SPEAKER_02 0:23

Hello, everyone. I am so glad that you have chosen to join us for this edition of the Faith Builders Broadcast. I am Pastor Philip Steele. I pastor Life of Faith Church in the wonderful city of Little Rock, Arkansas. And God is doing great things in the body of Christ, in our part of the body of Christ. God is doing wonderful things. We're seeing people saved and healed and set free by the power of God. And we believe that that same anointing will flow to you today as you watch this broadcast. If you've been with us uh over the last few weeks, we have been dealing with winning over worry. Uh now I wrote this book some time ago uh at the uh request of the the Lord um to teach people how to win over worry. And of course, if you would like your copy, our announcer will be coming at the end of the broadcast to let you know how you can get your copy. This is a book that you could probably read in a day, and uh then you'll want to reread it and mark it up and just go through it and go through the scriptures and build up a resistance uh to worry. You know, something that I've seen uh, especially recently, is that, you know, um I, you know, a lot of times people use the phrase, you know, back in the day, in my day, all these different things. And uh I understand uh why they're using that. Uh so I want to to kind of talk about that a little bit, in that I remember back when I was growing up, when I was uh just a young boy, uh in my uh formative years, preteen years, even teenage years, uh my life was primarily carefree. I mean, it was uh I had no anxiousness in my life. Uh the world that I lived in was just uh, to my knowledge, it was a peaceful world. Uh I wasn't worried about things. I didn't go to bed worried about things. I didn't have friends that were worried. I didn't have friends that I knew of that were dealing with anxiety or anxiousness. And as I look at it, you know, the society we live in today is totally different. All right. We have uh young people at very young early ages that are being put on medication for anxiety and medication for depression and medication for all of these different uh symptoms, and uh, I guess we could call it an illness. And I'm not saying that that's wrong or that that's bad. I'm saying it's a sign of the way we live our lives. There is a constant, endless news cycle. It is at the beck and call, if you will. It's on our phone, it's on our uh tablets, it's on our TV. Uh, you know, no longer do you have to turn on the radio or wait till uh 6 and 10 o'clock to get the news. It's constant, it's a constant barrage. You get a play-by-play of what's going on in the world. And whether you think it's good or bad is irrelevant in this sense. Uh, our our children, uh, young people, uh, most of them have a device in their hand by the time they're 10, 11, 12 years old. I know that for tablets it's even earlier, but what I'm saying is they have access to the internet, they have access to apps, they have access to this 24 hours a day. And so what I have seen is that it gives the enemy and worry an open door even earlier into their lives. And so we have kids that are eight, nine, ten years old that are worried and already are worrying about things because of the society that we live in. Now, I'm not teaching against devices, I'm not teaching against your child having devices. This is not what I'm doing. What I'm saying is the Lord said to me some years ago, he said this. He said, cares and anxieties are one of the primary doors the enemy uses to weasel his way into people's lives. Any God-fearing parent, any God-fearing guardian wants their child, wants their grandchild protected from the things of the enemy. Well, this being the case, that the Lord said, this is one of the primary ways. I'm trying to explain to you that this is why we see an uptick in anxiousness and worry and concern in the lives of our children and our grandchildren is because that's one of the primary ways that the enemy tries to get into people's lives. And he said, the main effort of the enemy is involved in trying to get you over into care. And once that's accomplished, the door is open to whatever else he wants to bring in your life. And then he said, no matter the circumstance, your job is to refuse the care. All right. And so if the enemy can get people over into care, then the door is propped open for the other things that he wants to bring into your life. And so if if I start worrying, then I prop the door open for the other things that he wants to bring into my life. And so this anxiousness, this care in Luke 21 and verse 34, Luke 21 and verse 34, this is such a powerful verse because he makes the statement, Jesus makes the statement, he says, Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged. Now, when he uses this word, overcharged, I want to explain this to you. When he uses the word overcharged, it means weighed down, lest your heart become weighed down, notice, with surfeiting, which is an overemphasis on self, concern, care, and drunkenness and cares of this life, so that that day come upon you unawares. So Jesus said in the last days that one of the things that we had to be on guard against was the cares of this life. All right? Now, very often when we talk about the cares of this life, people tend to focus on, you know, what I've got to do, what I've got to pay, what I've got to take care of. And that certainly is part of the cares of this life. But then just the constant barrage of cares that you get. Uh, the this politician's doing this, this is going on in the government, this is going on in the world, uh, this leader is threatening this leader, uh, this disease is out there, this virus is out there. What are we gonna do? I mean, it even gets into uh what we think about what we eat. Can I eat that? Is that gonna hurt me? Is that bad for me? Is this good for me? Is this gonna hurt my immune system? It's the cares of this life. And he said we had to be on guard against it. And notice that he places a full-of-care lifestyle in the same category as a drunken, self-indulgent lifestyle. All right, surfeiting means to be self-indulgent or an over-emphasis on self. All right, when he used the word overcharged with surfeiting, over-emphasis on self and drunkenness, a carousing lifestyle, and the cares of this life. Now, he didn't say that those things were not necessary. It's necessary that you have a roof over your head. It's not necessary that you worry about it. It's necessary that you have a good job, that you're able to provide for your family. It's not necessary to