Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
In this episode of Church Nerds United, we delve into the universal struggle of worry and anxiety. Join us as we explore the many facets of what keeps us up at night, from the safety of our children to financial stability, health concerns, and the constant barrage of unsettling news. We'll discuss how worry affects our peace, joy, and spiritual growth, and why it never solves our problems.
Discover the powerful teachings of Jesus, who reassures us with His promises in Matthew 6: "Do not worry." Learn practical steps to overcome worry by looking to your Father, strengthening your faith, and trusting in your future. We’ll share stories, including a heartfelt anecdote about a young girl's fear during a storm, to illustrate the loving care of our heavenly Father.
Through this episode, you'll gain insights into how to trust in God's faithfulness, seek first His kingdom, and renew your mind with His word. Whether you’re battling anxiety, facing financial uncertainties, or dealing with personal struggles, this episode offers encouragement and spiritual guidance to help you find peace and freedom from your worries.
Tune in and take a step towards a more faith-filled, worry-free life. Don't miss this inspiring message on finding true comfort and assurance in God's promises.
Creators & Guests
What is Church Nerds United?
Welcome to Church Nerds United, the ultimate podcast where the sacred and the geeky collide! Dive deep into the Holy Scriptures with us as we explore sermons sprinkled with your favorite gaming quests, cosplay characters, and anime adventures. Whether you're a Paladin of Prayer, a Cosplay Crusader, or an Otaku of the Old Testament, this is your sanctuary.
Join our fellowship as we level up our faith through the lens of epic battles, legendary heroes, and fantastical worlds. From the wisdom of the Proverbs to the valor of the Apostles, we'll draw parallels between biblical narratives and the beloved realms of gaming, cosplay, and anime.
Tune in for:
Sermon Side Quests: Discover the deeper meaning behind Scripture with analogies from your favorite games and anime.
Cosplay Character Spotlight: Unveil the biblical virtues embodied by iconic characters and how they inspire our spiritual journey.
Anime Apologetics: Engage in lively discussions that bridge the gap between faith and fandom, unraveling the spiritual themes in popular series.
So, grab your controller, don your cosplay armor, and get ready to embark on an epic quest of faith and fandom. Church Nerds United is here to guide you on a heroic journey, one episode at a time. May the faith be with you!
Welcome, fellow adventurers, to Church Nerds United, where faith meets fandom in a legendary alliance. We are now in our summer series. This series presents guest speakers giving a deeper insight into God's word. Whether you're tuning in from a distant galaxy, a magical realm, or just your cozy living room, you're in the right place to geek out over the gospel. Before we embark on today's epic quest, I have a special request.
Greater Guild Announcer:If you love what we're doing here at Church Nerds United, please consider incredible projects incredible projects like church gaming events, teen centers, and nerd centric missions, both in the US and around the world. So grab your controller, don your cosplay armor, and prepare for an adventure of faith and fandom. Together, we can make our community stronger, 1 epic quest at a time. Let's dive into today's episode and level up our spiritual journey.
Craig Groeschel:Well, I'm curious. How many of you right now might have something that you're a little bit worried about? Raise your hand. Raise your hand. Some people, I got a lot that I'm worried about.
Craig Groeschel:I don't blame you because there's a lot to worry about in this world. For example, do any of you have kids? Raise your hands. Online, you can type in the comment section, I have kids. You can type in, I have 3 kids.
Craig Groeschel:You can type in, I have kids, pray for me. Because you have if you have kids, there's a lot to worry about. Right? I I mean, you worry about their safety nowadays. When I was growing up, you didn't really worry about that much, but you do today.
Craig Groeschel:You worry about their mental health. You worry about their friends. You worry about are they getting into the wrong stuff. Then how about, does anybody ever read or watch the news? That'll give you anxiety, right?
Craig Groeschel:I mean, you look around and here we are in an election year, which is complicated and divisive for a lot of people. The economy feels like shaky. Inflation seems to be out of control. Interest won't seem to settle down. A lot of people I talk to are like freaked out and worried financially.
Craig Groeschel:Just how are they gonna make it? Not only how am I gonna pay the bills, but like could I ever even afford a house? Doesn't seem like it's possible. And if that's not enough to worry about, then you factor in AI. It's gonna wipe us out.
