Protecting Your Peace
Matthew 6;25-34:
“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? 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.”
o Proverbs 12:25: “Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad.”
Stress is your body’s reaction to a challenge or demand. Stress is a feeling of emotional or physical tension, and comes from any event or thought that makes you feel frustrated, angry, or nervous. In short bursts, stress can be positive. But when stress lasts for a long time, it can harm your health.
Jesus spoke to that in John 14, where He told us the same thing twice. John 14:1,27:
“1 Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me… 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
Jesus told us twice: Do not let your hearts be troubled. In other words, as stressed as I might feel, I can protect my
peace. In an age of stress, I can protect my peace. When all else fails, I can protect my peace.
Protecting Your Peace:
1) Find Someone To
James 5:13-16 “13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”
2) See What Really
In Matthew 6:25, Jesus said, “…do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?”
3) Realize Your
Matthew 6:26 “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?” Behind our Stress can be an insecurity within that says we won’t be looked after or taken care of because we are unloved. When you see that you are loved and that God will look after you, that you are valuable and important to Him, it takes away Stress.
4)
Matthew 6:27 “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” What is the result of Stress? Absolutely nothing! Nobody ever gets anything done by worrying about it! Lives are not improved by worry, anxiety, stress, or fear. When you see that all the energy you spend being Stressed accomplishes nothing, you will Protect Your Peace.
5) Live
Matthew 6:34 “…do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Let’s learn to live day by day. When we do we’ll find that much of what we get Stressed over fades anyways.
6) Give Stress To God In
Philippians 4:6,7 “6 Be anxious for nothing, 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 minds through Christ Jesus.”
I Peter 5:7 “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”
Psalm 55:22 “Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken.”
7)
Isaiah 26:3,4 “3 You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. 4 Trust in the LORD forever, for in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.” Our problem is not really Stress. That is simply a symptom of a deeper need and problem. The deeper need and problem is a lack of trust in God Mark 10:13-16.
Excessive Stress Is Evidence Of A Need To Trust God More
