HANDOUT FOR SERMON:  BE ANXIOUS FOR NOTHING.                                                                   Key scripture: PHILIPPIANS 4:4-7 & MATTHEW 6:19-34 Manchester, TN February 2022

INTRODUCTION: As a foundation for our study and the ability to not be anxious one must have a proper understanding of God. You need to learn who God is, what is God capable of doing, what God has done in the past and what God can still do for you today!  Read: Acts 17:23-30., Matthew 11:29, 1 Peter 5:7, 2 Peter 2:9.                                                                                                      

Causes for worry:                                                                                                                                      Traumatic events in our lives, stress of an illness, social anxiety, fear of failure, fear of rejection, worries and cares of this world, other people’s behavior, and treatment, etc                                         What happens when we worry? Worry becomes the controller of us. It lames your mind and body from doing constructive things. With worry we end up letting things trouble us so much it takes our focus away from what we should be focused on as God’s people. It becomes a major distraction and an inhibitor. I realize it is not easy to let things go. Some may try to convince themselves they are not anxious or worried by saying to others: “You just don’t know what I have gone through or what I have dealt with.” Worry and anxiety are real, accept it and learn how to properly deal with it.                                                                                                                                                                                Why shouldn’t we worry?  It causes us to lose focus on God and the things of God. We end up losing focus on reading our Bible, praying daily, meditating on things that are good and doing things that are good for others and ourselves. We need to stop justifying our worry. God’s plan is: NO anxiety in the life of my people.

LESSON:

1.“Rejoice in the Lord” Philippians 4:4.                                                                                             The Christian’s “joy” is in the Lord, not in the things of this world. When do we “rejoice in the Lord”? We are to ALWAYS rejoice, not matter what. Healthy/sick, laid off/excellent job/ rich/poor/etc. We celebrate our relationship with God daily. We rejoice everyday for the good things in our lives.

“Be anxious for nothing” Philippians 4:6.                                                                          What should I allow to distract me? God says: anxious for NOTHING! What should I allow to affect my spiritual walk with God and joy? Should I let the world, my surroundings, this negative, polluted, sin filled environment take away my peace, calmness, and joy?
“Keep praying.” Philippians 4: 6. Pray about everything. Anything that makes you worried, scares you, stresses you or makes you uncertain. Unplug yourself from all the sources of your anxiety!  Unplug the news & TV, unplug the social media, pull away from all the cares of the world and start focusing on God, God’s word and God’s instruction of how to achieve a “good life.” Do not use “prayer” as a last resort for dealing with stress and anxiety.                       Scripture: 1 Peter 3:10-12
“With thanksgiving.” Philippians 4: 6. Our gratefulness for God and to God for all that He has done and will continue to do for us! Go to God early on when anxiety sets in when it starts. Do not wait too long. If we do then all we see is the HUGE BLACK SPOT (whatever we are stressing or worried about) and we forget to be grateful. As Christians we have so much to be thankful for such as for God, Jesus, His Spirit, our Church family, our salvation, etc.
PEACE OF GOD RULES, Philippians 4:7 God’s peace will guard my heart and my mind. Where does worry and anxiety reside? Or “live?”  It resides in your heart! Go to God and unload on Him and feel “lightened” of your heavy load afterwards. God says “the peace of God” will rule in your heart. Does it?
HOW DO I PROTECT MY HEART AND MIND FROM ANXIETY? How does God do that? Philippians 4:8

Meditate on these things: true, noble, just, pure, lovely, good report.
Unplug: Facebook, TV, too many activities and the news, etc.
Stop focusing on: the stressful things, friends, family, work, politics
Forget the past: Philippians 3:13-14 Just bury it!

TURN YOUR ATTENTION TO JESUS. Lean how to live without anxiety in Jesus? Jesus came to this world to help us, though He did not have to, but He did because He cared. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus is giving us instructions and advice on how to face the struggles of life and deal with all the “junk” and stuff the people of the world throw at us. Jesus gives us the answers on how to deal with anxiety and how to keep a calm spirit! We start by acknowledging we need to change. Admit we have issues with anxiety and worry!

Scripture: Matthew 6:19-34

Ask Jesus: What is MY mission? Find out what your mission is and invest FULLY in your mission. Your mission in life should always be at the forefront of your mind or heart!  Matthew 6:2 “For where your treasure is there your heart will be also.”                                                                                    INVEST FULLY IN YOUR MISSION:

Manage your inputs, Matthew 6:22-23
Get off the fence, Matthew 6:24
Trust in God, the creator, Matthew 6:25
Ask crucial questions, Matthew 6:25-27
Schedule faith first, Matthew 6:33
Get thing right today, Matthew 6:34

CONCLUSION: I encourage you to stop worrying about all that distracts you and move your focus away from you mission. You need to keep walking towards your goal, eternal in heaven! One step at a time, keep walking, “sufficient for the day”, Matthew 6:24.