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Let's stand. 
Now, for the reading of God's 

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word, we are in The Sermon on 
the Mount. 

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If you're new to our church, 
we've been in this for many many

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months and we're coming to the 
end of chapter 6 where Jesus is 

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talking about anxiety. 
We've been in these passages. 

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The last couple of weeks this 
morning, I'm going to be reading

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from and preaching from Matthew 
6, beginning at 25, through the 

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end of chapter 6 verse 34 This. 
Is the word that Christ himself 

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spoke. 
Therefore I tell you do not be 

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anxious about your life, what 
you will eat or what you will 

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drink, nor about your body, what
you will put on is not life more

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than food and the body more than
clothing. 

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Look at the birds of the air, 
they neither sow, nor reap, nor 

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gather into Barns and yet your 
heavenly father feeds them, are 

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you not of more value than they 
and which of you by being 

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anxious can add a single hour to
his And of life. 

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And why are you anxious about 
clothing? 

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Consider the lilies of the 
field, how they grow? 

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They neither toil nor spin yet. 
I tell you, even Solomon in all 

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his glory was not arrayed like 
one of these. 

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But if God, so clothes the grass
of the field, which today is 

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alive and tomorrow is thrown 
into the oven, will he not much 

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more clothe you? 
Oh, you of little faith? 

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Therefore, do not be anxious 
saying, what shall we eat? 

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Or what shall we drink? 
Or? 

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What shall we wear? 
The Gentiles seek after all 

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these things and your heavenly 
father knows that you need them 

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all. 
But seek first, the kingdom of 

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God, and his righteousness, and 
all these things will be added 

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to you. 
Therefore do not be anxious 

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about tomorrow, for tomorrow 
will be anxious for itself. 

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Sufficient for the day, is its 
own trouble. 

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This is the word of the Lord. 
Thanks be to God, please be 

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seated. 
We all know what it means to be 

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anxious and Jesus's words. 
Here are of profound 

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encouragement, but they're also 
profoundly skillful. 

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And the ways in which we, as his
body can actually come along one

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another when we're experiencing 
anxiety from verses 25 to 34, 

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Jesus gives three commands It's 
actually one command given three

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different times. 
He asked five questions and then

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he offers three tools. 
To help three points of council 

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this morning. 
What I want to do is look at 

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these three commands. 
I want to look at the questions 

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Jesus asked, and then I want to 
end by looking at the council 

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that he offers the tools that he
brings. 

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Jesus is commands are very 
simple. 

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They booked in this section 
verse 25. 

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Therefore I tell you do not be 
anxious about your life. 

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Life and then it ends this 
section in verse 34. 

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Therefore do not be anxious 
about tomorrow, for tomorrow 

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will be anxious for itself. 
And then in the middle there It 

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also says therefore do not be 
anxious verse 25, verse 31 and 

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verse 34. 
Some commentators. 

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See this as a passage that is 
just about Comfort. 

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It's Jesus saying you don't have
to worry others, see it as a 

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strong exhortation. 
Don't be anxious. 

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But the right way of seeing it 
is clearly that it's a command 

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but it's a command that brings 
Comfort. 

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It's a comforting command but 
it's only comforting. 

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We understand what Jesus means 
by the therefore for he doesn't 

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just tell us not to be anxious, 
but tells us why we don't have 

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to be anxious. 
And so Jesus does give us a 

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command. 
Just as Paul does in his 

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epistle, do not be anxious about
anything. 

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What does anything Do not be 
anxious about anything but in 

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everything. 
What does everything by prayer? 

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And petition with Thanksgiving 
present your requests to God and

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the peace of God, which 
transcends all understanding 

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will guard your hearts and Minds
in Christ Jesus. 

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This is powerful stuff. 
Everybody that walked in here 

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this morning that is mildly 
aware of the world. 

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We live in experiences, anxiety.
You know how I know. 

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Because at least a dozen times 
this morning already. 

