Paul said don’t worry for anything.
Philippians 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
God says to cast all our cares, worries, and concerns on him; to be well balanced, temperate, sober, vigilant, and cautious. Worry is something that keeps troubling and agitating – like wolves by the outside of the fold that keep biting at the sheep’s necks and trying to get them. The wolves want to choke the life out of them, like the devil wants to get us.
I Peter 5:7-8 (Amplified Bible, Classic) Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, [once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour.
One of the bigger symptoms of worry is a lack of gratitude for what God has done for us in the past. We can know God but if we don’t glorify him, we’ll become vain in our thinking and be unthankful. We need to always keep thankful.
Romans 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
God had been so good to bring the people out of Egypt, performed miracles, fed them with manna, gave them water. He led them by a cloud at day and by fire at night, but they became unthankful. They wanted quail instead of what God gave. God heard them complain and it displeased him. God hears us if we complain. Moses was displeased when he heard.
Numbers 11:1 And when the people complained, it displeased the Lord: and the Lord heard it; and his anger was kindled; and the fire of the Lord burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp.
The people cried all night because they wanted flesh to eat. They weren’t satisfied with what God gave them. It will always displease God when we want our own way instead of his.
Numbers 11:10 Then Moses heard the people weep throughout their families, every man in the door of his tent: and the anger of the Lord was kindled greatly; Moses also was displeased.
God said they would eat flesh for a whole month until it became loathsome. Many got sick and died. The people despised the Lord because they wanted their own way. We need to keep thankfulness in our heart regardless of situations or how things are going. Moses wasn’t pleased, but it was more important that God was displeased with them.
Numbers 11:18-20 And say thou unto the people, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow, and ye shall eat flesh: for ye have wept in the ears of the Lord, saying, Who shall give us flesh to eat? for it was well with us in Egypt: therefore the Lord will give you flesh…a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it be loathsome unto you: because that ye have despised the Lord which is among you, and have wept before him, saying, Why came we forth out of Egypt?
Is the Lord’s hand waxed short? He has not failed one of his promises. We need to hold onto that – he will not fail us!
Numbers 11:23 And the Lord said…Is the Lord’s hand waxed short? thou shalt see now whether my word shall come to pass…
There were over a million people. Quail dropped over 3 feet high and 24 miles around the camp. They gathered as much as they could all day and night, but it didn’t satisfy them. We’ll never be satisfied if everything is all about what we want.
Numbers 11:31 And there went forth a wind from the Lord, and brought quails from the sea, and let them fall by the camp…round about the camp, and as it were two cubits high upon the face of the earth.
Another symptom of worry is a lack of faith that God can be trusted. Not trusting is refusing to depend on God and wanting to control situations ourselves. God promised the Israelites he would give them the promised land. All the spies saw the land flowed with milk and honey. Joshua and Caleb knew they could overcome the giants. The other spies refused to depend on what God said but trusted in themselves. We can’t trust in ourselves if we’re to be an overcomer.
Numbers 13:27-33 And they…said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled…and moreover we saw the children of Anak there…Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. And they brought up an evil report of the land…saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants…and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the giants…we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
We’ve got to look to God who will never fail in any situation. We can’t trust our heart or we’ll worry, be anxious, and fret because we’re not trusting in God. God wants us to depend on him in every situation.
Proverbs 28:26 He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.
God promised to keep us in perfect peace if our mind is stayed on him 100%.
Isaiah 26:3-4 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength:
When three mightier nations came against them, Jehoshophat prayed and set a fast for himself and the people with their children. They feared but said they didn’t know what to do and their eyes were on God. We have to keep our eyes on God, not the situation. If we keep our eyes on the situation, we’ll have doubts and fears. God’s answer was to not fear because the battle wasn’t theirs but God’s. Our battle is to make sure we hand the battle over to him.
II Chronicles 20:15 And he said, Hearken ye, all…and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s.
