I'm Darrell Bailey, Service for Christ. Thank you for tuning us in here, Sunday morning, July the 20th, 2025. The 24th of Tammuz, 5785 in the Hebrew calendar. As we look at one of the most talked about topics of all time, worry. I'm going to be talking to you about the cure for worry, Adam Matthew chapter 6, verses 25. down to verse 34. Stay tuned in as we get into the wonderful Word of God. Amen. I'm glad, you know, let me start by asking you something. Have you ever worried so much you started worrying about how much you were worrying? Well, some folks say worry works because 90% of what I worry about never happens. Well, that's like saying you smoke alarm did its job by screaming all night over some burnt toast. Worry is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it gets you nowhere. Jesus didn't stutter when he said, take no thought for your life. He wasn't suggesting, he was commanding it. And in this message this morning, we're going to break worries back with the power of God's word. You see, you don't need more pills. We need more prayer. You don't need another therapist. We need the great physician. You don't need a better strategy for success. We need a kingdom first life cycle. If you're worried sick, God has a cure. If you're stressed out, God has a strategy. If you're weighed down, God has a word, and his prescription is very, very simple. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. So tighten your seatbelt, unbuckle your burden, because we're about to uproot worry and plant peace where panic once lived. And so I'm glad as we look at the wonderful word of God here as we get into talking about are the cure for worry. Now the cure for worry when we look and realize as we seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. As we get into the wonderful word of God, let's open up with a time of prayer. Father, we come this Sunday morning burdened by the cares of life. The noise of uncertainty and the weight of a world that is newer, that is never stops spinning all the time. And so right now. We press pause. And we asked you Lord. To quieten our hearts. Still our minds. And lift our eyes to you. Open up the scriptures this morning, as they look at the scripture as I read it, like fire in our bones. Let the word of God that was spoken on the mount flow down through the sanctuary like living water. Destroy the root of worry in our lives today. and replace it with the peace that passes all understanding. May the Holy Spirit of God anoint every word, every heart, and every thought in Jesus' mighty name. Amen. As we get into the wonderful Word of God, we look at the cure for worry. We're looking to find peace in God's kingdom. And there's so many people that don't. We see in verse 25, Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor yet for your body what you shall put on. Is not the life more than meat and the body than raiment? Well, you know what? As we look at this, Jesus is not condemning proper planning, but he's rebuking anxiety and faithlessness. The believer's trust must rest in God's provision, not personal performance. This isn't Jesus saying, hey, don't care. He's saying, don't carry. Don't carry that burden. We aren't made to carry the load. We're made to cast it upon our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And so, as we read on, he says, Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are you not much better than they?" Well, when we look at verse 26, we see if God cares for the birds and how much more does He care for those bought by the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ. You've never seen a bluebird pacing the nest saying, what are we going to eat tomorrow? And if God's eye is on the sparrow, I know that he watches me. I tell you, there ain't nothing that makes my heart cry with joy. When I look at the little birds every day and know that God takes care of every one of them, there ain't a bird in this universe that goes without. God provides for all. He goes on, he said, which of you by taking thought can add more one cubic under his statue? And so, worry. cannot lengthen life, it can only shorten it. Faith adds, but fear subtracts. Worry doesn't make you taller or better, it just makes you grumpier and grayer. And I've run into a lot of them. And so we see in verse 28, And why take ye thoughtful raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They toil not, neither do they spin. And yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Well, when we consider the lilies, lilies don't toil, and yet they reflect the majesty of God himself more than Solomon's royal robes. God is the original fashion designer, amen? And he can dress the field better than Paris or Milan could ever dream. And so I'm glad when we go on and we look at the reading of the word of God, he goes on in verse 30. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Boy, I'm going to tell you, Each and every one of us, when we look and realize that the issue here is faith, a lack of trust in God's care, and God's care is the root of every anxious heart. God closed the grass, and yet some folks still act like God forgot their address. God knows where you at. He knows the home. He knows what you're going through. He knows the little and he knows the big and he knows your size and he knows your need. Hallelujah. And so we go forth. And he said, therefore, take no thought saying, what shall we eat or what shall we drink or wherewithal shall we be clothed? He goes on. He says, for after all these things, do the Gentiles seek for your heavenly father knoweth that you have need of all these things. I'm glad that our father knoweth. And I'm glad worry is a pagan problem when believers forget that they have a father who knows all and sees all. And so the Gentiles worry because they don't know the provider. But we as men and women of God don't need to panic like orphans. We're sons and daughters of the King of kings and the Lord of lords, hallelujah. And so we go on and he says, but seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you." Well, this is the answer to every worry across the country. Put God first when he's your priority, when he's your provision. I tell you, provision will follow when he's your priority. The careful worry is not working harder, but worshiping higher. And I'm glad the kingdom is first. Not career first, uh-uh. Not comfort first, uh-uh. Not cash first and money first, no. But I'm glad that he goes on and he says, take therefore no thought for the moral, for the moral shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient under the day is the evil thereof. Boy, you know what? Every one of us, Jesus is not promoting recklessness, but restfulness in God's daily provision. And tomorrow's got enough trouble. Don't ruin today by living in a day that hasn't even come yet because you don't know what's going to happen. Turn it over to God. And so Jesus sought to impart to his disciples a faith in the goodness of God that would cure most of the heartaches and headaches that plague us today. You know, as I look and try to find peace in God's kingdom, every one of us as we look and realize that, yes, God knows exactly what we stand in need of. It was the height of the Great Depression. A young father, John, had lost his job and his family was facing eviction. The weight of the responsibility pressed down on him like a physical burden. He spent sleepless nights consumed by worry, trying to figure out how to provide for his wife and his children. Have you been there? I bet you have. He paced the floor, John did, during that height of the Great Depression, replaying every mistake, every missed opportunity that he had made. His health began to suffer. His joy evaporated. His relationship strained under the pressure. One Sunday, his wife insisted, please, why don't you just go back to church? Reluctantly, he went. The sermon that morning was from Matthew chapter 6, verses 25 through 34. As the pastor began to speak of God's provision for the birds and the flowers, the flicker of hope ignited once again in John's heart. He realized that he had been so focused on his problems that he had forgotten about God. And that week, a series of unexpected events led to a new job opportunity. John learned a very powerful lesson. Worry is a thief, but faith is the key to unlocking God's provision. This is the cure for worry. I've assured deacons, I've assured other men and women of God in past days, God will take care of it. Many of them were thinking the church doors were going to close. They were thinking the worst thoughts you could ever think. Oh, I'm just sure you they did. They had lost their faith for a little bit. But then, I'm glad Jesus in his profound wisdom I'm glad he diagnosed the disease of worry that afflicts the human heart. He doesn't dismiss our concerns, but he offers a radical reorientation of our priorities. He invites us to shift our gaze from the fleeting to the eternal, from the temporal to the transcendent. We're about to embark on an exploration of a passage that uncovers the roots of worry, discovers the remedy that Jesus prescribes, like a master physician. He offers a cure that not only alleviates the symptoms, but he addresses the underlying condition of our ancient souls. And so, I'm glad that we look. And he says in verses 19 down to 23, as we kind of paraphrase, in attempting to bestow the gift of this great faith, he pointed out the perils of letting earthly possessions, listen, be our greatest treasure, because every one of us, when we look at all of these other things in the world, the greatest possession that we can ever have is the gift of faith in our Lord and Savior, trusting Him. And he also pointed out the impossibility of a man being both the servant of God and the servant of material things. You can't do both things. You've got to let go of those things of the world and trust like the little old sparrows that get fed by God every single day. And so as we start out, we look at the sinfulness of worry in verses 24, 25, 27, 32, and 34. we begin to notice some things about the sinfulness of worry. And so, is worry just a natural human emotion? Or is there something more serious, something sinful at its core? And so, he tells us in verse 25, therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what you shall eat, what you shall drink, nor yet for your body, what you shall put on. Is not the life more than meat and the body than raiment? Well, you know what? The contrast between the world's way and God's way. Here we see the contrast, the way of worry, and then there's the way of faith. Because take no thought. It doesn't mean we shouldn't plan or be responsible, but it means that we shouldn't be consumed by anxious thoughts that paralyze us and rob us of our peace. And so imagine a person carrying a heavy backpack filled with stones labeled bills, labeled health. labor, future, etc. I mean, the backpack is just loaded down and all of these stones are like bills and bad health and future problems. The weight of that backpack, that worry, bends us over, making it impossible to move forward with the joy and with the freedom that we need. You know, I told my worries to take a hike and they said they'd rather stay and stress me out. Well, that's what worry likes to do. But one cares and worries are adulterous because no man