When You Believe in God but Still Worry All the Time

Well, we continue our series today as we think about the theme of worry.

When you believe in God, but find that you worry all the time.

A Christian union in a university was doing a session where they were looking at this subject of worry.

And they invited a minister of one of the local churches in that town to come and speak.

He was very carefully briefed and when he came, he spoke at length, in great depth and detail,

and with real authority as an expert on the subject of worry, stress and anxiety.

And he held these people throughout this fairly lengthy talk actually, on the subject of worry and stress.

And he said it's really important that you don't worry.

And the reason why you shouldn't worry is because the Bible talks about it at length.

And he quoted chapter and verse in great detail as he unpacked Scripture before these students.

Every time he made another point, he said, you must not worry.

Having brought his talk to a bit of a climax, he gave an open appeal.

He said, if you are worrying about something right now, I'm going to pray for you.

And he led them in a time of prayer, inviting them to bring their worries before God.

Because, as he brought his message to a close, he said, do not worry.

People responded in prayer.

He got to the end of...

He went and sat down.

After the meeting closed, the leader of the Christian union went over to this minister.

And he was sat there looking really quite awkward and uneasy.

In fact, he seemed to be breathing in a rather unusual kind of way.

And in fact, it became apparent that he seemed to be having some kind of panic attack.

And the student, president of the Christian union said, are you okay?

He said, no, I'm just really worried that I didn't get my message across.

I'm going to level with you this morning, good and proper.

I'm not the minister in that story.

But I could have been.

I'm a worrier.

And for as long as I've known myself...

It's always been that way.

I could try and work it out by sort of thinking about, well, you know, my DNA, maybe.

I could think maybe it's stuff that's happened.

It's probably a combination of the two.

But I'm a worrier.

And as I honestly think about that question, what do I worry about?

You know, I don't think I can think of a single thing that I haven't worried about at some point in my life.

Sometimes I worry because I feel like I haven't got enough to worry about.

Sometimes I'll lay awake at night just worrying about one thing after the other.

I'll wake up in the morning with my stomach churning and I can't even tell you what it is that I'm worried about.

I'm just feeling anxious.

Of course, sometimes it's circumstance.

I worry about something.

It's come, it goes, it's absolutely fine.

But do I stop worrying?

No.

No.

No.

So why am I telling you this?

Well, I'm telling this to you because I know, I know how if you are somebody who worries, I'll come on to that in a moment, if you are somebody who worries too,

and if you're somebody who's feeling fraught with anxiety right now for any reason whatsoever,

I know that one of the most unhelpful things is when somebody else comes along and tells you not to worry.

So I'm not taking any moral or spiritual high ground on this subject because I have not the right or the authority to do so.

Anything I'm going to share with you is as one worrier to another.

Sometimes I actually wonder whether God lets me worry or whether God chose me to be a minister because he knows I'm a worrier

and knows that there's perhaps just a chance that I might be able to connect with you if you're a worrier.

It might well be that you're listening to me talking right now and thinking,

Russell, I don't really know what you're talking about because I've got worries every now and then,

but I don't really know what it's like to feel anxiety in any depth.

If that's you, I am genuinely, honestly pleased for you.

I really am.

But if that is you, please don't switch off because I can guarantee you this,

that if we approach this theme of worry and anxiety right now,

whilst you might not feel it's directly relevant to you,

I promise you, I guarantee you that either the person sat next to you

or somebody sat very near you will be somebody that struggles.

And I can say that to you as somebody who's been in pastoral ministry for my entire working life.

And I know wherever I've been, wherever I go,

whatever age or stage in life I look at,

the most common pastoral issue is anxiety.

Often it goes hand in hand with depression.

Perfectionism often has something to do with it as well.

But you'd be surprised just how widespread anxiety is.

So that's that rather extended introduction out of the way.

Let's just think about what worry is.

What are we talking about?

I want to recommend a book to you.