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Someone has said, I'm so glad 
you're preaching on this, 

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because I struggle with anxiety,
we all do and the Lord and his 

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compassion knows how to help us,
but he also knows the danger of 

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that, which can easily be seen 
as nothing. 

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More than the common cold. 
Anxiety, really is dangerous. 

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And it's hard to overcome if we 
misunderstand Jesus. 

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And we see this only as a next 
rotation, don't be anxious. 

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We feel like anxiety should be 
easy to overcome. 

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Now, some of you remember, 
growing up with the show Bob 

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Newhart, he was a psychiatrist. 
A younger generation would know 

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him as Papa elf and the 
Christmas movie Elf the same 

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actor. 
If you want to laugh at some 

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point this week, Google just a 
six minute. 

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It comedy piece featuring Bob 
Newhart as dr. 

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Switzer talking to a client 
named Katherine big men. 

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She comes for help and this is 
how the conversation goes. 

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He says, let me speak to you. 
I'm paraphrasing about my 

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policies. 
My fees, he says, I charge $5 

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for the first five minutes. 
And nothing after that she's 

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like wow that seems too good to 
be true. 

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He says well I can almost 
guarantee our session won't last

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the full five minutes he says 
you can pay by cash or check and

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then there's this great line. 
He's a psychiatrist. 

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There's just great line I don't 
make change. 

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She thanked you some of your 
just now getting it. 

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She reveals to him, what her 
issue is when he looks at his 

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watch and says go. 
She reveals that she's afraid of

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being buried alive in a box. 
He then offers his counsel by 

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saying, I'm going to give you 
two words. 

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Two, simple words that I want 
you to incorporate into your 

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life. 
He pauses leans over his desk 

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and almost shouts. 
Stop it. 

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Stop it. 
You know, as a pastor sometimes 

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that's the sermon I want to 
preach, you think it's the 

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sermon you want to hear because 
it would be short. 

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I didn't even mean that to be 
funny. 

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It's just not that easy. 
It's not and it's not funny, is 

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it anxiety is powerful and it 
seeks to destroy our lives, by 

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setting our focus on things and 
as we do those things grow and 

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the Lord shrinks Jesus, command 
to not be anxious is gentle. 

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And strong. 
It's very clear but it's also 

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compelling. 
We begin to see his skill as our

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savior. 
As one, who's proclaiming the 

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word by the way, he deals with 
anxiety. 

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Jesus, ask five questions and I 
think this is significant and 

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here's why. 
Anxiety speaks to us constantly 

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in questions. 
If you look with me at verse 33,

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31 the second time, Jesus gives 
the command not to be anxious. 

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He says, therefore do not be 
anxious saying, what shall we 

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eat? 
What shall we drink? 

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Or what shall we wear? 
The principle that he teaches 

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here applies to all areas of 
anxiety, but for us, this isn't 

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our issue. 
There might be some here today 

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who don't have clothing, who 
don't have food, but most of us 

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walked into a full closet and we
still might say, I have nothing 

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to wear Or we have a teenage boy
who opens the fridge and it's 

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stocked full of good things to 
eat and he slams the door 

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saying, we have nothing to eat. 
This isn't our issue. 

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But anxiety is. 
And anxiety speaks to us in 

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questions. 
You receive an email from your 

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boss that says I would like to 
meet with you at some point next

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week. 
That's all it says you received 

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that on a Friday and you spend 
the weekend wondering, what did 

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I do wrong? 
What does she want to talk to me

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about? 
Have I failed? 

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Am I going to lose my job? 
If I lose my job then where am I

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going to live? 
Am I going to have to go back 

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and live with my parents? 
You tell your parents about This

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meeting, they begin to have 
their own anxiety, speaking to 

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them. 
Parents. 

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We feel a lot of anxiety. 
A child isn't performing well in

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school. 
Or is it making friends or is 

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dealing with some mental? 
Emotional issue? 

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That's very heavy. 
You don't know how to handle it.

