Thinking Like a Christian

A series of Scripture meditations on what the Bible teaches about the Christian life.

by Pastor Pete Beck III

These meditations are copyrighted,

but feel free to download them for

personal use or to forward to friends.

How to Conquer Worry

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. 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. Isn’t there more to life than food and more to the body than clothing? Matthew 6:24-25 (NET1)   

Worry comes so naturally to us that we may not realize what it says about us. We may relate to worry as to an old friend, something with which we are very comfortable. But Jesus said that worry about money, clothing, housing and things shows that we are serving the spiritual forces behind wealth worship instead of being devoted to God. In other words, worry shows we are idolaters, or, at best, what Jesus called "little faiths". Now before you despair of ever making progress as a disciple, realize that the twelve had the same problem. It is a universal sickness in the human race. So what is the solution?

Well, the first thing to do is admit you have a problem. Another name for this is repentance and humility. Secondly, a good offense is the best defense. Seek first God's kingdom and righteousness, trusting that He will give you everything else you need. Set your affections on God, which will leave less room for loving other things. Thirdly, instead of worrying, pray. Paul wrote:

Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 (NET1)

Prayer combined with thanksgiving knocks the foundations out of worry. When we start praising God for the difficult things in life that would formerly give us anxiety, we enter a new world of overcoming faith that knows that God is bigger than any problem we may face. Try it. You'll like it.

You can subscribe to future meditations by clicking here.
Your address will not be sold or given to others.
You can unsubscribe by clicking here.
To contact Pastor Pete, click here.