Week Thirty-Four, 2017
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:6-7
Alfred E. Neuman is the fictitious mascot and cover boy of Mad, an American humor magazine. He often appeared in various caricatures underscored with the words, “ Me Worry.”
The Bible could also have a cover that says the same thing, because the Word is replete with admonitions to not worry, be troubled or have anxiety for or about anything. God’s peace surpasses all human understanding. God encourages his followers to “fear not” 365 times in the Bible, one for each day of the year, Jesus didn’t intend for Christians to spend their days preoccupied with anxiety and worry.
As Christians, Jesus is all around us, like a cocoon of light. His presence is a promise, independent of our awareness of Him. Many things can block this awareness, but the major culprit is worry. Many accept it as a fact of life, but worry is a form of unbelief.
Who is in charge of your life? If it is you, then you have good reason to worry. But with Jesus in charge of our life, worry is both unnecessary and counterproductive.
When we start to feel anxious anything, we should relinquish the situation to Jesus, by backing off a bit and redirecting our focus to Him. He will either take care of the problem or show us how to handle it. In this world we will still have problems, but we need not lose sight on Him.
Jesus told His disciples to not worry about life, what to eat or what to wear, because life is more than food and the body more than clothes. He reminds us that by worrying, we cannot add even an hour to our lives, but seek the Kingdom of God and these things will be given to us as well. Don’t worry about the world and focus on the thing of God.
SOMETIMES TRUE STORIES
WATER
About 10% of the world’s population does not have access to adequate supplies of safe drinking water. We are not talking about access to 80 gallons per person per day—the amount we use on average here in the US. We are talking about the basic human right to a mere five gallons of water per day within a 30-minute walk of your home.
At the same time, 2.5 billion people, more than 33% of the world’s population, do not have the dignity of access to an improved sanitation facility. This results in death, disease, and a reduced standard of living for everyone, not just the poorest of the poor.
In 2009, water-related disease was the leading cause of death in the world, killing 3.4 million people every year. In Ghana alone, 30,000 children die of preventable, diarrheal disease annually. The vast majority of these deaths are children under five-years old—the future of the country.
FRIENDS
If you’re on Facebook, you have “friends.” But that doesn’t mean you have a friendship with everyone on your list.
QUOTES YOU CAN USE
Dr. David Jeremiah so clearly reminds us, “No one is saved BY good works (Ephesians 2:8-9), but every Christian has been saved FOR good works.”
Jesus replied to Satan’s temptation, “Worship the Lord your God and serve him only” (Luke 4:8).
Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.
Our actions and responses represent who we are and who we are in Christ. The world around us can see a counterfeit or a fraud. Marty Stubblefield
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©2017 John Grant | Florida State Senator (Ret.) | 10025 Orange Grove Drive | Tampa, FL 33618