Recently, I saw a man who was worried and stressed about what to buy his dad for Father’s Day.  He wanted to get the perfect gift, but he just didn’t know what to get.  Eventually he thought of the perfect gift.  His dad loved it!  However, instead of enjoying his victory, he immediately started to worry about what to get his dad next year.  After all, he set a precedent this year and he would have to match it.  His wife tried to get him to just relax and be happy with his gift buying success.  After all, he didn’t have to worry about it for a whole year. However, the man was not comforted.  He explained to his wife that she just didn’t understand. It wasn’t that he didn’t have to worry about it for a year, but he had an entire year to worry about it.

           While this story makes us chuckle, it represents a real life problem for many of us.  Instead of solving our problems, worry has become a way of life for many of us.  Daily we face challenges and problems of many kinds.  Financial choices, sickness, family crisis’, and career obstacles stand like mountains towering in front of us.  We can’t help but be concerned about the challenges we will face and what our future holds.  However, if we are to become like Jesus, we need to break free from worry.

           In Matthew chapter 6 Jesus gives us this command.

 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 important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look 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? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

 ²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If 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, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

           Jesus tells us that worrying doesn’t do any good.  All it does is cause us more stress and anxiety.  God takes care of His children.  We are the ones who stress and worry.  God already knows what He is going to do.   So what is it we need to do to break free of worry and live obedient to Jesus?  The answer is found in vs  33.

³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

           The number one way to break free from worrying is to seek God and His Perfect will.  How does this help?  It gives direction and perspective for your problem.  When you are seeking God’s best and you are striving to live for Him, you are promised He will work everything out for your good.  However, if the issue you are worrying about is the result of you being out of God’s will, you will be able to see the error of your way and get back in alignment with God. 

           For instance, if someone is worrying about their finances, they should seek God to see if the financial difficulties are a result of them being out of God’s will.  As they pray, the Holy Spirit may point out to them that they have been spending way too much money on entertainment and play.  God wants them to cut back in this area, so He allowed them to feel a financial pinch so they could fall back in line with His perfect will.

            Maybe someone feels stress in their family relationships.  After seeking God’s will, the Holy Spirit points out that in the past week they worked late 3 nights, played golf on Saturday, and watched football all afternoon Sunday.  Then He reminds them that their number one priority in life besides loving God is to spend time with your family.  The stress they have been feeling is the result of being out of God’s will.  At this point, they can either ignore the Holy Spirit’s prompting and continue living in a worrisome and stressful relationship, or they can get back in line with God’s will and rededicate themselves to properly investing in family relationships.