Craig Groeschel:I mean, we're
Audience:all gone anyway. It's just to feel like it's gonna take over
Craig Groeschel:the world. And the worst of all though probably is any time there's something wrong with you physically. Let's say you have a headache or you feel dizzy and so you Google your symptoms. Have you done this? No matter what you have, you're gonna die 3 days from now.
Craig Groeschel:That's what happens whenever you Google your symptoms. It's hard not to worry with all that's going on in the world. But there's some really good news. We're in a message series called He Promises. We're looking at the promises of Jesus and Jesus promises us, because He's good and because He will provide, you don't have to worry.
Craig Groeschel:In Matthew chapter 6, Jesus tells us 5 different times in 10 verses, do not worry. Look what He said in Matthew 6:25. Jesus said this, He said, Therefore I tell you, help me out somebody, He said, do not worry about your life, what you'll eat or drink, or about your body, what you'll wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothes? Jesus tells us, don't worry.
Craig Groeschel:How? Why? But let's start with the practical reason. Why did Jesus tell us not to worry? Perhaps because worry has never changed anything for good.
Craig Groeschel:Right? Never ever. In fact, it's quite the opposite. What does worry do to you? When you worry, when you stew, when you're anxious, worry is poisoning our peace.
Craig Groeschel:Worry is killing our joy. And worry is stunting our spiritual growth. When you think about it, worry doesn't have a single useful purpose. Someone said it's like this. Someone said, worry is like rocking in a rocking chair.
Craig Groeschel:It gives you something to do, but you're not going anywhere. Right? And that's what it is. I mean, you're sitting there worrying, you're stewing, you're you're wringing your hands and you're not going anywhere. It doesn't do a single positive thing.
Craig Groeschel:When you think about it, worry never solved a problem. Right? If you're worried about your money, worry never paid a bill. If you're worried about your health, worry never made you healthier. Worry never protected your child from harm.
Craig Groeschel:Worrying never helped you pass a test. Worrying never healed a broken relationship. Worry has only increased your anxiety. It's never increased your peace. And Jesus promised us because God is faithful, because God is good, because God always provides, you don't have to worry.
Craig Groeschel:In fact, in this text, he gives us 3 things to look to in order to overcome your worry. What are we gonna do? We're gonna look to 3 things. We're gonna look to your Father, we're gonna look to your faith, and we're gonna look to your future. Let's say it aloud.
Craig Groeschel:What are we gonna look to? We're gonna look to our Father, we're gonna look to our faith, and we're gonna look to our future. Let's talk about it. Number 1, we're gonna look to your Father, why? Because He is always faithful.
Craig Groeschel:We're gonna look to the goodness of God because He's always faithful. In fact, this is what Jesus said in Matthew 626, he said, look at the birds of the air. They don't sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet, who does it? Your heavenly father. He feeds them.
Craig Groeschel:He provides for them. And then Jesus says, hey, aren't you way more valuable to God than the birds. Jesus shows us that God cares for Tweety. If God cares for Tweety, how much more will God care for you? And then I like kind of the image.
Craig Groeschel:He says, hey, look at the birds. They don't worry. You never see a bird awake at 2 in the morning, pacing its nest, rubbing its wings together, asking himself, do you think the supply chain problem are gonna result in a shortage of worms? You never see that, right? You don't.
Craig Groeschel:Because they trust that there will be food. The same is true for you. You don't have to worry because your heavenly father cares for you and your father is always faithful. Now that raises a question, how do you trust in a Heavenly Father that you can't see? It's a fair question.
Craig Groeschel:We have 6 children. My oldest daughter is Katie. When she was young, she was a bundle of energy. And 1 night, there was a storm and Katie came running into our bedroom. Mommy, dad, mom, mommy, dad, mom, I'm scared, I'm scared.
Craig Groeschel:Can I sleep
Audience:sleep with you?
Craig Groeschel:Can I sleep with you? Can I sleep with you? And I'm the softie, believe it or not, and Amy's 1 like, go back to bed, Katie. No, I'm afraid. No, I'm afraid.
Craig Groeschel:And Amy said, God is with you. God is in your room. God will protect you. Go back to your room with God. And Katie said, I've got an idea.
Craig Groeschel:Mom, you go sleep with God. I'm standing here with daddy. Right? Kinda makes sense because it can be difficult to trust in a God that you can't see. And any time I find myself worried, is God going to come through, does God care?