in verse 24 can serve two masters for either he will hate the one and love the other or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammoth. And so worry reveals where our trust truly lies. When we worry, we're essentially saying that God's not sufficient to meet our needs. We're placing our faith in mammoth. What is mammoth? It's material things. It's security rather than God. And so Augustine said one time, thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee. You see, worry is a symptom of a restless heart that has not yet found rest in God. Listen, you're a child of the king. you got the cure for worry. And so worry, the cares and the worries are adulterous. But also, we see secondly, that not only that, but cares and worries about the means of living are secondary. Worry is adulterous and worry is secondary because he said in verse 25, Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor yet for your body what you shall put on. Is not the life more than meat and the body than raiment? You know, Jesus reminds us of the greater value of life and body. Our physical needs are important, but they're secondary to the spiritual reality. of our relationship with God. Worrying about these secondary things distracts us from the primary purpose of our existence. And so the Native American songwriter Rich Mullins talked about, my God is an awesome God. Remember that song? Well, our God is an awesome God. He reigns from heaven above, hit with wisdom and power and love. Our God is an awesome God. Well, that song reminds us of the greatness of God, which dwarfs our worries and anxieties, because we don't need that. Worry is adulterous. Worry is secondary, is what we say. And worry is useless. Because cares and worries are useless. Because what did we read in verse 27? I'm telling you word for word. I'm giving you scripture word for word about how you can have the cure for worry. Which of you by taking thought can add one cubic under his statue? Well, Worry is not only sinful, but it also is futile because it doesn't solve our problems. It only magnifies them. It doesn't add a single inch to our height or a single day to our lives. And so imagine trying to lengthen your shadow by worrying about it. It's a pointless exercise. Similarity, worry is an attempt to control the uncontrollable. And so worry is adulterous. Worry is secondary. Worry is useless. But also we see that worry is something pagan. Because in verse 32, we see, for after all these things do the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. Well, you know what? Adrian Rogers used to say some stuff like this. And this is what I remember he would say. Worry is a characteristic of those who do not know God. It's the mindset of the world, not the mindset of the believer. And we as children of God have a heavenly father who knows our needs and has promised to provide for us. That's what Adrian Rogers would always say about worry. And so I read one time Martin Luther the great one that nailed up the 95 Theses on the Catholic church door and began to break away and said, and our Lord says, you worry in vain, it will avail you nothing. God knows all about it and he will surely care for you, unquote. That's the writing of Martin Luther. You know what? We'd still be under Catholicism if Martin Luther never had broke away and begin to nail up on the church door the 95 theses that he did. And so worry is adulterous. Worry is secondary. Worry is useless. Worry is pagan. But also worry and cares are injurious because in Matthew chapter 34, chapter 6, verse 34, take therefore no thought for tomorrow, for tomorrow shall take thought for these, for the things itself. Sufficient under the day is the evil thereof. Well, worry doesn't just steal our joy. It also damages our health. It robs us of sleep. It weakens our immune system. It contributes to a host of physical and emotional problems. Jesus tells us that each day has enough challenges of its own without us borrowing trouble from tomorrow. And so, The image of a person trying to carry the burdens of today and tomorrow at the same time illustrates the injurious nature of worry. It's an impossible load, and it will eventually crush us. And so we see that as we look at this, we evaluate ourselves. We need to listen to the sermon from the sparrows. You see, the sparrows, as I said, boy, I watch these little birds every day. I love to be a bird watcher. how happy they are, they're singing a song. Man, I'm going to tell you, ain't nothing like watching these little old birds be so happy because God provides for them every single day. Praise God. We need to evaluate ourselves by looking around because the sparrows work, but they do not worry. And so, It's not work that upsets us and robs us of sleep at night. Rather, it's worry that creates tension that destroys our health, happiness, and effectiveness. And so, as we look and evaluate ourselves, we need to listen to a lecture from the Lilies. the lilies begin to speak to us. And from them lilies, there are many profitable lessons that we can learn from the beautiful lily that grows out of the mud and the dirt to become the thing of beauty, exceeding the glory of Solomon. And so, can you ever look out in the fields at the wildflowers and all the lilies? Boy, the tiger lilies, man, that's out and around in the landscape, how beautiful they are. And so we evaluate ourselves. The God that takes care of the sparrows, provides for the lilies, will most definitely take care of his children who trust him, love him, who seek to obey him, and do his goodwill. Now, I'm going to tell you, I thank God. We owe so as we accept ourselves. as we many of us maybe you've had