SPEAKER_00 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, and I believe that the Lord is going to say some things to you today that will help you, that will aid you in your walk with God. You know, the thing about the Word of God that I have discovered over the years is this is that the Word of God, according to Scripture, is life to those that find it. The book of Proverbs says it's life to those that find it. And in the early days of our getting a hold of the Word of God, the thing that came to me so powerfully was what a change the Word of God made in my life. The victory that it brought, the uh the supernatural life that began to flow in every area of my life. And um that's what can happen. In the time that we're together today, that you're watching this program, the beginning of a supernatural shift can begin in your life that reverberates down through your life and changes your existence. My family tree was changed by the word of God. My uh marriage was transformed by the word of God, my finances was transformed by the word of God. Uh, everything that in my life that was needful was transformed by the word of God. And in the next little bit that we have, and it's not just us, it's anybody that you watch that's teaching and preaching the word of God, your life has the potential to change within those few moments. Don't discount the hearing that you get of the word of God, because in those moments that you're hearing the word, the life force of God is being imparted into you. And things that look like they can't change will change. Things that look like they cannot get better will get better, right? Uh diagnoses can change. Uh, financial situations can change. Why? Because you're partaking of the word of the one that can change everything. Everything. Think about that. While you're sitting there, wherever you're watching this, your life can change. Sitting on your couch, your life can change. Sitting in your car, watching on your device, your life can change. Watching somewhere else, your life can change. And people say, When did your life start changing? Well, I was sitting on the couch watching that television program, my life changed. You know, that's not just a testimony that people make up to get people to watch their television program. It's what really happens. I know people, there are people that go to our church that can point you back to the time they saw a television program on this network or other networks and say, my whole life began to change then, right then at that moment. And so the power of us coming into your living room, the power of us coming into your home is that we're bringing you the word of God. And then the word of God has the potential to radically transform your life forever and ever. I'll tell you why. Where the word of God's concerned, I'm hooked. I'm an addict. It's changed my life. I am a word addict. I need me some word every day. I need me some word two or three or four times a day. I need the word every day, every week, every month of every year, because it has radically transformed my life. And the person I am today is not the person I was over 30 years ago when I got a hold of the Word of God. And I believe, my brother, sister, that it'll do the same thing for you. We're talking today about winning over worry. I wrote this book some time ago, and uh I believe that it was uh inspired by the Holy Spirit. And uh many say this is the favorite book that I've written, and and whether it is or not uh is irrelevant to me. I'm I'm glad that people appreciate it. But I know that God told me to write this book to teach people how to win over worry. If you would like your copy, uh stay tuned to the end of the broadcast, and our announcer will give you more information about how you can uh uh get your copy of winning over worry. Hallelujah. Now, in Luke 21, 34, we this is where we've been looking all month, and uh Jesus in Luke 21, 34, he said, Take heed unto yourselves, lest at any time, all right, you become anxious or your hearts become overcharged. And he used different words with surfiting and drunkenness, and here's one the cares of this life. All right, Jesus said one of the things we had to be on guard against was the cares, the worries of this life. Now, I don't know the specific thing that you might be tempted to worry about, but here's what I do know there's a lot of things out there that give you the opportunity to worry. All right. Uh I mentioned on one of our previous broadcasts about children today. And, you know, one of the things that I see as a pastor that's one of the greatest things that try to make people worry is people's children, what they're exposed to, uh you know, what they uh see at school, what they see on social media, what they see uh, you know, around their friends, uh sometimes what they see at church. All right. I'm worried. What if my child sees this? What if my child does this? What if this? What if that? Well, a lot of that can be alleviated through good parental supervision, but here's the thing. I have to be aware and cognizant. I can't be with my child 24 hours a day. I have a child that right now, while we're taping this, they're in school. All right. My point is I can't be with them 24 hours a day. I'm not with them during gym. I'm not with them during lunch. I don't know what their friends might be telling them. What do I have to do? I have to put confidence that I am putting the word of God in them, and here it is, and the word of God will keep them. The Bible says that the word that you put in your heart and in your life will keep you. It says it will keep our children. All right. The Bible says in Psalm 119, how does a young man cleanse his way? By paying attention to the word of God. And so I'm putting the word of God in my child. I'm believing for their safety, for God keeping them from this present evil age. Uh, the book of Psalm, chapter 110, says, God, you preserve my children from this generation forever. Oh, glory to God. You preserve my children from this generation forever. What does that mean? They may be living in a wicked generation. They may be living in a generation that uh believes wrong. But what's going to happen to them? They're going to be kept. So here it is. If they're going to be kept, how can I worry? If I believe they're kept, how can I worry? It doesn't mean I uh it alleviates my responsibility. I have to watch what they're looking at on social media. I have to watch what they're looking at on TV. I have to be choosy about who their friends are. You know, you cannot let your son or your daughter go spend the night with bad butch, right? Or sassy susie and then expect God to keep them. You're overriding the leading of the Holy Spirit and letting them do something that maybe you know is not good. And