Craig Groeschel:I try to remind myself of what I call the Godness of God. The Godness of God. Who is God? We have to remember, God is the supreme creator, ruler, and sustainer of the entire universe. God is big enough to overcome all the forces of darkness And God is loving enough to care about the details of your life.
Craig Groeschel:I wanna remind you, God cares about what you care about. When you're worried, look to your heavenly Father, because he is always faithful. The second thing we learn from the teaching of Jesus is to look to your faith, because your faith conquers fears. Look to your faith because your faith is greater than what you fear. Jesus said this in Matthew 633.
Craig Groeschel:He said, but seek first God's kingdom and his righteousness. And then all those things that you're worried about, all these things will be given to you as well. What do we do? We seek first God's kingdom. We seek first God's righteousness.
Craig Groeschel:We seek first the things that matter to Him. We seek Him first in his word. We turn our mind toward him. We think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. We let him renew our minds.
Craig Groeschel:We seek first the kingdom of God and when we do, he will take care of what you're worried about. Whenever you're tempted to worry, tell yourself, before I panic, first I'm gonna pray to the God of heaven who declares that all things are possible with Him. Before you worry, first open God's word, His living word, which comforts you and directs you and corrects you. His word for you. Before you turn to your substance to cope, turn to your savior.
Craig Groeschel:Because whoever Jesus sets free is free indeed. Every single
Audience:time. So what
Craig Groeschel:do we do? We seek first the kingdom of God. And whenever I start to look toward Jesus, the Son of God, who gave His life for me, God raised Him from the dead, whenever I look to Jesus, my faith starts to conquer my fears. Remember, it was Paul who said, for God has not given us a spirit of fear, but instead, he's given us a spirit of what? Of power and of love and of a sound mind.
Craig Groeschel:If you find yourself afraid, that did not come from God. We're not gonna listen to what doesn't come from God. We're gonna tell that voice, get out of my mind, get out of my head, get out of my life. Get behind me, Satan. I'm not listening to you, I'm listening to my father.
Craig Groeschel:My father says he's good, my Father says he's whipping, my Father says he'll never leave me, he'll never forsaken, he'll always provide for me. He is working in all things to bring about good. I'm not listening to the lies of the devil. Worry has never done anything good. Worry makes you anxious.
Craig Groeschel:Faith gives you peace. Worry drags you away from God, trying to depend on your own resources. Faith teaches you to depend on God. Worry doesn't change a dang thing. And worry will take you away and rob you of faith.
Craig Groeschel:Faith can change everything. So when you're worried, I'm worried about what I'm gonna say. I'm worried about my presentation. I'm worried about my 401 ks went down. I'm worried about this health issue.
Craig Groeschel:I'm worried about my marriage. I'm worried about am I gonna get into the right school. I'm worried about am I gonna get the right job? Am I ever gonna be provided for my family? Am I gonna have what it takes?
Craig Groeschel:Can I ever be faithful? Will my child whatever? When you're worried, look to your father. Look to your faith and look to your future because our God is in control. He is in control.
Craig Groeschel:Jesus said this. He said, don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring his own worries. Today's trouble is enough for today. Look to your future because God is in control. Now, raise your hand if you're a control freak.
Craig Groeschel:Okay? Just stop for a minute. If you find yourself trying to raise the hand of the person sitting next to you, you're a control freak. Those of you online, if you're a control freak, just type it in online. I'm a control freak.
Craig Groeschel:Okay? I wanna remind you this, that even control freaks can't control the future. You can try to manipulate all you can and all you want, but no matter how hard you try, you cannot control everything. So if it's out of your hands, get it out of your mind. Give it to God.
Craig Groeschel:Trust God with it. Trust God with it. Because worry doesn't protect us from tomorrow's problems. Worry robs us of today's peace. And And that's where some of you are right now.
Craig Groeschel:You are surrendering and giving into the lives of your spiritual enemy. Any time that we're worrying, we're essentially saying, God, I don't trust you. I don't trust you're with me, I don't trust you're for me, I don't trust that you're gonna do what you say you're gonna do. And so just take a moment and sit in that. Jesus says over and over again, let me tell you how good my father is.
Craig Groeschel:Let me tell you about how much he cares for you. He is completely in control. He is a good God. His purposes for you are good. He wants to bless you.