problems with alcohol abuse or drugs and you went to some kind of program and one of the things that we would always in our serenity to accept God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference me and my best friend brother Darrell Pruitt would always say this one a lot of times to each other and he would mention it because he went through all of the programs and he said, out of my life, when I got the lowest that I could possibly fall, when I looked up, I recognized God was right there to pick me up and to bring me out of the mire and out of all of the junk. And so I remember when Brother Darrell Pruitt was recovering, boy, he called me two or three times a day, every day. Man, I'd talk with him. I'd encourage him and praise God. As every day went by, he got a little bit stronger because as we accept ourselves, what God does, God can do some things. There's some things in life that are absolutely unchangeable and the only proper response to these is that of acceptance. You got to accept ourselves. And man, we've all been failures. We've all done the worst of the worst. But we've got to sit and say, Lord, I accept. I accept what you have got for me. And now I've got to go forward and we've got to be able to do that. We must not fret and worry ourselves into frustration about the things over which we have no control either in the present, the past, or the future. And so, I'm glad. Dedicate ourselves. If we could, if we would conquer our cares and overcome our worries, we must dedicate ourselves to something bigger than ourselves. And so, I'm glad that we see that we must put first things first. The priority of God's claim must be recognized and a complete surrender to God and a joyful cooperation with him and the bringing of his rule of love into our hearts and lives of others will do much to help us to forget all about our anxieties. And so as we continue on, we spoke about, first of all, the sinfulness of worry. And verses 24, 25, 27, verse 32 and 34. Well, here we give you the antidote to worry. Through that antidote, I'm glad that if worry is so destructive, what's the alternative? What's the practical steps can we take to break free from its grip? Well, we see that it tells us here in verse 26 and I'm glad that each and every one of us that the sermon that's preached by the sparrows because behold the fowls of the air for they sow not neither do they reap nor gather into barns yet your heavenly father feedeth them are you not much better than they well you know what here is the focus on the practical steps that we can take to overcome worry, drawing lessons from nature itself. Because I'm glad that behold the fowls of the air. And the Greek word behold means to look intently, to consider carefully. Jesus is urging us to pay close attention to the lessons that nature teaches us. That is the antidote to worry. And so a story that I was reading in our daily bread one day, about a woman who was struggling with anxiety over her finances and one day she sat in her garden watching the birds flutter around seemingly without a care in all of the world and she realized that if God could provide for these creatures how much more would he provide for her and her household and as his beloved child of God. You know I've tried to learn from the birds but they just kept asking me for more bird seed. Well, listen, listen, I'm a bird watcher. Old Chad Thompson at work, one of the linemen and the CDL instructors, he's got a bird feeder that is out in front of his window. And them little old sparrows, they would drop down and gather around them birds and they will eat those seeds. You talking about so relaxing. to watch them birds know that they've got something right there. You know what? I believe God plays a hand in whatever anybody puts out for those birds. God plays a hand in it. I believe he touched the heart of Chad, and Chad says, I'm going to put something out for these birds, and these birds, when they come around, they're going to have something to eat, these seeds. Well, you know what? We see the sermon from the sparrows. Behold the pharaohs of the air, for they sow not, neither did they reap, nor gather in the barns, yet your heavenly father feedeth them. Are you not much better than they? Old Mays Jackson, one of my favorites, used to say, the sparrows don't worry about their next meal. They trust their Heavenly Father to provide for them. He went on and he'd say, well, Jesus uses this simple example to illustrate God's care for his creation and to remind us that we are all of a far greater value. Well, I'm glad. Charles Spurgeon said one time, learn from the birds. how to trust God and like them cast all your care upon him." And so we see the sermon from the sparrows. But secondly, the lecture from the lilies that we talked about, because we take in verses 28, 20 and why you take thought for Raymond. Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, they toil not, neither do they spin. And yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all of his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Well, the lilies grow in beauty and splendor, not through their own effort. but through God's design, through God's provision. And Jesus uses this illustration to teach us about the beauty of trusting in God's care, even in the midst of all of our anxieties, praise God. And so the song from the casting crowns, praise you in this storm. The song speaks of trusting God, even when we don't see the provision and praise him through the storms of life. And so the sermon from the sparrows, the lecture from the lilies, but also the father's faithful provision, because in verses 30 and down the verse 32, wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is and tomorrow is cast, into the oven. Shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? Or what shall we drink? Or wherewithal shall we be clothed? For after all these things do the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things." I'm glad that for me, after many years being a pastor where I was, I had to move on to help other folks to get more faith. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. That's the truth. emphasizing that God, as our father, is aware of all of our needs. He's not a distant, uncaring deity, but a loving parent who desires to provide for his children. A.W. Tozer would say something like this, and I quote him, the reason why many are still troubled, still seeking, still unhappy, is that they have not come to a place of full surrender to God, unquote. And so we see the cure for worry, the sinfulness of worry. the antidote to worry as well. And so, thirdly, we see the priority of the kingdom of God, because I'm glad that every one of us, what's the ultimate cure for worry? What single focus can reorient our lives and bring us lasting peace? Verse 33, that's the focus. But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Amen. And so we look and realize that here the focus is on the practical application of seeking God's kingdom as the solution to worry. He ain't no Greek word seek. to seek earnestly, to strive after, to pursue with all of your heart. It's not a passive desire, but it's an active pursuit. The kingdom of God, I'm telling you, God's reign, God's rule, God's well-being done on earth as it is in heaven. It's not just a place, but it's a way of life. righteousness in verse 33 because but seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you righteousness that's God's standard of right living both imputed received through faith in Christ and imparted lived out in obedience to God's word hallelujah and so Remember the story of Eric Little and the chariots of fire, the Olympic runner that refused to compromise his commitment to God's will, powerfully illustrating what it means to seek first the kingdom of God. He said, I'm not running. I'm not doing the Olympics on God's day on Sunday. No, sir. No way. His unwavering dedication, even in the face of pressure and opposition, serves as a compelling example of prioritizing God's will above all else. You know, I tried seeking first the kingdom of God on Google Maps. Turns out it's not a place. It's a priority. And so I'm glad every one of us, first of all, the command to seek. It is a command. He says, seek ye first. And so it's not a suggestion. It's a command. It's not one option among many. Oh, A, B, C, or is it D? It's the first priority. It's the organizing principle of our lives, church. Hallelujah. People, Facebook, that's listening. And so I'm glad. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said when Christ calls a man he bids him come and die unquote you see seeking first the kingdom of God Involves a radical surrender of our own agenda and a willingness to follow Christ wherever he leads praise God and so the command is to seek but I'm glad that the object of our pursuit and that is the kingdom of God his Righteousness praise God the kingdom of God in his righteousness We're not just to seek God's blessings, but God himself. He reigns in our hearts and his righteousness is in our lives. And it's about aligning our lives with God's will and living according to his standards. Praise God. And so I'm glad the songwriter, Matt Redmond, blessed be your name. You give and take away. You give and take away. My heart will choose to say, Lord, blessed be your name. That song expresses the attitude of worship and the surrender that comes from seeking God's kingdom above all else, even in the times of hardship and unpleasantries. And so there's the command to seek. And so there's the object of our pursuit. But the promise of that provision, because and all these things shall be added unto you. Seek ye first the kingdom of God, that he tells us. And so, in doing, every one of us, he says, seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteous, and all these things shall be added unto you. And so, in doing, I'm glad that this is not a guarantee of wealth, or ease, but a promise that God will provide for our needs as we prioritize his kingdom. You know what? Don't be like the folks that I ran into and says, you know, hey, I'm a Christian. This ain't supposed to happen to me. Listen, the Bible says it rains on the just and the unjust alike. Yes, it is. If it happens to you, it happens to you. And you know what? Unpleasant things happen to everybody. We think that it's these old sinners that are out here sinning every day and nothing happens. It's like the old drunk that's out in the car that kills everybody and he can wake up and ain't even got a bruise and a bump on him. But I'm going to tell you something. It's a promise of provision, not necessary prosperity, that he says, Amen, and all these things shall be added unto you. You know what? There's a story about a missionary that faced insurmountable challenges in a foreign country. And she prayed, she sought God's will, and time after time, God provided for her needs in the most miraculous ways. And so As we close out, the God who has given us life also will provide day after day the things necessary for the sustaining of life. Worry is a universal experience that we all deal with, but it doesn't have to be our master. Jesus offers us a better way, a way of life, a way of trust, a way of surrender. He invites us to exchange the burden of anxiety for the peace of God's kingdom. The cure for worry