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The question start once again, 
your limits are revealed, I 

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don't have enough knowledge. 
I can't hover over them at 

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school. 
I'm not sure what to do. 

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You go on a date and it seems to
be going. 

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Well, you seem to like one 
another, but as that progresses 

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anxious questions come is, he 
the one, is she the one? 

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Does he like me? 
Does she like me? 

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You look at our culture. 
This is where the church has a 

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chance to really shine not just 
by standing for the truth which 

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we must, but how we encounter a 
world that doesn't stand for the

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truth. 
Even in the midst of common 

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Grace. 
What would it look like for us 

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to be a non-anxious presence in 
a world? 

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So, dark. 
But often we're very anxious 

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because the question start 
coming, what if this happens, 

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what if that happens, what if 
they're elected and they're not 

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elected, and all of a sudden, 
our eyes are more focused on 

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those things which we must give 
attention to, but we take them 

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off of the Lord. 
And certainly, we know the 

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experience of experiencing 
something ourselves over the 

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loved one as it relates to 
health. 

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And then with the help of the 
internet you begin to Google 

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what it is. 
You've been told you might have 

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you know the questions come, 
don't they? 

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One of our early elders and our 
first missionary that we ever 

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sent out. often says to me, when
we have the privilege of meeting

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one-on-one, when we grow 
anxious, we close our eyes, we 

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close our ears and our mind goes
crazy, It does. 

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Jesus asked the question. 
Five times he speaks into the 

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things that are making them 
anxious because he knows the 

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destruction of what anxiety can 
lead to. 

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Let's think about King David for
a minute second Samuel 11 King 

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David does something he 
shouldn't do. 

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While all kings are at War which
is where he should be, he looks 

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out and he sees Bathsheba, she's
bathing, she's naked. 

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He desires her. 
She's brought to him. 

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There is sin word then comes to 
him that she is pregnant. 

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This is an unplanned pregnancy. 
It's a crisis pregnancy. 

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What does this man? 
Who's called a man after God's 

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Own Heart do does he listen to 
mediately to the word and 

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confess his sin and move into 
what he should do? 

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As a man of God? 
No. 

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It's his mind swirls with 
questions because anxiety speaks

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to us in questions. 
He seeks to fix it so that no 

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one would know, it's his child 
that she's pregnant with. 

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So he calls for her husband to 
come home, your Raya, the 

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hittite Uriah and his Purity 
won't even go be with his wife. 

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So David continues to move 
through this anxious time, 

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making decisions that are 
horrific. 

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And he has this Soldier move to 
the front and then tells those 

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troops to be told to retreat. 
So that that man might be 

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killed. 
Anxiety can be extremely 

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destructive. 
Think about the Apostle Peter in

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Mark 14, you know, Jesus tells 
Peter before that, that he's 

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going to deny him before the 
rooster crows. 

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Twice, Peter basically rejects 
what Jesus says. 

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I will never do that, even if I 
have to die. 

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But then when the young servant,
girl, accuses him of being one 

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of his own, the anxiety sets in 
If I say I belong to him, what 

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will happen to me? 
He didn't just do this once, but

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three times just, as Christ 
said, Mark tells us that he 

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called down, curses upon 
himself. 

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And what that means is, I would 
rather be found dead than for 

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you to believe that I was 
associated with him. 

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Do you think Peter ever thought 
it was possible for him to say 

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something like that? 
But he did. 

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When Mary Jo and other Thrive 
Advocates, meet with clients, 

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they come and when they come 
into that room anxiety has been 

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speaking to them. 
I know firsthand what that looks

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like. 
The child of this community, 

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clay coffee, Roy and Janice 
coffee. 

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00:15:38,500 --> 00:15:41,800
Son was a volunteer with me in 
the church. 

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00:15:41,800 --> 00:15:45,100
I served in St. 
Louis and was passionate about 

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standing up for children in the 
womb. 