then you can't depend. And here's the other thing: it does you no good to worry about it. See, I've got to do the right thing according to the word of God, and then what happens? God works on my behalf because I did the right thing. And one of the first right things you have to do is refuse to worry. If you worry about your children, you'll make decisions about them based on worry, and that will be to their detriment. If you make decisions concerning your children based on faith and based on the word of God, you'll strengthen them and help them. Now, we're not teaching home and family living, but that's one of the big things that we deal with today. What's going to happen to my children? I hear people say all the time, oh, this just isn't the world I grew up in. My children will never know that world. Exactly right. They will never know that. My child, my youngest child, will never know what it's like to get on her bike and ride to the other side of town and stay out till the street lights come on. Why? Because that's not the environment that we live in today. And wisdom says that would not be wise. And so that's not allowed. They will never know that. But we're not going to worry about the environment that we live in. We're not going to worry about the generation that we live in. We're going to teach this generation to believe God. We're going to teach this generation to trust God and trust his promises so that they can see the victory. The Bible says that one generation will rise up and teach the other generation the great things of our God. So we're not going to teach them to worry. We're not going to teach them to be concerned. We're going to teach them the great things of their God. And so, hallelujah. A key phrase here in Luke 4, or Luke 21, excuse me, is lest at any time. He said, Be on guard, guard your heart, lest at any time. In other words, there's never an appropriate time to be worried. Never an appropriate time to carry care. Hallelujah. When it comes to worry, one of the phrases you'll often hear is this I'm trying not to worry, but I just can't help it. I'm trying not to worry, but I just can't help it. The word lest, lest at any time, in the dictionary means with the intention of preventing something undesirable or to avoid the risk of. Hallelujah. Take heed means to watch, to apply the mind to a thing. To watch or to apply the mind to a thing. Meaning we're to watch and apply our mind to refusing care with the intention of preventing the undesirable results of carrying worry. We can do that. But you have to apply your mind. Do you see that? Jesus said, if we would watch and set our will against it, we can and should be able to not worry. What does that mean? It is possible to never worry again. Hallelujah. It is possible to never worry again. Hallelujah. Oh, and wait, there's more. Remember the guy he used to say, you know, if you you order this and we'll send you this and then we'll send you. And he'd say, Oh, but wait, there's more. If you order within the next five minutes, we'll send you the ginsu knife. It slices, it dices, it pairs, it peels. Oh, see, wait, there's more. So it is possible to never worry again. Oh, but wait, there's more. Mark 4, 14 through 19. And talking about talking about the soil of our heart. In case you're wondering, I love what I do. I love ministering the word. I love being on television so that I can help you grow in the things of God. This is not a platform for me to be somebody. This is a platform for me to tell you about somebody, about Jesus, about how he changed my life, about how he turned things around, and how I've taken the word of God and put it into operation in my life, and it will do the same thing for you. This is not something that I'm just saying. It is possible for you to never worry again. You can go to bed tonight unworried and unfilled with care because the word of God is going to change that circumstance. Glory to God. In Mark chapter 4, verse 14, it says, The sower sows the word, and these are they by the wayside where the word is sown. But when they've heard the word, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their heart. These are they likewise which are sown on stony ground, who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness, and have no root in themselves, and endure before a time afterward, when affliction or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. And these are they that are sown among thorns, such as hear the word, and the cares of this world, deceitfulness of riches, the lust of other things, entering in, choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. Now here's something to see. Each of these types of soil represents the heart of a person, notice, who has heard and received the word. It says of all of them, they heard and received the word. Each of these people were faced with different circumstances that were after the word. They were all faced with different circumstances that were after the word. Now understand this. None of them had to work. The person had to choose to give up the word. None of these circumstances had to work. This person had to choose to give up the word. In Mark 4:15, it says, and these are they by the wayside, the word is sown. Then when they heard, Satan comes immediately and taketh away the word that was sown in their heart. Satan came along and took up, removed, destroyed, killed the word that they had heard. Now listen, they did not have to allow that. The devil cannot just come and take the word, it has to be given up. You have to give up the word. They allowed the word to be destroyed or removed. They had to give it up. Hallelujah. Verse 16, these are they likewise sown on stony ground. When they've heard the word, they immediately receive it with gladness, have no root in themselves, and endure but for a time. Afterward, when per affliction, persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. So this person received the word with gladness, rejoicing, joy. Whoo! Glory to God, hallelujah! Right? They received it with rejoicing and joy. But notice affliction came. What does that mean? Affliction, pressure. No problem, but pressure came. Distress of mind, distressing circumstances, or a trial. Do you know that no one, me, you, no one that you know can avoid that? You cannot avoid pressure. You cannot avoid trials that come into your life. You are not gonna be able to avoid distressing situations. They're going to occur. Amen. It's listen, it's not if you face trouble, it's when. You're going to face troubling circumstances. Hallelujah. You're gonna face circumstances that are distressing. That's just that's life. You're gonna face life at some point. Then he said, persecution. That means to chase or pursue, or persecution, specifically for