worry about it. The worst thing that you can do when you need something is worry about what you need. Because worry delays, worry pushes back. All right, worry causes you to put the emphasis on what you can do and how you can fix it. Hallelujah. One translation says, your minds will become dulled by the cares of this life. So living a worried lifestyle dulls the mind. It feels like you're walking around in a fog. All right? There's a sluggishness there. And carrying the worry causes you to be distracted. It dumbs you down spiritually. I don't know about you, but I know people that have lost nights of sleep because they were worried. Or they said, I didn't get anything done today because I was just worried about this all day long. I was worried about this person. I was worried about this circumstance. So we can see just through those illustrations that that worried, full of care lifestyle distracts. It dumbs you down. All right? It dumbs you down spiritually. In Mark chapter 4, verse 18. Jesus said, These are they that are sown among thorns, such as hear the word and the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things. Notice, entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. It chokes the word and it becomes unfruitful. Now, this is a preoccupied heart. This is a preoccupied heart. This person is not necessary, necessarily malicious. They're just overly concerned about the worries, the anxieties of everyday life. This word for cares here has been derived from a root word that means to be drawn in different directions or to be distracted. And it is a synonym for the Greek word that means worry. So when he says the cares of this world, the worries of this world, they enter in and they choke the word. The entering in of worry chokes the word. In this case, the word took root and was bearing fruit because it had to become unfruitful. And worry and care choked the word and it became unfruitful because of carrying worry, of carrying care. Now, if there are things that you find yourself worried about or anxious about, here's what I don't want. I don't want you to be condemned about it. I want you to understand that the Bible has an answer. But to understand why it's so dangerous, I have to understand what Scripture says it will do. So one of the first things it says it will do is choke the word. All right, the word was taking root, the word was bringing forth fruit. And notice the entering in of cares that carries the idea of somebody knocking on your door, of someone presenting themselves, all right? Someone pulling up and saying, I'm here. All right. And here's what he said. He said, the entering in of cares choked the word. So what does that mean? Every person, every man, every woman, every boy, every girl is going to be presented with the opportunity to not only worry, but to carry it around. All right. Worries present themselves. I'm going to be presented with the opportunity to worry. I'm going to be presented with the opportunity to carry that worry around. Hallelujah. Now, let me explain something. What I am not talking about is ignoring things. All right? I'm not talking about ignoring responsibilities. I'm not talking about ignoring symptoms in your body or symptoms in your mind. That's not what I'm doing. What I'm saying is when you begin to recognize worry, you have to take the word of God and begin to apply the word of God and experience the victory in your life. I remember one time that we had a young man that was coming to the church, and this has been a number of years ago, probably 20 years ago or more. And this young man, when he came, he had been dealing with a mental disorder. He had been dealing with bipolar disorder. And he came and began to get under the Word of God, and it had been so bad in his life that he was officially on disability. And so he had some time during the day. And at that time we were planting a church in the downtown metro area of the city that we lived in. And I was moving some things down, and he asked, could he come help me? And so he was helping me move these things, and he got a hold of the Word of God, and he started coming to our Bible school, and things began to change in his outlook. Things began to change in his medical diagnosis where his mental condition was concerned. And he began to see a reduction in the medicine that he was having to take. Now, understand this. No one on our leadership or in our church leadership told him to quit taking his medicine. As he was going to the doctor, they were saying, this is getting better and this is getting better. And they began to reduce that medicine. All right? I'm saying this for a reason. As he went on, things were getting so much better, he was on a greatly reduced dosage of that medicine. And a person who was not on leadership that just came to our church, this young man gave his testimony one day. And this person said to him, he said, You really believe that that you know that God has touched you? He said, Yes. He said, then you should throw your medicine away. You should just quit taking it if you really believe God's healed you. I did not know this conversation had taken place. I was not aware of it. I did not know it had happened. Had I known it had happened, I would have intervened and stopped it. But here's what happened: this young man got rid of his medicine on the advice of this other person. Everything that he had been dealing with, all right, it all got more intense and more intense and more intense and more intense. Nobody knew what had happened, all right? But here's the reason I'm telling you this refusing care is not denial. If you're dealing with something that you can be helped with medically, then you should get the medical help and work the word. The medicine doesn't stop the word from working, and the word does not necessitate that you don't take medicine. That's where people make a mistake. You shouldn't worry, you shouldn't worry. And there is this stigma out there that if a person's dealing with depression or they're dealing with anxiety, that something must be wrong with them. There may be something physically wrong with you, there may be something chemically wrong, but the word of God can set it right. But what you need to do is keep yourself in a position where you are calm and where you are getting help in the natural way so that you can properly work the Word of God. See, faith in all of its facets is not denial. Faith does not look at a situation and say, faith, let me say it this way: faith does not have to say that doesn't exist for faith to work. Faith