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00:15:48,200 --> 00:15:53,300
He taught me so much. 
One day, we discovered that a 

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girl who was connected to our 
youth group wasn't actually 

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involved in our youth group was 
connected to our youth group was

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pregnant not for the first time.
But for the second, the first 

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child was aborted. 
I've told this story before, but

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00:16:09,300 --> 00:16:11,400
it's been many years and many of
you weren't even in this church 

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yet, Clay and his wife, Hillary 
called me and said, would you go

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with us across the Mississippi? 
River into East st. 

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Louis, because you couldn't get 
an abortion in St. 

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Louis County to meet her before 
she goes into the clinic. 

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I said sure, I'll go and never 
done anything like this, didn't 

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know what to do. 
We got there. 

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After about a 45-minute drive, 
we drove across the river 

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parked, and waited, and waited, 
and waited a long time. 

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And finally, her boyfriend and 
her pulled in her name is Erin. 

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we didn't have a plan but as 
soon as her boyfriend, got out 

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of the car, Clay went to talk to
him, Hilary prayed, and I went 

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and put myself on my knees, 
right at her seat, so she 

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couldn't get out. 
And as I said, they're talking 

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to her, I prayed Hillary prayed.
Clay, pray. 

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And I said you don't have to do 
this today. 

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It was the spring of 2000. 
My wife was at home, almost an 

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hour away pregnant, with our 
third child Kaden. 

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All I wanted was her to meet my 
wife, so that she could see the 

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pictures of a sonogram that 
showed he's alive. 

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Watch a video of his heart 
beating, I prayed and I prayed 

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and I prayed listening to her 
anxiety. 

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And she said what you would 
expect including this. 

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If my parents knew they would 
kill me. 

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Think about that. 
I said to her, they won't kill 

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you. 
She grew up in a Catholic 

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Family, very opposed to what she
had already done. 

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Once, certainly opposed to what 
she was about to do I said they 

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won't kill you. 
But you know, you're a parent. 

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By God's grace. 
She said I'll go meet your wife.

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We called the local St. 
Louis Clinic much like the one 

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Mary Jo's serves. 
And a woman named Robin duble 

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came over and met with her at 
our home. 

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What led her to that place? 
Was anxiety. 

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Not what we might call common 
anxiety, but a profound sense of

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I can't do this. 
My parents will reject me. 

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I will be alone. 
Anxiety, speaks in questions. 

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What will you do? 
You're only a junior in high 

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school. 
What will you do with your 

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friends? 
What will you do with your 

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future? 
Those questions, get loud. 

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And as those questions, get 
loud, the crisis, gets bigger, 

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and Bigger and bigger in our 
minds and what we need as 

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believers. 
Is to have a non-anxious 

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presence where we move towards 
people helping them. 

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Even those who are in Christ, 
see that God Is Bigger. 

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God is greater Christ is far 
larger than the crisis that 

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you're in. 
And so, Jesus asked these five 

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questions and these five 
questions are meant to elevate 

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their vision of how good God is,
how great God is, how big God is

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these questions come and verse 
25, 26 27, 28 and 30. 

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And as he asked these questions,
he reveals profound It'll look 

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with me at the first question 
verse 25. 

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I tell you do not be anxious 
about your life, what you will 

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eat or what you will drink nor 
about your body, what you will 

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put on. 
First question is not life more 

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than food and the body more than
clothing. 

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He knows Food Matters, he knows 
Clothing Matters but he's 

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getting at the essence of what 
matters most he then gives his 

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first instruction of counsel 
There are three things that 

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Jesus does in his counsel. 
The first is this, it's an 

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action. 
He says, look, when you and I 

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are anxious, we are already 
looking at whatever it is. 

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That's making us anxious and 
listening to the questions that 

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are speaking to us, the way in 
which we break out of. 

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That is to look Jesus is so 
brilliant. 

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Here, he says, verse 26. 
Look at the birds of the air. 

