What have you worried about lately? I mean, this last week, what have been your worries? You know, the list is endless of what potential worries could be, like health, and money, paying bills, our marriage, our country. We have all kinds of opportunities to be worried. Some of us are professional worriers, aren't we? By professional worriers, I mean we worry about everything, every day. We're kind of like this woman on the screen. I love this: "Good morning. Let the worrying begin." And that's many of us, isn't it? Before we hit the shower, we've already begun to worry about things today and in the future. Professional worriers. We worry every day about everything. Are any of you in that group? I bet we are, because so many people are weak against the temptation of worrying. So let me ask us again: honestly, what have you been worrying about lately? Most people don't see worry as a problem. They defend it. If you listen to a worrier, and you say anything to challenge worrying, they'll say, "Well, I'm just realistic. In fact, worry shows I really care, and I love someone." If you listen to a worrier, they'll defend worrying by making it a virtue. Worry is a virtue to them. It shows they really care about someone. And if they didn't worry about what they face, it would mean they didn't care. But the moment we turn worry into a virtue, we become its permanent victim. We will never conquer worry if we think it is a virtue. Think about that. You'll never stop doing what you think is virtuous. And that's exactly why many believers, Christians, have never conquered worry. The truth is, worry is not a virtue. It is a form of self-abuse and superstition. Self-abuse, because it's a negative mentality that writes fiction about the future. Fiction, because it's not fact. They're imagining the future. It's a negative imagining of the future. It imagines the worst. And that always, inevitably, will downgrade our life. It strangles thankfulness and the joy of being alive. You talk to somebody who's worried all day. Do they look happy to you? No. It's impossible to live a positive life with a negative mind. I really want us to believe this. It is impossible to live a positive life with a negative life. Impossible. That's why so many people walk around, they're not smiling, because of what's going on in their head. The Greek word for worry literally means to choke or to strangle. It's a picture of somebody choking the very life out of you. It's impossible to be having a panic attack and being joyful and thankful. And people who are not thankful are always critics and complainers. Do you have any critics or complainers in your life? Are they fun to be with? Are they fun? We need to understand this. We're not much fun to be around when we are worrying and having panic attacks continually. Worry also can produce health problems. Obesity from eating comfort food, alcohol abuse, heart attacks, severe arthritis. There's a whole library of medical research that has been done on the effects of what we're thinking on our body. It's called psychosomatic medicine. It affects what we're thinking. Worry actually causes health problems. There's a Russian proverb that says, "Our mind can have a conversation with our body that ends in death." People who worry won't admit it, but they're also superstitious. Listen to a worrier defend their worrying. Essentially, the bottom line for a worrier is: if I don't worry, bad things are going to happen. My worrying helps things that are bad not to happen. And if I don't worry, then for sure bad things are going to happen. Am I right? It's exactly right. Superstitious. You know, I love baseball. I read a lot of biographies of baseball. Baseball is one of the most superstitious group of people you'll ever meet. Did you know that Joe DiMaggio and Willie Mays, both, at the end of an inning, when they're running to the dugout, always touched second base? Because they thought if they didn't touch second base, bad things were going to happen in that game. They always did that, because they thought it was a form of influence on the game. Worriers think the same thing. They think worrying influences what's going to happen. It's pure superstition. Jesus said it's not true. Remember what He asked in the Sermon on the Mount? He said, "Can worry add a single day to your life?" The answer is no. We know that Jesus was saying worrying doesn't influence the future. Worry is like a rocking chair. Gives you something to do, but it gets you nowhere. If you remember anything in this sermon, I hope you'll remember this next quote: Life is short. Life is a one-time offer. Don't waste it worrying. It's like shoveling air. Your one and only life, wasting days worrying, that does nothing. It's like shoveling air. That's why I think one of the greatest, but most underrated, promises Jesus ever gave is in our scripture reading this morning, when He said, "My own peace I give to you." That tranquility He had before, really, the drama of being arrested, beaten, and crucified. He didn't flinch. Tranquility. He said, "It only comes from Me, and I offer it to you. Will you take it?" So the question is, how do you get it, if you've been a worrier all your life and you have panic attacks? Well, the first step is this: it's believing Jesus when He said worry is not mandatory. If we're having an anxiety attack, it's because we let it happen. This is just crucial to fix in our mind, because worriers will say, "Well, I can't help it. If you knew my circumstances, of course you'd flinch and worry." Jesus says, "No, it's not mandatory." And that's why He commands us: don't let it happen in your life. Now, I know we want to push back, don't we, to that? And for years, we've worried, and we've had anxiety attacks. It's just really hard to believe it's not necessary to live. It's become a habit. We've done it so long, we can't imagine being different. And you see, that's really one of the blessings of reading the Bible, and being a Christian, and being in worship. Because constantly, through God's commands, He's lifting our vision of what we can do and be, because He does not give a command that we can't do. That would be cruel. Every commandment is saying, "Yes, you can do this. Yes, you can, because I've commanded it." So when He says, "Don't worry," it is possible to live a worry-free life. One of the most important