God said they didn’t need to fight in the battle but to stand still. When they heard that, they bowed and worshipped. The Kohathites (the choir) sang and praised God, even when the enemy was just as big and still raging outside the camp. They believed what God said so they didn’t need to fight in the battle or to worry or fear. We have to believe what God says in the midst of the world’s turmoil. The choir went before the army but they weren’t fighting. God made the enemies fight and destroy each other. The Israelites gathered the spoil of their enemies for 3 days.
II Chronicles 20:17-19 Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you…fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you. And Jehoshaphat bowed..with his face to the ground: and all…fell before the Lord, worshipping the Lord. And the Levites…Kohathites, and of the children of the Korhites, stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with a loud voice on high.
Trusting God means a firm belief and reliability in the truth and ability of God, complete confidence God is going to do what he said. Trust in God doesn’t mean you believe everything will go the way you’d like or life will be problem free. God didn’t promise everything would go our way. Trust means we’re going to trust him regardless of how things go. Trust doesn’t mean God explains everything that happens but sometimes we won’t understand. Trust means we know God has a purpose for our life. It means no matter what happens, we will turn to him instead of away from him. Trust means whatever we suffer, in the end it can be used for our ultimate good. God says all things will work out for our good.
When there was a hurricane and many things were thrown out of the ship Paul was in, there was a lot of fear. They lost hope and thought they were going to drown. Paul went down in the ship and prayed a long time. An angel told him all their lives would be spared. Paul believed God’s word. We have to trust God’s word, not our life or how things are going or others opinions, but have confidence in what God says. Our feelings and attitudes will sometimes be contrary to what God says. We have to bring feelings, emotions, attitudes, and all to obedience of Christ to be confident in what he says.
Acts 27:20-24 And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away. But after long abstinence Paul…said, Sirs, ye should have hearkened…not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm… And now…be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man’s life…but of the ship. For there stood by me this night the angel of God…Saying, Fear not…God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.
Trusting God always takes away worry, anxiety, and there’s no murmuring if we’re trusting God. There are no feelings of bitterness or doubt. Trusting God brings confidence that he’s handling things so we have complete peace. Trusting God implies submission and keeping our hands off the problem. Too many times people put their hands on problems instead of letting God handle them. How can we trust God if we aren’t willing for him to do as he pleases? We can’t.
God honored Naaman the Syrian and gave him victory over the Israelites who had turned away from God. Naaman had a type of leprosy that wasn’t on the outside but in lymph glands, so it didn’t spread to others. He didn’t have to stay home and could help the king. Naaman’s wife had an Israelite maiden as a servant. Many young Israelites were taken as servants (Daniel and his 3 friends, Joseph). The maiden had a good attitude, believed and served God. She said God could heal Naaman.
II Kings 5:3-4 And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy. And one…told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel.
Naaman went to the king of Israel, not to the prophet as the maiden said. The king of Israel knew he couldn’t heal him.
II Kings 5:5-7 And the king of Syria said, Go…I will send a letter unto the king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment. And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying…I have therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy. And …when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy?…see how he seeketh a quarrel against me.
The king of Israel sent Naaman to Elisha who sent his servant to the door with a message. Naaman was mad and didn’t like what he was told to do. Many times people come and don’t like what God says to do, but there’s no healing of their soul. If Naaman hadn’t done what the prophet said, he wouldn’t have been healed. Naaman in his pride thought God would work a certain way. We have to let God work whether it’s according to our opinion or not. There’s no cleansing for our soul if we don’t obey what God asks. Naaman had to get rid of his preconceived ideas and do what God asked.
II Kings 5:10-14 And Elisha sent a messenger…saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out…call on the name of the Lord his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper. Are not…rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he…went away in a rage. And his servants…said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to…the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
Gehazi lied to get the reward from Naaman. He got leprosy but it was worse than Naaman’s. It was on his family forever.
II Kings 5:27 The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee…unto thy seed for ever. And he…a leper as white as snow.
Many widows in Israel died because God wasn’t with them. Many people had leprosy but didn’t go to the source they needed. Naaman the Syrian went to Israel to be healed. We have to go to God as the source of our help and healing.
Luke 4:24-27…Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country. But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta…of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman…
(Notes from the Mature Class Bible Study, teacher Edith Tolbert)