TJ Addington‘s Weekday Devos Podcast

Six Truths That Eliminate Worry

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Worry and anxiety are real issues for almost everyone. David talks a great deal about worry in the Psalms - issues he could not fix, situations that he was concerned about and those who were his enemies and wanted to hurt him. His situations were no different than ours, but he was able to give those worries back to God because he understood God. Psalm 139 gives us a framework that can give us confidence in God when we experience anxiety and worry. Think about these six truths in light of the things you worry about. 

  1. God knows you fully. “O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.” There is nothing that God does not know about us. Nothing. He knows our situation, our wiring, our needs and our thoughts. 
  • God protects us. “You hem me in - behind and before; you have laid your hand on me.” Think about that. God’s hand is on you today. Right now. And He protects you from all sides.
  • God’s Spirit is with us always. “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” There is nowhere and no circumstance where God’s spirit is not there with us. In addition to His presence, David says God’s right hand holds us fast.
  • There is no darkness in our lives that God does not penetrate. “Even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.” This ought to be great encouragement to those of us who suffer from depression. It is a dark place - I know - but God has the ability to meet us there as well.
  • God created us and knows our wiring. “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. When I was woven in the secret place… your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” There are no surprises to God. There is no situation we face or path we walk that He did not know we would walk. If He knows, He is also prepared for all situations we face. He knew the challenges we would face even before our birth.
  • God’s word is our encouragement. “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!” It is in the daily immersion of our minds in His word that we are encouraged again and again and which drives back the discouragement of worry and anxiety.

    • All of these truths lead to the last words of Psalm 139. David prays this: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Why does David ask God to search him and know his anxious thoughts? Because he knows that those thoughts are not necessary and hold him back. He also knows that there is no need for him to live with anxious thoughts, given who God is and how He cares for us. The next time you find yourself in a spiral of worry, read Psalm 139 and pray His promises to you back to God. 

    Father, I am amazed again at Your goodness and care for me. Your knowledge of me is a great gift. Your presence with me is a great encouragement, and the ministry of Your Spirit to me is a promise I claim today. Search me and know my anxious thoughts so I can leave them with You where they belong. Amen.

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    TJ Addington‘s Weekday Devos PodcastBy TJ Addington