things is for us to stop saying we can't break the worry habit. Because as long as we say we can't, we won't. Is that not true? A person says, "I can't do that." They won't do it. And we become a permanent victim of the torture of worry. One of the things I want to give you this morning is: stop saying you can't do it. Because as long as you're saying you can't do it, you can't do it. You won't do it. We've got to change, because we have spiritual power within us, the power of the resurrection. We've got to change that to "Yes, I can, by the power of Jesus." So we can break the worry habit. How do I know that? Because of verse 27. "Let not," that's a commandment, "your heart be worried or anxious." What's it mean to "let not"? What's that mean? Well, it means that if we're worrying, we did it to ourselves. We let ourselves worry. This is just so crucial. There's no one and no circumstance in your life that can force you to worry. Worry and panic attacks are a voluntary thing. You volunteer for it. That's what Jesus is saying: "Let not." Don't volunteer for it. No one can make us worry without our cooperation. See, that's such good news. That means there's hope for all of us worrywarts. We can be tranquil. Now, it just struck me last week as I was studying this scripture. I want to help you see what Jesus is really doing here. He is forcing you and me to take responsibility for our own thinking and our behavior. Take responsibility for the life we're having. Saying "let not": don't blame your worry on other people. Don't blame your panic attacks on your circumstances. Take responsibility for the life you're living. That's what He's saying. "Let not." I think that's great. Take responsibility. In America today, we're a bunch of blamers, aren't we? We blame our parents, our spouse. We've got the wrong genes. Maybe some of you think you have the worry gene. It's unbelievable, all the excuses that we're given to worry. And that's why almost everybody you're around is a professional worrier. Jesus is saying other people who are in the same situation as you are are not worried. Try to imagine that. People in my situation are not having a panic attack, because our situations are not unique. Other people experience them. Why don't they worry? Because they "let not" themselves do it. They choose not to. During the economic crisis of 2011, I had lunch with a friend who owned several businesses, and I knew he was taking a big financial hit through this crisis. And when I had lunch with him, I noticed he wasn't stressed. I could look into his eyes and see he really was at peace. So at some point, I asked, "I know you're losing a boatload of money, but you don't look stressed today. Why not?" He said, "Because I choose not to be." "I choose not to be." That was a life-changing moment. I said, "What do you mean, you choose not to be worried?" He said, "Just that. I could worry, but it kills my creativity and problem-solving ability in my business. Instead, I choose to focus on what I can do today, and leave tomorrow to tomorrow. I choose not to be worried." Life is a one-time offer. Don't waste it by worrying. If that guy could not worry in what he was facing, then, I don't know what you're facing, but I'm telling you, it's not worse than what he was. It's possible. In my research this last week, I came across a story about Frank Joe James. I just love that name, Frank Joe James. He was a tail gunner in a B-17 bomber during World War II, and they were at 13,500 feet when they collided with another bomber, and it sliced theirs in two. The men who were in the front were all killed, except one who managed to bail out. Frank was in the tail as a tail gunner, and that crash just sealed him in. He couldn't bail out. So that mangled piece of steel that he was sitting in just dropped like a rock from 13,500 feet. Amazingly, he survived. He only had a cut tongue and a bruised hip. And his rescuers were amazed, and they asked, as he fell from the sky, what did he do? And I quote: "When I realized that what was happening was not in my control, I lit a cigarette and made the most of my last plane trip." Just think about that. Almost everyone you know, if they had been in his seat, would have been coming apart. But he made the most of his last plane trip down. He didn't panic. He chose not to. He proved that worry and panic attacks are not mandatory. Jesus said they only happen if we let them happen to us. Don't let them happen. Tell yourself that. The first step, Jesus said, in breaking the worry habit is to tell yourself, "I don't have to do this and torture myself." Philippians 4:13 is a verse I wish we'd tattoo on our brain, put it on our mirror at home. It says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." All things. That includes stopping worrying, breaking the worry habit. All things. So in that verse, the Bible is saying to you, stop saying you can't. Yes, you can. Yes, you can, by the power of Jesus Christ within you. Isn't that good news? Amen. I wish more of you'd be smiling out there, and look like you're eating castor oil or something. Secondly, worry is a mental battle. And Jesus said, "Let not." That means it's a mental battle. Proverbs 23:7 says, "As a person thinks, so he is." I just believe that with all my heart. No one lives better than their thinking is. You never have a better life than the way you think. As a person thinks, so he is. So 1 Peter 1:13 says, "Guard your mind." And the word that is used in Greek there for "guard" is commonly used to describe a sentry posted at the entrance of a military camp. And the sentry's job, of course, is to challenge anyone coming, and to make sure they're not going to cause trouble inside the camp. So they challenge people before they come. And the picture here is, we too must challenge every thought that pops into our mind. And a lot of believers don't ever challenge their thoughts. A thought pops in their mind; they just go with it. And they wondered why they're not happier, why they're not at peace, more at peace, why they're having panic attacks. Because they didn't challenge the thought coming into their mind. This is just so important. A thought pops into our mind, such as "What if?" It's a terrible thought, because immediately we start writing negative fiction. It hasn't happened. We're not writing factual nonfiction. We're writing