is not found in positive thinking or self-help strategies, but in a radical reorientation of our lives around the person and the purpose of God. And when we seek first the kingdom and his righteousness, we discover that he's not only able to meet our needs, but also able to transform our hearts, giving us a peace that surpasses all understanding. This is one of them scriptures that we need to preach every single day of our life. We need to have it every day, thinking about the kingdom of God being first, seeking it first. Imagine the ending of the spending of the rest of your life in heaven or hell. Imagine standing at the end of your life looking back on the choices that you made. You look back and you remember the time when your hair started falling out. You look back and say, oh my goodness, when I was 50, I started wearing glasses. All of a sudden, my teeth started coming out. Man, I started getting bent over and couldn't straighten up. You get my point? And so Will you see a life marked by constant anxiety? A life spent chasing after things that ultimately didn't matter? Or will you see a life characterized by peace? A life lived in joyful surrender to God's will? The path that you choose today determines the story of your tomorrow and the reality of your eternity. And so, friend, God didn't call you to carry what he already promised to cover. He's done put that under the blood of Jesus. Jesus didn't bleed on Calvary so you could live in anxiety and panic. The same God that feeds the sparrow clothes the lilies in the field is the one saying to you right now, seek me first and I'll take care of the rest. Hallelujah. Well, worry is the devil's forecast. Cloudy with a chance of life. And it's like checking the weather and panicking over a thunderstorm that never comes. Man, I'm gonna tell you the other day, whoo, some lightning dropped down. I jumped, I jumped in the air. It scared me so bad. I thought that it got me. You know what? It's like checking the weather and panicking over a thunderstorm that never comes. You've been carrying umbrellas in a season of sunshine. Look out. Worry's favorite food is what if? What if? What if I lose my job? What if I get sick? What if the money runs out? But God's response is this, listen, hear me crystal clear. What if you just trust me? Hey, what if you just trust me? You don't need to worry when the author of tomorrow is already in your today. Worry might knock at the door, but let faith answer that door. So give God your worry and he'll give you his peace. Let's lay it down, not tomorrow, not later, right now. And so I'm glad, you know, as every one of us, as you like me, an old burnout preacher like me. And some of my things that I've been doing to deal with that burnout stuff is I've been writing music. I've been writing songs. And you know what? Some of them for nobody to ever hear. They're just for me. They're just between me and the Lord. And I enjoy that because it takes a lot of thought. It takes a lot of time to walk through the day and to think what that next word is going to be. And you know what? I don't care if nobody ever hears or one of them. Because it's my therapy, it's what I'm doing. It's what God's given me, and it's a fellowship that the Lord is speaking and letting me have the joy of writing words down that are a blessing. Because one of these days, all we're ever going to do in heaven is be singing and giving glory and praise and adoration to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And so, you know what? Instead of concerning ourselves with the means of living, We would be wise to concern ourselves with the purpose for which we live and to concentrate upon living each day to the fullest of the glory of God will cure us from the harmful effects of worry and make possible for us the abundant life in the here and now. And so as we get ready to leave, I hope and pray that as you pray with me, Lord, We surrender the heavy backpack of worry. We unzip it. We empty it out, every fear, every doubt, every anxiety, and we lay it at your feet this morning in the name of Jesus. Lord, forgive us for putting our focus on the what ifs instead of the great I am. Teach us to seek your kingdom first, not last, not second, not if we have time, but first. Thank you for being our great provider. Lord, thank you for my wife, for my families, and I pray that you'll continue to overshadow my family that I pray for every day. My family of God at Bethel Crossroads, watch over them. Lord, I know with great power, I know that you're overshadowing can overshadow our church and our families. You can protect us, our peace, our portion. Help us to leave, Lord, knowing this morning that we're worry-free, faith-filled, and we declare boldly, worry ends where worship begins. In the name, the mighty name, the powerful name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. I hope and pray that you got something out of the message this morning. Amen. Because God is so good. The cure for worry. Take my heart and make it true. Let it be with love for you. Shake my mind with heaven's song. Help me stand where faith is strong. All I am and all I say, use my Let the Lord use your life. How about it? As I close out, maybe you need to give that backpack up right now. Let the Lord take that weight. Leave it at the foot of the cross and never look back. Let God have it all. God can carry that weight that you've been carrying for so long. Give it to him. Let him have it. The cure for worry, seek Him first, the kingdom of God, and all things after that, because He has the answer to your worries. Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. May God bless you as our prayers.