Afraid & Anxious (2)

This Sunday’s message was a follow up to one shared a few weeks ago looking at Fear and Anxiety.  

Fear and anxiety are huge emotions that we all experience, but how can we bring these emotions to God, and what happens with them when we do?  

The trouble with fear is it focuses our attention on the immediate. And the problem with anxiety is it focuses our attention on the unknown. But when we bring these emotions to God, we are activating faith, and faith fixes our attention on what is certain.  

The Bible tells us on numerous occasions, “Do not be afraid”, and “Do not worry”… (see Isaiah 41:10, and Philippians 4:6-7 for examples of this) and it can be pretty frustrating to hear that when we are in the middle of a fearful situation or caught up in our anxious thoughts! But the good news is, that the Bible’s advice never stops there, there’s always a caveat… we don’t need to be afraid because God is with us. We don’t need to worry because God can fill us with his peace. We don’t need to be anxious for the future because God provides.  

It’s these truths that we need to fuel ourselves with. That way we become less consumed by our fears and anxieties, and more consumed with God’s peace.  

I love how Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples puts it: 

Live carefree before God; [why?! Because…] he is most careful with you.  

(1 Peter 5:7 – The Message Version) 

Questions: 

1. On Sunday we looked at how we can starve certain fears and worries of oxygen, for example, the news we take in, or the time we spend comparing our lives with others on social media. What things do you think need crowding out in your life to reduce fear and anxiety? 

2. Jesus encourages us to… “Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions.” (Matthew 6:30-33) 
   What does this look like practically in our lives? 

3. Are there things that you have been feeling fearful about, or anxious about that you now have a different perspective about?