Craig Groeschel:Doesn't mean you're not gonna have a hard time, but in the middle of a hard time, he'll be enough. In the middle of
Audience:something painful, he'll be your peace. In the middle of what you
Craig Groeschel:feel like you lack, he is your provision. When you're weak, he is your strength. He is what you need. So you can say, okay, good preaching, Craig. You can say that if
Audience:you want to. It won't hurt my feeling. You can type it
Craig Groeschel:in the comment section, good preaching. Some of you won't, but you can if you want to. And so you're gonna say, Okay. Okay, that's good. But I just sit there and I do nothing.
Craig Groeschel:I just sit around and I don't worry and everything works out. Let's go back to the birds. Jesus said, see how I care for the birds. What I like about birds is birds don't worry. Right?
Craig Groeschel:But birds don't sit around doing nothing either. When you think about birds, they don't wait for God to drop food in their laps. Partially because they don't have laps. But work with me here. I'll I'll say it this way.
Craig Groeschel:Birds don't worry, but they do hunt for worms. There's a difference. There's a difference between doing nothing and doing what you know you're called to do or can do. And birds kinda really help illustrate the difference between worry and concern. And there's a big difference.
Craig Groeschel:A worried person sees a problem and doesn't do anything about it. A concerned person though sees a problem and does something about it. In other words, the way I like to look at it is this. If you can do something about the problem, you do it. If you think your marriage is not in a great place right now and is struggling, what do you do?
Craig Groeschel:You're concerned, you pray about it and you call a counselor. Or you join a life group. Or you talk to your pastor and you do something about it. If you, have caffeine crashes at the end of every day, you may say, you know what, I'm gonna stop drinking all the energy drinks. Instead of 4, I'm cutting back to 3.
Craig Groeschel:I'm just joking. Don't drink 4 and don't drink 3. I'm cutting those out of my life. If you, are battling with depression every time you get on social media, You might just get off social media. You're gonna do something about it.
Craig Groeschel:And so whenever you're tempted to worry, tell yourself this. I will do what I can do and I will surrender to God what only he can do. I will do what only I can do and I will surrender to God what only he can do. I will do what I know I can do. If there's something I can do about it, I'm gonna do something about it.
Craig Groeschel:If I can love my child who's struggling to love my child. If I can coach my child without being annoying, I'm gonna coach my child without being annoying. If I can pray for my spouse, if I can love my spouse when my spouse isn't acting lovable. If I can study for the exam that's coming up, if I can prepare for the presentation, if I can do something about it, I'm gonna do something about it. I will do what I can do, and I will surrender to God what only he can do.
Craig Groeschel:Let's just say that together. I will do what only I can do. I will do what only I can do. I will surrender to God what only he can do. Let's say it together.
Craig Groeschel:I will do what only I can do. I will surrender to God what only he can do. Let's say it again. I will do what I can do. I will surrender to God what only he can do.
Craig Groeschel:I will do whatever it is I know that I can do. And whatever is out of my control, I put in God's hands. Anybody anxious? What do we do? We cast our anxiety on him.
Craig Groeschel:Why? Because he cares for you. He cares for you. God loves you as if there were only 1 of you. And so you tell him about it.
Craig Groeschel:God, I'm nervous about this. God, I don't even know what to do. God, I'm trying to trust you, but I tend to take it back. We cast it on him. We give it to him.
Craig Groeschel:I think about Katie, my daughter, when she came in and she's all afraid. Amy said, Go sleep with God. I said, Go ahead and sleep with us. Told you I'm a softie. People, if you got to know us, you'd be like, you know, Craig's all tough.
Craig Groeschel:Actually, I'm a mush pot. Amy's pretty, but she carries a big stick. There's no joke. And, when Katie slept with us, let me tell you what I did not do. I did not shame her.
Craig Groeschel:Why are you worried? You you should have you should have war I didn't shame her. I let her sleep with us because when she was worried she turned to her father, her earthly father. Her worry didn't take her away from her father, it drew her close to her father. Yes.
Craig Groeschel:And so whenever you find yourself a little bit worried, the devil wants to use that to draw you away from God, but God wants to use whatever is on your mind and on your heart and weighing you down to draw you to depend on him. God wants to take whatever you're worried about and use it to draw you close and recognize that you need him. When you're worried and when you're anxious, this shows you just how much you need your heavenly Father. And when you realize that you need him, you realize he's drawing you close. So chances are there are some of you today who you need an extra dose of his grace, An extra measure of his provision.
Craig Groeschel:He's with you. He's for you. He'll never leave you. He'll He'll never forsake you. Our God is good.