religious reasons. So there's gonna be times people put persecute you because of what you believe. I've been persecuted because I believe that Jesus heals. I've been persecuted because I believe that God wants you to have a prosperous life. Hallelujah. I've had people take out newspaper ads about me, print up t-shirts about me. I've had people do all of those things. Why? Because of the word. Hallelujah. Why did all that arise? Because of the word. You know what it says? For the word's sake. Notice. Immediately they were offended. That means to have a feeling of repugnance or to offend. Immediately means at once, instantly. So what we're seeing is this affliction and persecution came because of the word, and immediately they gave up the word. They gave up the word. Why? That listen, that's one of the tactics of the enemy. If you just give up, then the pressure will be off. And it will momentarily, because when you quit believing the word, the devil backs off because there's nothing for him to get now. But what has he also done? Moved you away from your answer, moved you away from the victory. Now you're out there on your own. How are you going to resist the devil without the word? How are you going to resist worry without the word? Sometimes when we think offended, we just thank God our feelings hurt. That's not what this is talking about. It's talking about a person that seemingly, when they were facing affliction and persecution, they thought somehow the word should have stopped that. No, it was coming for the word. And immediately they begin to disdain the word, be repugnant against the word. I knew a couple one time that sowed a financial seed into the kingdom of God, into the ministry. And they were just expecting something to magically happen. You know, when you sow a seed, you got to care for it. You got to tend it, you got to watch over it. Well, they sowed the seed according to the word of God, and their response to persecution and affliction when it came because of the word was this. Why didn't it work? See, immediately they got offended at the word. If you have sowed a financial seed, right? The Bible says that when you sow a seed, you sleep and rise night and day, and the seed brings forth. It brings first the ear, that the blade, then the ear, then the full corn in the ear. What does that mean? You're probably not going to see a harvest tomorrow. You might not see a harvest in a week or a month, but the harvest is coming because you put the seed in the ground according to the word of God. If you have sowed a seed and something happens in between the time you sowed the seed and the harvest came, don't get offended at the word. Sow again. Put more of the word in your heart. Obey the word even more. Why? Because the enemy's after the word. And notice it says these people that they didn't even put up a fight. Affliction and persecution came, and immediately they were defended. They were offended. Say out loud, I'm not offended at the word. I am not offended at the promises of God. Say this God's word is working mightily in me right now. It's producing change. It's producing victory. It's producing Overcoming situations in Jesus' name. Amen. Refuse to be offended at the word. I will not be offended at the word of God. The word of God is my life. The word of God is the source of my life. The word of God is the victory in every area. I refuse, my brother and sister, refuse to be offended at God's word. Oh, hallelujah. They didn't even try to keep the word. When pressure came, they just gave up the word. They didn't even try to keep it. Keeping the word is your responsibility. Now, verse 18. These are they that are sown among thorns. They hear the word, the cares of this world, the seatfulness of riches, lust of other things entering in. Choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. So the word was heard, and the worry of life came to this person. And notice, the worry choked the word. That word choke, it means to choke the growth or the increase of seed. Choke the life out of the word of God. They did not have to allow the word to be choked. They didn't have to allow it. They did not have to allow the worry to come into their lives, but they did, and it choked the word. The word gives us the steps to stop the word from being choked. Matthew 13, 22. I think I have time to knock this one out. Matthew 13, 22. He also that receives seed among the thorns is he that hears the word and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. The Weast Bible says the worries of this age, the deceitfulness of its wealth, combine to choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. So what does this tell us? These things build on each other. They combine to attack the word. The cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, the worries of this age can be things that we have to deal with on a regular basis, bills, kids, job. All right, so on and so forth. The temptation of many people is to begin to believe that more money or just money, period, is the answer to these things. The problem is this money cannot solve care. Money cannot solve worry. Care is spir is a spiritual force. Worry is a spiritual force. I've known people before that had plenty of money and were the most worried people I knew. Because worry is a spiritual force. When a person starts going after money as an answer to care, they'll be deceived by money, and the worry combined with the deceitfulness of thinking money could eliminate the worry, chokes the word. They build on each other, they stack up. Money cannot eliminate worry. Only working the word can eliminate worry. You can have all the money you think you need and be worried. But as you apply the word of God to your life, not only will it produce all the money that you need, it will choke the worry out of your life. Oh, hallelujah. In Matthew 6, 25, Jesus said, Don't worry about anything. The Wees Bible says, on this account, I'm saying to you, stop worrying about your life. Makes it very plain to you. Whenever you make money the source, care is increased in that situation. What do you do? Lord, I don't know how I'm gonna do this in the natural, but I'm not gonna worry about it. I'm gonna cast the care on you, and I'm gonna believe you. You care for me. Go outside and look at the birds. That's how he's gonna care for you. Hallelujah. God is so good. I'm so glad you chose to join us today for this edition of the Faith Builders Broadcast. Our announcer is coming to tell you how to get the book, Winning Over Worry. Until we see you again, please remember to build your faith and frame your world by the Word of God. God bless you.

SPEAKER_01 26:29

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_02 27:37

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