Why Should I Worry
When I was a kid one of the first movies I remember talking my grandmother into seeing was the 1988 Disney movie Oliver and Company. Not their finest work, honestly, rather forgettable. What stood out to me was its theme songs. Done by Billy Joel, Why Should I Worry, was my introduction to the famed piano man. Looking back on it, the song isn’t all that good either/ But I will admit, it has lived rent free in my head for a couple of decades, popping back out just when I think I have forgotten it.
Why should I worry… hakuna matata, don’t worry, be happy
We spend a lot of time, money and medication trying to avoid worry and anxiety. As Christians we have to admit that worry might be one of the most common temptations that we face. So I want to todays focus your attention on Matthew 6 starting at verse 25:
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? 26 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? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[e]?
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 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—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
As you read that did you see that three times we are told not to worry.
Easier said than done right?
That is what the world would have you believe. Now, I am not saying worry is the opposite of faith. The opposite of faith is unbelief. But worry is the opposite of hope, and the enemy of peace. Both of those are signs of faith. Peace is even a fruit of the Spirit.
So I know I can’t say “stop worrying”, because you may have things in your life that are truly scary. Instead, I want to give you a definition and a tool;
Worry is a conversation you have with yourself about the things you cannot change.
Prayer is a conversation you have with God about things He can change.
Jesus wants you to understand He gives you what you need one day at a time. He doesn’t lump sum it, or tells you that you need to learn some independence. God is a provider and a sustainer. If you need something, talk to God, go to church and reach out to your Christian friends We gather, in His name, for a reason. And if you want a pastoral “deep thought”. God constantly shows you He will meet your future needs by pointing to the times He met your needs in the past…starting with a cross and an open tomb. Spend some time in the Old Testament and you will quickly see God as a provider. I recommend you start with Psalm 34…and if your curious about that top line…. well, reach out to me and I will help you start to study David’s life.
God’s peace my friend’s
Pastor Dan