Weekly Newsletter April 30

Worry is trash. It does us no good. In fact, doctors and psychologists warn of both the physical and mental damages caused by worry. We can worry about lots of things, like our own health. We worry about having enough money. We worry about getting our work done in time and doing it well. We worry about our children, or our parents, or our pets. Worrying is like swimming against a strong current and getting nowhere. Worry dumps all kinds of thoughts and feelings in our minds and spirit that we have no use for or control over. They stack up and overwhelm us.

When we worry, we need help.

I recently caught myself even using prayer as an excuse for worrying. Sounds crazy, right? Let me explain. My daughter recently got married, but a month before the wedding, she and her fiance still did not have a place to live after the wedding. I worried about how they would get by. They both needed jobs. They had weak credit, so leasing offices wouldn’t accept their application. I took it to prayer, “Oh God, please provide for Emily and DJ.” And then, “Oh God! Please help Emily find a job that will provide for them.” And again, “Oh God! They really need a place before March 1.” And my prayers continued to plead with God.

That’s not all bad, after all. God does want us to tell him our needs. But I was not letting go of my concern and trusting God. When I finished my prayers, I never felt God’s peace. I held on to the anxiety wondering if God would actually do what he promises—to care for us, to lead us, to provide, to teach, etc. All those things would help Emily and DJ. But I held on to the anxiety as if I didn’tbelieve God would actually help. That was my problem. I didn’t pray with faith. God convicted me. So I changed my prayer. Instead of pleading with God to help, I began to speak words of thanks and gratitude as if God had already provided what they needed. Guess what? When I finished the prayer of gratitude for what God would do and thank him

in advance, my worry ran away. I filled my dumpster with thanks and praise instead of faithless appeals. My thinking about God changed from thinking of him as a good luck charm, or a lucky rabbit’s foot, or a Genie’s bottle, to being a person who hears and acts far beyond my own abilities.

Do you worry? Are you casting your cares upon Jesus? Are you replacing them with Jesus’ cares and concerns, which are easy to carry rather than our own burdens that suck life right out of us?

Give thanks for what God is doing. Change your prayers and speak as if God is already and perhaps even completed his good work in you!
“The Holy Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.”

Give thanks. Praise our ever-loving God, Jesus.

Pastor Roger

Here is a prayer for you:
 
Heavenly Father, thank you for seeing, knowing, and hearing every care and concern we think, feel, and speak. Through our trust in Jesus, who defeated death on the cross, we thank you for forgiving our sins, filling us with your Holy Spirit, your Holy Presence, and confirming our hope to everlasting life. Amen.

We are here to love God and all people so that all people may experience the

life-changing love of Jesus!

LOVE - We meet every weekend to experience God's love for us and show His love for others.

SERVE- We use our abilities, talents, skills, and passions for the good of others.

ENGAGE - We engage with friends to care for one another and to make new friends so they may experience God's kindness too.