SPEAKER_00 0:23

Welcome to the Faith Builders Broadcast. I am Pastor Phillip Steele, and I am so glad that you have chosen to join us for this edition of the Faith Builders Broadcast. We have been dealing with uh this month the subject of winning over worry. And uh we're dealing with points uh that are actually in my newest book, which is entitled Winning Over Worry. Uh the information is there on your screen for ordering this book. I believe that it will uh be a great help to you. It won't take you very long to read it, it's not a huge book, but uh you know, when you deal with the uh the subject of worry, the world wants to normalize a life filled with stress and worry, like everybody does it. You know, I've talked to people before and they would say, well, you know, any normal person would worry. You know, there's a man that uh does a lot of teaching on finances, and he says, uh uh debt is normal, why be normal? You know, broke is normal, why be normal? If worry is normal to the average person, we don't want to be normal. We want to be abnormal, we want to be supernatural, right? Because the world normalizes worry, but Jesus, the word of God, tells us don't let your heart be troubled. All right, because there are things that the enemy can try to bring into your life, there are things that he can try to accomplish. Uh, there are things that I can miss if I'm living a life of worry and not living a life of peace that's found in the Word of God. Now, we left off on our last broadcast in the book of 1 Peter, chapter 5, and uh where uh we had talked about Peter telling us and advising us to cast all of our care upon Jesus. And there's a reason, let's back up to Mark chapter 4, verse 18 is where I want to begin. And this is talking about the word being sown into the heart of people, and it says in verse 18, these are they which are sown among thorns, such as hear the word. Now notice, they heard the word. Faith comes by hearing the word, they heard the word. All right, it was sown among thorns, they heard the word, and and notice what happened, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches and the lust of other things entering in choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. Now there's a couple things to see in this passage. Number one, in uh every part that we read here, every one of the types of ground that are mentioned. Obviously, we know those are the hearts of men and women. Here's the thing none of them had to lose the word. They had a say in what happened in their heart. All right? Understand that the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things are in the world right now. They're operating in the world. All right, the cares of this world, they're all around. The deceitfulness of riches, what does that mean? There are people that think money is the answer. There are people that think they just need more money, just get more money, just have more stuff. All right, riches are not bad, the deceitfulness of riches are bad. And then the lust of other things. What does that mean? Things not listed in this category that we don't see here. The strong desire for other things. Notice this. He said they enter in. In other words, they present themselves, they knock on the door, right? I have been uh a pastor now for nearly 30 full-time years, and I've seen this play out over and over again. For instance, the deceitfulness of riches. I've seen people come to church with nothing and see them get a hold of the word of God and commit their lives to God, and God begin to bless them, and God begin to prosper them, and then it turned into a thing that that's what they begin to go after. And then they wanted to work every hour they would give them. And then they started dropping Bible study, and they started dropping prayer meeting, and they started missing midweek service, and they started missing Sunday evening because of wanting to go after and get more things and get more stuff. Nothing wrong with stuff, but what happened to that person? They were deceived by riches. And here's what happened: that person eventually began to tell off, and what happened? The word got choked out of their lie by what? The deceitfulness of riches. The deceitfulness of riches. All right, it's the same thing with care. Care will knock on your door, worry will knock on your door. And listen, in any situation, there are people right now in the world, they spend most of their time worried about the political climate of the nation that we live in and the political climate of the state that they're a part of. That is what they feed on continually. That is what they focus on. What's gonna happen? This is going bad, this is going wrong, this is not good. What are we gonna do? And they're worried about it. When the Bible says what we need to do for our political leaders is pray for them, pray so that we notice, can lead a quiet and peaceable life. What happens when you pray according to the guidelines in the Word of God? You cast your care, you pray in faith, and what happens? You lead a quiet and peaceable life. See, I don't have to allow the word to be choked out of my life. Just because there's anxieties in the world doesn't mean I have to participate. It doesn't mean that I have to be a part of it. Just because it happened to someone else does not mean it's going to happen to me. Just because it went that way for someone else, my case is different. I'm gonna maintain a worry-free life. Say it out loud. My life, my house, my home is a worry-free zone. Say it one more time. My life, my home, my house is a worry-free zone. I don't worry. See, those are not just words. That is what you are declaring is right and law for you. I will not worry. I will not lose sleep. I will not have my time wasted by worrying about things. I'm gonna walk in the word of God. Why? The word of God is the thing that the Bible says in Hebrews 4 is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, and it can pierce to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit. The word of God is quick and powerful. Quick and powerful to what? Put an end to worry. Put an end to that circumstance that's trying to cause worry in your life. But see, I have to make the decision not to worry while the situation that's trying to make me worry still exists. I have to choose not to worry. Because it only has power over me when I worry about it. When I'm in anxiety about it, when it begins to be