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They neither neither sow. 
Nor reap, nor gather into Barns 

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and yet your heavenly father 
feeds them. 

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Then comes the second question. 
Are you not of more value than 

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they? 
You are. 

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You are we and him are far 
greater. 

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00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:21,200
Jesus sin leads to his second 
point of counsel. 

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He says, in verse 28. 
And why are you anxious about 

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clothing? 
Consider the lilies of the 

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field. 
There were considered there. 

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Literally means study. 
Do you know what meditation is 

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00:21:33,600 --> 00:21:37,400
its study? 
And so often were meditating and

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00:21:37,400 --> 00:21:39,800
studying on the questions that 
are coming to us. 

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What if what if what if Jesus 
says, consider the lilies of the

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00:21:44,400 --> 00:21:47,700
field how they grow? 
They neither toil nor spin yet. 

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I tell you even Solomon in all 
his glory was not arrayed like 

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one of these. 
Jesus is showing us that the 

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Lord provides. 
Thirdly. 

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00:22:00,500 --> 00:22:06,900
He tells us in verse 33 along 
with looking along with studying

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00:22:06,900 --> 00:22:13,000
considering he says in verse 33,
but seek first, the kingdom of 

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00:22:13,000 --> 00:22:18,000
God and his righteousness and 
all these things will be added 

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00:22:18,000 --> 00:22:20,900
to you. 
For us. 

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00:22:21,300 --> 00:22:27,600
Our primary concern is not food.
It's not clothing what we're 

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00:22:27,600 --> 00:22:30,700
going to wear. 
There are many things that make 

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us anxious and anxiety, speaks 
to us with so many questions, 

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00:22:35,800 --> 00:22:38,800
but the principles of Christ 
council is right. 

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00:22:38,900 --> 00:22:43,600
Every time look, look around 
you. 

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00:22:44,300 --> 00:22:46,500
There is a God that is in 
control. 

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00:22:47,700 --> 00:22:52,600
Consider what you see and see 
the goodness of God. 

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00:22:52,900 --> 00:22:58,900
The provision of God seek his 
kingdom and his righteousness. 

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00:22:59,400 --> 00:23:01,700
And all these things will be 
given to you as well. 

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00:23:02,600 --> 00:23:07,600
What Jesus is pointing to in his
sermon and what the word of God 

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00:23:07,600 --> 00:23:11,600
points to from beginning to end 
is the history of redemption. 

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That this father who knows 
everything about us. 

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Who knows what we need. 
He is our provision. 

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He is our protection. 
He is our priority because we 

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are his God, demonstrated his 
own love for us in this while we

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were still sinners Christ died 
for us. 

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00:23:38,500 --> 00:23:43,000
The greatest fear we should 
have, is the fear of God. 

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The fear of God, not being who 
he says he is. 

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00:23:47,700 --> 00:23:51,900
But we need to fear that. 
Christ. 

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00:23:51,900 --> 00:23:58,300
Jesus was given to us as 
provision provision that we 

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00:23:58,300 --> 00:24:03,300
would have him for all eternity.
Speaking of clothing Christ, 

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00:24:03,300 --> 00:24:07,600
Jesus was given to us that he 
and his righteousness, might 

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00:24:07,600 --> 00:24:12,400
clothe, our unrighteousness. 
All who are in Christ are 

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00:24:12,400 --> 00:24:17,300
clothes? 
He reveals to us in his word. 

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00:24:18,200 --> 00:24:22,900
That were his. 
But he will never leave us or 

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00:24:22,900 --> 00:24:27,700
forsake us, where his priority. 
How amazing is that? 

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00:24:30,300 --> 00:24:34,400
Anxiety. 
Cannot be dealt with. 

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00:24:35,600 --> 00:24:40,600
Just by you hearing are saying 
to yourself, are saying to 

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00:24:40,600 --> 00:24:46,400
another stop it. 
Anxiety is not like a pot of 

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00:24:46,400 --> 00:24:51,400
water on a gas stove, where when
you turn out the flame it cools 

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00:24:51,400 --> 00:24:54,800
down quickly, it's like an 
electric stove. 