Some of you may have read it before.

It's called The Worry Book.

If I'd have thought this through, I'd have had a picture of it

and ready to shine up on there and put it on the notices,

but I forgot. I'm sorry.

Now I'm going to be really worried.

Google The Worry Book.

It will come up.

It's written by Will van der Hart and Rob Waller.

One of them is an Anglican vicar based in HDB in London.

The other is a consultant psychiatrist working in Scotland.

It's a brilliant book.

It's deep, but it's easy to understand.

And it connects from a Christian perspective on the theme of worry.

It's based on, some of you may be familiar with,

something called CBT, cognitive behavioural therapy,

which is a standard approach to dealing with anxiety.

And as they unpack worry,

they say that there is something which is referred to as neuroticism

that is part of what it is to be human.

And it exists in all of us to some degree or another.

And in fact, it's something that we all need to some degree.

There is such a thing as a healthy level of neuroticism.

Because it's the kind of sensitivity that stops you getting into trouble.

It's the kind of thing that when alarm bells start going off

and lights start to flash and you can see that danger is on its way,

that's a healthy level of neuroticism going on you.

It's the sort of thing that stops you getting into trouble,

stops you making rash decisions,

stops you getting into fights.

We need a healthy level of neuroticism in us.

But it can get out of control.

And when it does,

it can develop into something that is called

generalised anxiety disorder.

And that's the thing

when we start getting things way out of proportion,

out of perspective.

When worry and anxiety gets a hold of us

really deep within

so that independently of circumstances,

we're feeling anxious.

And when that happens,

it can get us into a lot of trouble.

Now, what I think they very unhelpfully unpack in this book

is the way in which,

because there is such a thing as a healthy level of neuroticism,

that the danger for us when we worry

is we think that there could be something good and helpful

about the habit of worrying.

You see, there are two, broadly speaking, types of worries.

There's what you call solvable worries.

Those are worries that have a solution.

And normally, they're quite simple, actually.

You're worrying about something,

but it is solvable.

There's an answer there.

And in that situation,

worry has a helpful place to play

because it's as you start to think about it,

perhaps get a little bit nervous about it,

that it leads to solutions.

And the nervous worry is something

that drives you to that point of solution.

So there can be such a thing

as a good type of worry.

And because there can be such a thing

as a good and healthy type of worry

and such a thing as a good and healthy type of neuroticism,

the danger can be that we latch ourselves onto that

so that we can't tell the difference

between good, helpful worry and unhelpful worry.

So we start to worry about everything

because there's something deep inside us

that's telling us it's a good thing to do this.

If you worry, it's somehow going to help the situation along.

Whereas, in fact, it's doing the very opposite.

It can destroy you completely.

So, if that's broadly how worry can help us

and how worry can actually also be our worst enemy,

what can we say in terms of faith?

Now, I've already said

that one of the most unhelpful things

to hear if you're worried

is somebody else telling you to get a grip,

to get some perspective.

But I just want to think about perspective for one moment.

We're going to watch a very short video clip

from my favourite all-time TV vicar,

Father Ted.

What will we do for the next two weeks?

Will I put on the kettle?

Yeah, go on.

Must be one of the ones that clicks off automatically.

Yes.

Yes.

Bit of steam there.

Incidentally,

did you bring any tea bags?

No.

Right.

Okay, one last time.

These are small,

but the ones out there

are far away.

small,

far away.

I forget it.

Perspective.

And that's how worry can get into the system

and things can get totally out of perspective.

When we see something,

when we're lying there awake at night,

it's keeping us awake

and we're worrying about it,

it can seem so much bigger

than it does in the cold light of day.

And getting things into perspective

can be one of the first

and most helpful things

that we can do.

Samuel Johnson,

apparently,

came up with this idea

called the 100-year rule.

And he said this,

that if you're worried about something,

ask yourself the question,

what's the worst possible thing

that could happen

if what you're worrying about

actually does go wrong

in the way that you're thinking it might?