something I'm carrying around. But when I take the sword of the Word of God and I sever my heart from that worry, the thing that may want me to worry is still there, but it has no root in my heart. It is no longer connected to me. I have cast that down. I've cast all my care on the Lord, and I'm not gonna worry about it. So notice, they're gonna try to enter in. They're gonna do everything they can do to enter in. I can refuse it. Hallelujah. The good ground here in Mark chapter 4 in uh verse 20, these are sown on those sown on good ground that hear the word, receive it, and bring forth fruit. Do you know that good ground had an opportunity to worry? That good ground had an opportunity to enter into care and anxiety. It just chose not to. Why? Because the Bible says, Jesus said in the book of Matthew, chapter six, he said, uh, take no thought about tomorrow, for tomorrow will take thought for the things of itself. Meaning, tomorrow's gonna have its own set of problems. So don't worry about tomorrow, don't worry about today, don't worry about tomorrow. What do you do? You get up every day and you deal with everything that presents itself with the word of God, from the word of God, and you refuse the care. You refuse to worry about it. Hallelujah. Do you see that? When I I'm I'm I'm it's kind of humorous to me actually, and uh I've seen this for years. When uh the weatherman will say a storm's coming, especially in the winter, snow begetting is on the way, right? It it always gets me that what people go for first is milk and eggs and bread. I I don't know if they never buy milk and eggs and bread before the storm or if they whatever. But here's the thing you you'll go there. I remember we had a storm here not too long ago, and I had to go to the store for something else. I'm not a storm shopper, all right, but I had to go for something else, and and our daughter had wanted something, ramen noodles, I think it was, and I I went to the ramen uh aisle and they were empty. The ramen aisle was empty. I went over by, I had to go buy the milk and it was empty. The eggs were empty. What makes somebody do that? They know that the roads are going to unthraw. They know the snow is going to melt. Why would you buy enough milk to last two months when the storm is only, the snow is only gonna be around for two days? Oh, you never know what might happen. What if we can't get back out? Well, you know, it's not gonna snow eight feet. You're gonna be able to get back out. That that's an elementary example, but that's how people approach their lives all the time. What if this happens? What if that happens? What if another thing happens? And they're carrying the care around, they're carrying the worry around, and here's what it's doing: it's wrapping its tentacles around the root of the word of God, and it's choking the word out. See, the problem with weeds in your yard is this: it takes up soil that the grass needs to grow with. And so what you have to do is not plant more grass. You got to deal with the weeds. Because if you just put more grass seed on top of the weeds, well, the weeds are already growing. They're just gonna grab a hold of the seed you're putting in the ground and choke the life out of it. The best thing that you can do is put a weed deterrent on the yard and make the yard more healthy. Because as the yard gets healthier, the weeds can't invade it. Are you with me? Build yourself up in the Word of God while at the same time refusing to worry. And when you refuse to worry, what happens? It's like putting a weed deterrent on your yard. That weed just begins to shrivel. It begins to come to nothing because it's not getting any of the spirit energy in your life. You do not have any spiritual life that you can spare to feed worry and to energize worry. You need it all for what God's asking you to do. You need it all for your spiritual life. The Lord told me one time every time you take mental and spiritual energy and think on something that causes worry and care, you're taking that same amount of spiritual energy away from something that I need you to do. Hallelujah. And so we read in 1 Peter 7 and 8, where he said to be sober and vigilant, because your adversary, the devil, as a roaming lion, roaring lion, roameth about seeking whom he may devour. He's said to be sober or sober-minded, and the reason this is used is because care causes us to be intoxicated. Care causes us to be fuzzy minded, right? I can't I can't think straight. When I'm full of care, I can't think right. I can't see right because I'm intoxicated by care. Have you ever looked at anything through the lens of worry? When you look at something through the lens of worry, it looks like the worst possible scenario. Because that's the scenario worry paints. Worry doesn't, if you go to the doctor and let's say you get a report, whatever the report is, worry doesn't look at it with the best possible outcome. Worry says this, I could die. Well, that I mean that might be a possibility, but if I'm looking through the the lens of worry, that's all I'll see. That's all I'll think. We're to be sober-minded because we have an adversary, we have an opponent, we have an enemy, we have one who's looking for an open door, and the enemy prowls around or frequents a locality. Oh, this is so important. The devil frequents a locality, he roams around in that area. The locality he wants to frequent is the locality of my mind and the locality of my life. All right, my mind. If you stop the thought, you stop the ability of the enemy to get anything into your life. I gotta stop it at the thought level. All right, because here's the thing: you have to stop anything before conception occurs. To stop in in the natural, to avoid pregnancy, you have to stop the conception. You have to stop conception because a healthy, uh, a healthy relationship between a man and his wife, they are they are designed to conceive. And if you if you want to stop conception, which will lead to a pregnancy and lead to a birth, you have to stop the conception. The enemy is trying to inject thoughts into your mind and for lack of a better phrase, to cause you to become pregnant with worry, so that then you'll bring forth the result of that worry. And the way you stop that is to get it before it conceives. Hallelujah. You've got to stop it at the thought level. At the thought level. How does he start that? With a thought. With a worry, with an anxiety. Hallelujah. 