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00:24:55,400 --> 00:24:59,200
Where, once those words of 
anxiety speak to you, the stove 

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00:24:59,200 --> 00:25:03,100
is lit, and it stays hot. 
And even if you turn it on, it 

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00:25:03,100 --> 00:25:09,400
remains hot for a long. 
Time to the touch anxiety is 

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00:25:09,700 --> 00:25:14,700
real. 
And it can be so destructive and

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00:25:14,700 --> 00:25:20,000
our savior knows and with 
compassion and his heart and 

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00:25:20,000 --> 00:25:26,000
compassion in his command. 
He says, therefore don't be 

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00:25:26,000 --> 00:25:31,200
anxious. 
The reasons are because who is 

353
00:25:31,200 --> 00:25:37,500
Father is who the holy spirit is
and who we are in him. 

354
00:25:40,800 --> 00:25:46,900
Father in heaven. 
We know the familiarity of this 

355
00:25:46,900 --> 00:25:51,800
pain. 
And sometimes we wish it was 

356
00:25:51,800 --> 00:25:56,200
that simple. 
But what we also know is that 

357
00:25:56,200 --> 00:26:00,500
you have promised to lead us 
that you're with us that you 

358
00:26:00,500 --> 00:26:07,100
will never forsake us. 
So Lord, as we your people sit 

359
00:26:07,100 --> 00:26:12,900
here, Filled with anxious 
questions, anxiety. 

360
00:26:12,900 --> 00:26:18,200
Speaking to us. 
Starting now, father this day, 

361
00:26:18,700 --> 00:26:25,500
would you give us the power and 
ability to look and see your 

362
00:26:25,500 --> 00:26:28,800
goodness? 
Your Grace, Your Glory, would 

363
00:26:28,800 --> 00:26:31,800
you cause the things that are 
overwhelming us to grow, 

364
00:26:31,800 --> 00:26:34,200
strangely dim in the light of 
your glory? 

365
00:26:34,200 --> 00:26:38,200
And grace, father, would you 
cause us not to just look but 

366
00:26:38,200 --> 00:26:45,600
also To consider to meditate 
upon how you have saved us and 

367
00:26:45,600 --> 00:26:52,700
how you continually rescue us. 
Father, would you show us your 

368
00:26:52,700 --> 00:26:58,500
presence when we see que your 
kingdom, and your righteousness 

369
00:26:58,800 --> 00:27:04,100
that priority in doing? 
So, we see that we are yours. 

370
00:27:05,300 --> 00:27:07,200
Father. 
There are many in our body who 

371
00:27:07,200 --> 00:27:10,400
are feeling on Unthinkable, 
wait. 

372
00:27:12,400 --> 00:27:17,400
Lord, bring them. 
Clothes and bring us close to 

373
00:27:17,400 --> 00:27:23,000
them that we might walk with 
them and their hurts friends. 

374
00:27:23,000 --> 00:27:26,100
Whatever you're anxious about, 
don't be anxious about it alone.

375
00:27:26,600 --> 00:27:28,700
Come and talk to one of the 
pastor's. 

376
00:27:29,100 --> 00:27:31,000
Somebody that you know who loves
Christ. 

377
00:27:32,300 --> 00:27:36,100
And Lord, as we finished with 
this beautiful piece of music, 

378
00:27:36,700 --> 00:27:40,700
let the words not just be 
beautiful but let them soak into

379
00:27:40,700 --> 00:27:47,000
our hearts with this profound, 
truth of who you were, who you 

380
00:27:47,000 --> 00:27:53,300
will be, who you are the same 
yesterday today, and forever. 

381
00:27:53,500 --> 00:27:55,900
We pray in Jesus name. 
Amen. 

382
00:27:56,300 --> 00:27:57,000
Please stand.