And ask yourself the difference.

Would it make any,

what difference would it make

to you or to anyone

100 years from now?

Now,

putting it in that perspective,

then ask yourself the question,

what difference would it make

if this thing you're worrying about

goes wrong,

what difference would it make

in 20 years' time?

What about in 10 years' time?

Five?

What about next week?

And sometimes when we begin

to ask those questions

and unpack our worries,

it puts things

into a certain perspective.

Now, I'm going to come back

to that for a moment,

but before I do,

I just want to share with you

another thing.

J. Arthur Rank

had a way of dealing

with his worries.

He kept what was called

a worry box.

And whenever he worried

about something,

he wrote it down

on a piece of paper

and he put it

in his worry box.

And he resolved

that once a week

he would open that box.

I think it was a Wednesday.

He would open his box

and he would go

through his worries.

And almost every time,

without exception,

he found that by the time

he'd opened the box,

the thing that he'd written down

earlier in the week

had been and gone

and he'd forgotten about it.

Now, I share this with you

because perspective

against time

is a really important thing

when it comes to

disarming worry

of its power.

Jesus has this to say.

Therefore, I tell you,

do not worry

about your life.

Simple as that.

Clearly, Jesus

had not read

the pastoral care manuals.

You know, I've already said to you,

I don't like it

when somebody says to me,

stop worrying,

get a grip.

But strangely,

with Jesus,

we can make an exception.

And I find there's something

amazingly empowering

about the fact that

Jesus, the Son of God,

the Lord of all eternity,

the one who conquers sin and death

on a cross

and walks away from the grave,

says,

therefore,

I

tell you.

Next time you're worrying

about anything,

don't just read those words,

but read those words

and think about

who it is

that's saying them.

Jesus says,

do not worry.

Now, I'm not going to pretend

it's easy.

The evangelist J. John

said that of all

of Jesus' commandments,

the commandment

not to worry

is arguably

the most challenging.

What might it look like

in practical terms?

Let's just take this

up to the next level

and go to Paul.

Because Paul

offered

some very,

very helpful

advice

when it comes

to worry.

In 2 Corinthians 10,

he writes this,

for the weapons

of our warfare

are not merely

human,

but they have

divine power

to destroy

strongholds.

We destroy

arguments

and every

proud obstacle

raised up against

the knowledge of God.

Now, listen to this.

And we take

every thought

captive

to obey

Christ.

We take

every thought

captive

to obey

Christ.

Now,

when Paul

was talking

here,

he was talking

about

fighting a

spiritual battle

and engaging

in the objections

that people

put up against

the Christian

gospel.

But hey,

if anxiety

isn't one of

those obstacles,

then I don't

know what is.

So whilst

he may not

specifically

have been

talking about

the psychology

of worrying,

there's a really

important principle

here,

and it's this.

Paul is saying

pay really close

attention to your

thoughts.

Take every

thought captive.

Let me give you

an illustration.

I've got a coin

in my hand here,

and you probably

won't be able to

make out what that

is exactly,

other than a coin,

but I've got a

drawer at home,

and in that drawer

there's an old

ice cream tub.

It's full of coins.

I carry loose

change with me

most of the time,

and when I've got

too much of it,

I just chuck it

in this ice cream tub.

A few months ago,

it was full up,

so I decided to

take it into the

bank,

where they've got

one of those

fantastic machines

where you tip

loose change into.

It counts it out

within a fraction

of a nanosecond

and spits out

a piece of paper

saying how much

it is.

You take it to

the counter,

you cash it in.

You've probably

seen them.

On this occasion,

it's not only

spat out the

piece of paper,

it's spat out

this coin.

Now, from where

you're sitting,

you might just

about be able

to make it out

and think,

well, that looks

like a 5p.

Do you know,

I'm holding it up

right here and I

think it looks

like a 5p,

but it's not.