1 Peter 5 7 says, here's what we do: we cast all of our care on him because he cares for us. Refuse to carry the worry. Say it out loud: My life, my home, my heart is a worry-free zone. Let's say it one more time. My life, my home, and my heart are worry-free zones. Hallelujah. And he says, notice to resist them steadfastly in the faith. Steadfast does not just mean consistently or regularly, it means resist the enemy hard. Firmly. Meet force with force. So you don't you don't just say, oh no, that's that's not my thought in the name of Jesus. Oh, I refuse. You grab that thought and you say, No, you don't. I'm not thinking that way in Jesus' name. I refuse it in the name of Jesus. And you meet force with force. Amen. In this confrontation that we're in with the enemy of our souls, you cannot be nice, you cannot be easygoing. Understand something. You're in a battle with an enemy who observes no rules, he observes no standards, he has no integrity, he has no honor, he has no ethics. You are not, you are not to face him in an honorable fashion. You meet force with force. You don't care what it does to your enemy, you grab it, you cast it down, you stomp on it, you put an end to it. That's how you resist him steadfastly in the faith. Hallelujah. I mean, there's a time. There's a time to be sing songgy. Oh, glory to God, Lord, I thank you, I worship you. There's a time for that, not when wrong thoughts are trying to come into your mind, not when worry is trying to invade your mind. Because he's trying to get worry in there to get a doorstop in there so that he, everything else he wants is lined up outside your door. He just needs you to open the door. And if you'll open the door with worry, he'll put a doorstop in there and bring everything else he wants to bring into your life. It's because it's already there. Listen, the devil is an opportunist, but he's not haphazard. He's strategic, he's organized. He does not get you to open the door and then go, oh, what do I want to bring in? It's already there. He's already decided what he wants to bring into your life. He just needs you to open the door. But you know what good gospel news is? You don't have to open the door. He can't make you open. The door. He can stand outside and knock all he wants. Just leave that dude out on the porch knocking. Don't open the door. Glory be to God. And he said, notice that we have to cast the whole of our care. The Amplified says, all of our anxieties, all of our worries, all of our concerns. Is there any room for worry in the word all? Zero. All of them. And notice he says, once and for all on him. Glory to God. So that means you cast it all on him? How often? Once for all. Now think about that. If I cast it on him, who decides if I can go pick it back up? The devil? Me. I've cast it on him. Nobody can make me go back and pick it up. Nobody. Say it out loud. My home, my life, my mind is a worry-free zone. Now notice. One of the greatest things I can do for my overall spiritual health is to refuse the care. Refuse to worry. You know, the Lord said this to me one time. He said, there are people that would say, well, if you were going through what I was going through, you would worry. And the Lord said this. He said, that may be true. It may be true, Philip, that you would worry. But he said, even if you would worry, it doesn't change the fact that I said not to worry. See, just because I would worry doesn't mean it's right. Just because whatever situation I'm going through is intense enough that it would produce worry in someone else doesn't mean that I have to worry. Jesus said, do not be anxious about anything. Paul said, do not be anxious about anything. Jesus said, take no thought about anything. Now here's the thing. Where's the power to take no thought? In the obedience to the words of Jesus to take no thought. If I say this, Father, Jesus said that I was to take no thought about anything. I choose right now, Father, to not take any thought. Say that with me right now. Say, Father, Jesus said to take no thought about anything. So right now, I choose to act on your word and to take no thought about anything. I will not worry about anything. I will not be anxious about anything. I will not carry the worry of one thing because I am an obedient hearer of your word. And I expect you to do what you said and help me overcome in this situation. In Jesus' name. Amen. The information to order the book, Winning Over Worry, is there on your screen. I would love to get it into your hands so that you can learn these principles and overcome in every area of your life. I'm so glad that you chose to join us today for this edition of the Faith Builders Broadcast. Nothing brings me more joy than to be able to help you win in life and to overcome by the power of the Word of God and building your faith and framing your world by the Word of God. It's such a blessing. So until we see you next time, right here on the Faith Builders Broadcast, know that we love you, we care about you, and please remember to build your faith and frame your world by the Word of God. God bless you.

SPEAKER_01 26:25

While the world says a life filled with stress and anxiety is normal, the word of God says, let not your heart be troubled. Be anxious for nothing. Jesus Christ gave you access to his victory and peace. He's equipped you to resist worry and cast your cares on God. In the book Winning Over Worry, a guide to continual peace, Pastor Philip Steele teaches you how to live carefree by putting God's word to work. This book will show you how to overcome anxiety and enforce God's peace in every area of your life. It's time for you to win over worry. Get your copy today by calling 501-400-8797 or visit lifeoffaith.net. Winning over worry is also available on Kindle and Apple iBooks. Visit lifeoffaith.net or call 501-400-8797 for more information.

SPEAKER_02 27:29

You are invited to Life of Faith Church in Little Rock, where we are building people's faith, producing life, city, state, nation, and world. Our address is 116-20 Rainwood Road, just one block off Rodney Park, near Green Mountain Drive. Our Sunday service begins at 10 a.m. and offers classes for children and youth, in addition to the adult service in the main sanctuary. On Wednesdays, we have an hour of power as we dive into Bible study. We have a place reserved for you and your family at Life of Faith Church. For more information, visit lifeoffaith.net.