says plainly, that may be a natural reality, but the word of God will work that out and turn it around. So when we say refuse the care, even if you're dealing with anxiousness or depression or something of that nature, you've got to refuse the care and turn to the word of God. And you might be refusing the care as you're taking your medicine. You might be refusing the care as you feel anxious. You might be winning over worry while you still feel worry presenting itself. Here's what you don't want to do: don't reach out and grab the worry. Reach out and grab the word and declare what the word says in spite of the worry. You might be watching, and there may be a natural physical reason for you to feel worry. Maybe there are past due bills, maybe there are issues in your family, maybe you got a bad doctor's report. Here's what I want to encourage you to do. Those things are happening. But my brother, sister, reach out and grab the word of God that says, My God shall supply all of your needs. By his stripes I am healed. I will contend with them that contend with you, and I will save your children. I have a renewed mind. I am renewed in the spirit of my mind by the power of the Holy Spirit. Reach out and grab those promises that will correct and make a difference in the circumstance. Refuse to carry the worry. Refuse to grab the worry. Because what that does is it chokes the word. So everyone will be presented with an opportunity to worry. In Luke 8:14, again, speaking about this same individual, it says, And that which fell among thorns are they which, when they have heard, go forth and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring forth no fruit to perfection. They bring forth no fruit to perfection. One translation says, they are not bringing forth fruit to maturity. See, the goal of the Christian life is maturity. It's to grow up into Christ. The expectation of Jesus is that we grow and that we mature. Now, in Ephesians 4.12, talking about the ministry gifts in the body of Christ, it says that they are for the edifying of the body of Christ, the building up or religious advancement of the body of Christ. 1 Peter 2.2 says that we should desire the sincere milk of the word. Notice that we may grow by that word. Hebrews 5, 12 through 14 says by this time you ought to be teachers. You should have matured to the place where you can teach others. So the goal of the Christian life is maturity. One of the greatest enemies to the growth and advancement of a believer is worry, carrying care, because it stops you from bringing forth fruit to maturity. The word is planted in your heart and it takes time for it to mature. You have to let the word mature. And one of the ways that the enemy tries to come in and choke the word before it grows up and can begin to make a difference is by carrying worry and carrying care. Carrying care will stunt your spiritual growth. It will cause it to not be mature. It was the pressure of anxieties that caused the word to be choked in Luke 8 and stopped the production of mature fruit. It was the pressure of anxieties that caused the word to be choked and stop the production of mature fruit. The enemy cannot steal the word or stop the word from bringing forth in our lives if I will not cooperate with him by carrying worry. He cannot just come and steal the word from me. Hallelujah. You'll remember the story in Luke 10, verse 40 through 42, where Jesus had brought his company to Mary and Martha's house and Lazarus' house. And you remember that Martha was busy serving, and Mary was sitting at the feet of Jesus hearing the word. And Martha got upset and she came into the place where they were and said, Lord, make my sister help me. Look at all I've got doing. I've got to do. Make her help me. And the Weast Bible says Jesus answered and said to her, Martha, Martha, you're worried and excited about many things, but of few things there is need or of one. For Mary chose out for herself the good portion, which is of such a nature that it will not hastily be snatched from her. Hallelujah. The good portion was the word. Now Mary loved Jesus. She wanted to serve Jesus, but she made a decision not to be full of care and receive the word. She wanted to serve, she wanted to be a part of his ministry. But notice, Martha made a decision to get frustrated and anxious, and Mary made a decision to not worry and receive the word of God. Care caused Martha to have an attitude that moved her away from and caused her to miss the word that would cause her to mature because of her attitude of anxiousness. Philippians 4, 6 says, stop worrying about even one thing. So we're not to worry or be full of care about even one thing. Not even one. Philippians chapter 4, verse 7 says that when we do that, the peace of God that surpasses all power of comprehension will mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ. So in order for the peace of God to mount guard over my heart and mind, I have to first stop worrying about even one thing. There's a rule that I live by. Stop worrying. If you're worrying, stop. Now, again, that doesn't mean you deny what might be going on, but it means I stop worrying about it. I work to see what I can do and to see what I can make happen, but I'm not going to worry about it. You need to decide right now, tonight. I am not going to go to bed worried. I am not going to get up in the morning worried. I am not going to go through my day worried about these things. I've made this statement over the years, and I've seen it to be true in a lot of cases. Most of the time, what people are worried about never happens. It never happens. Because worry is based upon the immediate, the immediate pressure and the immediate way that things seem. My brother, sister, the sun will come up in the morning. God is on your side and victory belongs to you through Christ. I'm so glad that you joined us today for the Faith Builders Broadcast. I pray that you are blessed and helped by the Word of God. And I want you to be sure to tune in next week and join us right here as we continue to look at refusing to carry care and winning over worry. Our announcer is going to come with information about our book, how you can get a hold of it, and I believe that it will change your life. Again, thank you for joining us. Until we see you again, please remember to build your faith and frame your world by the Word of God. God bless you.

SPEAKER_00 26:27

You can win over work. 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_01 27:34

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.