is no salvation for him in God.” Selah

3 But you, O LORD, are a shield about me,
my glory, and the lifter of my head.
4 I cried aloud to the LORD,
and he answered me from his holy hill. Selah

5 I lay down and slept;
I woke again, for the LORD sustained me.
6 I will not be afraid of many thousands of people
who have set themselves against me all around.

7 Arise, O LORD!
Save me, O my God!
For you strike all my enemies on the cheek;
you break the teeth of the wicked.

8 Salvation belongs to the LORD;
your blessing be on your people! Selah

Understanding and Applying the Word

In Psalm 3, we read the words of David. At the time, he was being pursued by enemies who wanted to take his life. If we use our imaginations, we can picture David on the run and hiding out to preserve his life. We can also imagine what his thoughts and feelings might have been. It seems he would have been a nervous wreck!

In verse 5, David tells us that he “lay down and slept” and “woke again”. In the midst of all that was going on and the constant dangers he faced, David was able to lay down and rest his head peacefully. Why? He was able to do this because he knew that he was in the Lord’s hands. It was God that sustained him through the night and brought him to the next morning.

We can learn a great deal from these verses about resting in the Lord. We may not have personal enemies who want to take our lives, but we may have things going on in our lives that cause fear and anxiety. We may have things that cause us to lose sleep at night. Let us remember that we are in the hands of the all-powerful and all-knowing Lord of all. We can sleep easy.

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God Cares for You

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1 Peter 57 [widescreen]

Reading the Word

1 Peter 5:6–7 (ESV)

6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

Understanding and Applying the Word

Have you ever felt that you would like to take your problems to God, but you wonder if your issues are a nuisance to him? Have you ever decided that your problems are too small and that God should not be bothered with such things? 1 Peter tells us that we can go in confidence to God and cast all of our cares upon him. Why? Because God cares for us. And not only does he care, but he is the mighty and all-powerful God who can actually do something about our concerns.

It is a wonderful and amazing thing to be called a child of the living God. He loves us a father loves a child, but in an even greater way than we have ever known because God’s love is perfect. Do not hesitate to go to him. He wants his children to draw near and he wants you to share what is on your heart. He cares or you. He loves you.

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Seek First the Kingdom

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Matthew 633b [widescreen]

Reading the Word

Matthew 6:25–34 (ESV)

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Understanding and Applying the Word

Jesus instructed his followers to not be anxious about life. He pointed out that God cared for and provided for the flowers of the field and the birds, so he would surely provide for his people. What, exactly, was Jesus getting at?

The key t understanding Jesus’ point comes near the end when Jesus said, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all of these things will be added to you.” With these words, Jesus told his disciples that their decisions and choices should always be made with the aim to do what is right in God’s eyes. It may be costly at times to do the right thing, but Christ’s followers can rest assured knowing that their Father provides for their every need according to his plans and purposes. Therefore, we can seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness by always choosing what pleases God in every circumstance.

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