In fact, I haven't

a clue what currency

it is and I don't

know where it came

from, so if anyone

wants to come out

afterwards and try

and identify it,

you're welcome.

The point is this.

For ages, it was

sat on a pile of

5ps and I thought

it was another 5p.

You see, it's not

easy to tell the

difference between

coins when they

look the same.

It's even harder

to filter out

thoughts from

helpful thoughts

to unhelpful

thoughts.

And what I want

to say to you is

that sometimes

when we are

worrying, the

problem is that

we have not

learnt to filter

out what is

helpful from

what is unhelpful.

And because of

the subtlety of

neuroticism, it

can come in a

healthy form but

it can also be

destructive.

And it might

well be that the

thing that we're

thinking about is

a healthy type

of worry.

But you know,

more often than

not, I bet it's

not.

And so Paul

says, take

every thought

captive to

obey Christ.

What does that

mean in practical

spiritual terms?

Next time you

have a worry and

a thought, just

pay attention to

that thought and

unpack it and

think, what is it?

How helpful is

that?

But don't stop

there.

Take it captive.

In other words,

take it in

prayer and

offer it to

Jesus.

And if you're

thinking, well,

how do I do

that?

Well, let's

stay with Paul

because he gives

us even more

advice.

Because in

Philippians he

says this,

rejoice in the

Lord always.

Again, I say

rejoice.

Let your

gentleness be

known to

everyone.

The Lord is

near.

Do not worry

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.

Now, notice

there that Paul

directly instructs,

do not worry

about anything.

Now, I've

already told you

this morning my

hang-ups about

being spoken to

like that.

I did say,

however, that I

make an

exception when

it comes to

Jesus.

And because I

regard Scripture

as God's

word, I'm

also up for

being told what

to do by

Paul.

But notice

that Paul

here simply

doesn't tell us

to quit

worrying.

Rather, he

urges us to

bring our

worried thoughts

before God in

prayer.

So another

way of putting

it would be

to say,

take your

worried thoughts

captive.

Filter them

out and take

them captive.

And then let

them go,

releasing them

to God in

faith.

And all of

that's set

within the

framework of

rejoicing and

thanksgiving.

In other

words, to

contemplate the

eternity of

God who's

near.

And so it

all is that

Paul continues,

finally, beloved,

whatever is

true, whatever

is honourable,

whatever is

just, whatever

is pure, whatever

is pleasing,

whatever is

commendable.

If there's any

excellence and

if there is

anything worthy

of praise,

think about

these things.

We're going to

pray now and I

want to help us

into that.

Think about

this.

There is a

saying,

glance at your

worries,

gaze upon

God.

God.

I think that's

what Paul's

saying to do

there.

To think about

the good things

of God.

Not as a

form of

distraction,

but as a

way of

letting go of

that which is

unhelpful.

I've shared

this picture with

you before,

but I'm going to

do it again.

Imagine you're

behind the wheel

of a car and

you're driving

forward.

Now in terms of

observation, in the

broadest sense,

there are two

things that need

to be going

on.

One is to

be gazing

forward through

the windscreen.

Two is to

take the

occasional glance

in the mirror

so you can

see what's

behind you.

Imagine the

disaster that

could occur if

you got it the

other way

round.

You were

gazing in your

mirror and

just occasionally

glancing forward.

And yet that's

exactly what we

do when it

comes to the

distinction

between helpful

and destructive

thoughts.

When it comes

to those forms

of contemplation

that are helpful

and life-giving

and those that

will bring us

down.

And Paul's

invitation to

each one of

us is to

filter out those

thoughts, to

take every

thought captive

and to take

those destructive

ones, to take

them before God

and not

to ignore

them, but

just to glance

at them, to

hold them in

their rightful

place of

perspective because

we gaze on

God.

It doesn't

deny the

reality of

those things

that worry

us, but it

puts them into

perspective.

anything

that

are

very

important

to

identify

the

hygiene