The text from a member pops up on my phone: "I am filled with so many worries and fears."
I visit with a shut-in who has fallen. They're in the hospital awaiting surgery for a broken hip. There are a few tears, and more than a few fears. "Please pray that the surgery goes well. Pray that my rehab goes well. I want to be able to go back to my home. But I'm afraid I won't be able to."
I groan as I get up in the morning. I've finished Physical Therapy for now, but my right hip remains weak. Painful. So I continue the exercises I've been given. Stretching. Balance exercises. Walking. And stair-exercising in my house. Up and down. 16 steps each way. It's a challenge. And sometimes I worry, "Will my hip get stronger, less painful? Or is this it?"
What about you? Are there worries nibbling away at the corners of your mind? Fears lurking in the shadows of your heart? About work? Family? Health? Politics? I wonder if we all don't have moments, sometimes even seasons when worry and fear can so cloud over our life we begin to feel hopeless!
For such moments, our Lord's Holy Spirit gives us comfort. Hope. Confidence. Peace. How? Through his precious word. What follows is meant to be a self-guided Bible study. It follows an outline I use for personal meditation and in Bible Classes. If you've got any questions about it, send me a text or email. My prayer is that with a Change of Focus and a Friend at our Side, our Lord will quell the storms of fear and worry that sometimes rage inside us.
Part 1 of the Lord's Solution: A Change of Focus: Stop Looking In. Start Looking Up!
Psalm 55:22 Place your burden on the LORD, and he will support you. He will never allow the righteous to fall.
Psalm 56:3 On the day when I am afraid, I will trust in you.
Psalm 94:17-19 Unless the LORD had been my helper, my soul would soon have dwelt in silence. When I said, “My foot has slipped,” your mercy, LORD, upheld me. When my worries within me were many, your comfort brought joy to my soul.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 But blessed is anyone who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by water. It sends out its roots to the stream. It does not fear the heat when it comes. Its leaves will remain green. It is not concerned about a time of drought. It does not stop producing fruit.
Matthew 6:31-33 So do not worry, saying, “What will we eat?” or “What will we drink?” or “What will we wear?” For the unbelievers chase after all these things. Certainly your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Matthew 11:28 Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
1 Peter 5:6-11 Therefore humble yourselves under God’s powerful hand so that he may lift you up at the appointed time. Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. Have sound judgment. Be alert. Your adversary, the Devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Resist him by being firm in the faith. You know that the same kinds of sufferings are being laid on your brotherhood all over the world. After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who called you into his eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you. To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.
Part 2 of the Lord's Solution: Seek Out A Friend and Be A Friend.
Proverbs 12:25 Anxiety in a person’s heart weighs him down, but a good word brings him joy.
Proverbs 17:17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of trouble.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their hard work. If one of them falls, his companion can lift him up. Pity the person who falls and has no one else to lift him up. What’s more, if two lie down, they can keep warm, but how can one person keep warm alone? Though an attacker can overpower one person, two people together can stand up against him. A rope with three strands is not quickly snapped.
John 15:12-13 This is my command: Love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this: that someone lays down his life for his friends.
Are there other verses you'd like to add? Let me know. By grace we walk together, always one step closer to eternity, blanketed in the love of our Lord, and blessed with fellow believers for the journey.
Privileged to serve,
Rev. Glenn Schwanke
I visit with a shut-in who has fallen. They're in the hospital awaiting surgery for a broken hip. There are a few tears, and more than a few fears. "Please pray that the surgery goes well. Pray that my rehab goes well. I want to be able to go back to my home. But I'm afraid I won't be able to."
I groan as I get up in the morning. I've finished Physical Therapy for now, but my right hip remains weak. Painful. So I continue the exercises I've been given. Stretching. Balance exercises. Walking. And stair-exercising in my house. Up and down. 16 steps each way. It's a challenge. And sometimes I worry, "Will my hip get stronger, less painful? Or is this it?"
What about you? Are there worries nibbling away at the corners of your mind? Fears lurking in the shadows of your heart? About work? Family? Health? Politics? I wonder if we all don't have moments, sometimes even seasons when worry and fear can so cloud over our life we begin to feel hopeless!
For such moments, our Lord's Holy Spirit gives us comfort. Hope. Confidence. Peace. How? Through his precious word. What follows is meant to be a self-guided Bible study. It follows an outline I use for personal meditation and in Bible Classes. If you've got any questions about it, send me a text or email. My prayer is that with a Change of Focus and a Friend at our Side, our Lord will quell the storms of fear and worry that sometimes rage inside us.
Part 1 of the Lord's Solution: A Change of Focus: Stop Looking In. Start Looking Up!
Psalm 55:22 Place your burden on the LORD, and he will support you. He will never allow the righteous to fall.
Psalm 56:3 On the day when I am afraid, I will trust in you.
Psalm 94:17-19 Unless the LORD had been my helper, my soul would soon have dwelt in silence. When I said, “My foot has slipped,” your mercy, LORD, upheld me. When my worries within me were many, your comfort brought joy to my soul.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 But blessed is anyone who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by water. It sends out its roots to the stream. It does not fear the heat when it comes. Its leaves will remain green. It is not concerned about a time of drought. It does not stop producing fruit.
Matthew 6:31-33 So do not worry, saying, “What will we eat?” or “What will we drink?” or “What will we wear?” For the unbelievers chase after all these things. Certainly your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Matthew 11:28 Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
1 Peter 5:6-11 Therefore humble yourselves under God’s powerful hand so that he may lift you up at the appointed time. Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. Have sound judgment. Be alert. Your adversary, the Devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Resist him by being firm in the faith. You know that the same kinds of sufferings are being laid on your brotherhood all over the world. After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who called you into his eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you. To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.
Part 2 of the Lord's Solution: Seek Out A Friend and Be A Friend.
Proverbs 12:25 Anxiety in a person’s heart weighs him down, but a good word brings him joy.
Proverbs 17:17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of trouble.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their hard work. If one of them falls, his companion can lift him up. Pity the person who falls and has no one else to lift him up. What’s more, if two lie down, they can keep warm, but how can one person keep warm alone? Though an attacker can overpower one person, two people together can stand up against him. A rope with three strands is not quickly snapped.
John 15:12-13 This is my command: Love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this: that someone lays down his life for his friends.
Are there other verses you'd like to add? Let me know. By grace we walk together, always one step closer to eternity, blanketed in the love of our Lord, and blessed with fellow believers for the journey.
Privileged to serve,
Rev. Glenn Schwanke
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