The Answer to Worry and Anxiety

When one takes the name of Christian, he ought to be careful how he lives. I have noticed in my own life that I have a propensity to worry and be anxious, yet clearly there is a Biblical command to not do so. The phrase “Do not worry” can be found twenty-three times in scripture and there are countless other teachings in which we are called to live without worry as the very opposite of faith is the idea of worry. Jesus specifically tells us not to worry and made this a salient point in His great sermon we call The Sermon on the Mount.

Yet, worry and anxiety seem to knock on our doors daily. And many of us, I know I do, keeping opening that door and letting worry in. As God’s children, this is unnecessary. He has promised to be with us through whatever we face. The problem is though, He never promises to remove all the things in life that we don’t want to face. He only promises us to be with us in the storms of life, not to always stop them. We remember Jesus stopping the storm in Matthew 8:23-27. So, we expect Him to do the same whenever the waves get a little high.

But the truth is, God allows storms into our lives. They are for our own good. Yet, we struggle not to be worried that we might drown. The fact is, this is a lack of faith on our part.

There are many beautiful verses in the Scriptures that offer us comfort in our times of fear and uncertainty. But there is one verse, that if we will commit to memory and to believing, that is the foundation of our faith. I share this verse often. Listen to what God says in Romans 8:28 which says,

 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

Do you believe that verse? Do you believe that God causes all things to work together for good? Do you believe that it is all things? All of them? Cancer, death, accidents, and every other event that happens in your life?

You see, for those who have received Christ, been born again to new life, God is working out everything for good. Everything. Not just the things that we enjoy and like, but every bad thing we can barely stomach, is going to have a good result when God has finished working in it. That, my friends, is a fact. It is not arguable. You cannot interpret this passage any other way.

So, do you believe this? If you do not believe it, then you have a problem. To deny this truth as found in Romans 8:28, is to call God a liar.

I believe this verse. Yet, I still struggle with anxiety and worry. The problem lies in my faith. It just hasn’t yet reached its full potential. But I need to keep moving forward in growing my faith. How do I do that?

Romans 10:17
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ.

We must be in His Word. Not just by going to church on Sunday, though we are to do that. But everyday we must be intentional about reading, studying, and memorizing His Word. This is how we build our faith. We must have fellowship with other believers, who will remind us and encourage us in the promises of Jesus.

Whatever you face today, if you are in Christ, you need not worry or be anxious. Instead you can trust God in the situation. It’s okay to pray about it. It’s okay to ask God to remove it or change it. But at the end of your prayer, let it go to Him. If after praying and praying and seeking His intervention, He still allows it to happen, you can trust that He is causing it to work out for good. We know this. Commit to memory this verse and then rest in faith the God who is with you always. Rest in Jesus. Believe Him. Let Him be God. We know God is working it all out for good. We know this. Why? How? Because He told us.

Romans 8:28
And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.