fiction. We're imagining what could happen tomorrow or next week. And it's negative. We have to throw some thoughts out. You have to kick some thoughts out of your mind. Thoughts, stop. Remember, Satan shoots flaming arrows of thoughts into our head. Tempting thoughts, negative thoughts, complaining thoughts. He wants to destroy your abundant life. And his primary strategy is by injecting thoughts into your mind. Flaming arrows. If he can get those thoughts running in your mind, you're going to have a bad day. You must throw some thoughts out. Worry is imagination out of control. Worry is imagination out of control. Jesus said, "Let not your heart be worried or anxious." That requires continuous effort. We can't be mentally lazy and guard our mind. That's why I say prayer is no substitute for the hard work of battling thoughts. Now, I believe in prayer. I urge prayer. But prayer is no substitute for the hard work of battling thoughts. We really need to receive that, because people often will say, "Well, just pray for me," as if prayer is getting God to do all the work. And I want to tell you, God will not do the work that we are supposed to do. It's just not magic. You can't just pray, "Give me peace." You've got to battle for that peace, because God is not going to work if we're too lazy to work. Amen. God's not going to work if we're too lazy to work. And a lot of Christians are not working at spirituality. A lot of people would leave a message like today and do nothing about it. They just won't work. I hope you will. I came across a great quote in my research this last week. I hope it blesses you. It said: "Just for today, I choose to be happy. Just for today, I will adjust myself to reality, instead of trying to control everyone around me. Just for today, I will take charge of my thoughts. Just for today, I will focus on this day, instead of worrying about tomorrow. Just for today, I will pray instead of worrying. Just for today, I will praise God for all His blessings that He's given me. Just for today, I will not let worry ruin this day. I will take one day at a time, just for today." Living in daytight compartments. We get better one day at a time, just for today. And third, if you want to break the worry habit, remember that it is Jesus who offers peace, not a slogan. Jesus. One of the most radical things Jesus ever said is in Matthew 11:28. It's on the screen. He says, "Come to Me, all who are weary and worried, and I will give you rest. Come to Me." Buddha never said that. Muhammad never said that. No one has ever said, "Come to me, and I'll give you peace. Come to me, and I'll give you forgiveness. Come to me, and I'll give you power." This is just radical about Jesus. It's coming to Him that we find this peace I'm talking about. How close are you to Jesus? You may be a Christian. You may believe all the right things. You may often be in church. But I'm still serious: how close are you to Jesus? We can believe all the right things and be in worship, but not be close to Jesus. Location, location, location is everything. Defeating worry depends upon our location. It's like real estate. Most important thing is location, location, location. In defeating worry, it's location, location, location. How close are you to Jesus? C. S. Lewis famously said, "There are some who are slowly becoming Christians, but others who are slowly ceasing to be Christians," because we leak. We leak. Last Tuesday, a guy came up to me when I was out and about, and he walked up to me and said, "Hey, Pastor Mike, I come to your church, and I just love it." I said, "I'm so happy to hear that." He said, "And by the way, are you open?" Now, I knew instantly, here's a guy who loves Compass, but he hasn't been here in 14 months, since COVID hit. I can say without any reservation, he is weak spiritually. He has no power. Because you can't be out of worship that long and be close to Jesus. No, you can't. If you're not worshiping Jesus, giving Him worship, how in the world do we expect to be close to Jesus? Because it's in worship that we're drawn closer to Jesus. All during the week, your mind is polluted, your heart is polluted, you had failures all during the week. It's only in worship that you regroup, that you regenerate your heart, that you're filled back up again with spiritual power. You miss a week of worship, you're weaker. You're not stronger. You miss two weeks, oh boy, you've leaked a lot. You miss three weeks, oh man, you're on fumes. This whole idea of not making worship a priority. I mean, I'm not getting on you. I'm just telling you what the reality is here. That we can be irregular in worship and be spiritually strong? You're living in La La Land. It just doesn't happen, because you're not getting this from newscasts. You're not getting this from anything you're reading. Only in worship, as you sing praises to God, does He inhabit you and draw near to you. Location, location. The most frequent command in the book of Revelation, when Christians in the first century are under tremendous stress, of people dying in the arena, the most frequent commandment has nothing to do with prophecy of the future, nothing to do with the end of time. The most frequent command is: Look up. See who's on the throne. Draw strength from that. Let it quench your worries and your fear. He's on the throne. And that's what worship does. The music and the preaching helps us to look up. And so do life groups that discuss quotes from these sermons. There's quotes that the people discuss. They go deeper. The application is deeper. But best of all, Christians rub off on each other. You know, a lot of Christianity is borrowing courage from someone else, borrowing peace from someone else. As you hear them talk, somehow or another, it gets transferred to you. "I too can be peaceful, like that Christian there." So you get into a life group, because you leak, and you need to borrow from other people. That's why I hope you sign up for our life group after worship. Take a risk. Upgrade your life. Life is a one-time offer. Don't waste it by being weak against worry and panic attacks. It's a one-time offer. Come to Jesus and get strong. Amen. Let me pray for you. O Lord, help us to do this sermon. Help us to make choices right now that are going to help us improve, and to conquer worry and panic. I pray it in Your name, Jesus. Amen.