Craig Groeschel:His word is true. He's always faithful. He will never leave you. He will never forsake you. Look to your father, he's good.
Craig Groeschel:Yes, he will. Look to your faith, it conquers your fears. Yes. Look to your future because our God is always in control. And And scripture tells us about the goodness of God that the Lord is close to those who call on him.
Craig Groeschel:Yes, to all who call on him in truth, the Lord is close. If you're hurting today, if you're anxious today, if you're worried today, that might be evidence of just how much you need your father. And the good news is when you draw close to him, he draws near to you. So let's do that now. Father, we pray in the name of Jesus that the power of your holy spirit would do a work because we all need you.
Craig Groeschel:Today at all of our churches as you're praying, those of you who have something that would be a, real concern, a weight, a burden, a worry, something that's making you anxious, would you lift up your hands right now and just lift it up? Online, you can type in the comments section, I'm worried about some. You you if you wanna share it for prayer, you can say, I'm worried about whatever, and just put, I'm worried about my child, or I'm worried about my job, or I'm worried about my my finances, whatever it would be. And what we're gonna do right now is we're just gonna take what you're worried about and just by faith just imagine handing that to God. Just say, God, take my marriage.
Craig Groeschel:God, I trust you with my finances. God, I trust you with my health. I trust you with the health of someone that I love. I trust you with my children. God, I trust you with my mental health.
Craig Groeschel:I trust you with my career. God, I trust you with my future. God, I don't know, I can't figure it all out. I trust you. God, I will do whatever I can do.
Craig Groeschel:And I will surrender to you what only you can do. So God, help us to be faithful and full of faith to always trust you. As you keep praying today at all of our churches, there are some of you that you're gonna take a step of faith bigger than you've ever taken before. We talked about Jesus and he said, you don't have to worry because of the goodness of God. Some of you, if you stop long enough to think about where you stand with God, what would happen to you after this life?
Craig Groeschel:Some of you say, well, I might be a little bit concerned about that. Let me tell you how much God loves you, how good he is. God loves you so much that he sent his only son, Jesus, for you. The perfect, sinless son of God who died on a cross in your place, in my place and God raised him from the dead, defeating death, hell, sin and the grave. Now anyone and this includes you who calls on the name of the Lord, the name that is above every name.
Craig Groeschel:When you call on the name of Jesus, scripture says all of your sins are forgiven. You become brand new. The old, all the old stuff is gone and everything becomes new. Some of you, you might be a little worried, a little uneasy. It may may kinda come and go, but when you recognize, you think, well, I don't really know where I stand with God today, you can settle the issue.
Craig Groeschel:In fact, you're not watching this by accident. I believe with all my heart that you are here by the divine will of God to meet the power of his risen son. Wherever you're watching from today, those who say, yes, today I I don't know where I stand with God, I am gonna step away from my sin. I'm gonna step into trusting Jesus. I'm gonna call on his name.
Craig Groeschel:When you call on the name of Jesus, he hears your prayers, he forgives your sins, and he makes you brand new today at all of our churches and all of the world online. Those who say, yes, I am ready. By faith, I give my life to Jesus. That's your prayer. Put your hands high right now.
Craig Groeschel:All over the place, lift them up.
Audience:Somebody give God some praise for those today saying, yes to Jesus, yes to Jesus, yes to Jesus. We thank you God for those coming to you online. Just type in the comment section, I am surrendering my life to Jesus. I am trusting Jesus
Craig Groeschel:as my savior. Today wherever you are, would you pray with those around you? Just nobody prays alone, everybody, let's just pray this aloud. Pray, heavenly father.
Audience:I'm trusting Jesus. I'm trusting Jesus.
Craig Groeschel:I'm trusting Jesus. To save me. To save me. From my sins. From my sins.
Craig Groeschel:I put you first. I put you first. Forgive me. Forgive me. Transform me.
Craig Groeschel:Transform me. Fill me with your spirit. Fill me with your spirit. Fill me
Audience:with your spirit. Fill me with your spirit.
Craig Groeschel:Fill me with your spirit. So I could know
Audience:you personally. So I
Craig Groeschel:could know you personally. And share
Audience:you faithfully. And share
Craig Groeschel:you faithfully. Thank you for new life. Thank you for new life. I give you all of mine. I give you all of mine.
Craig Groeschel:In Jesus' name I pray.
Audience:Could somebody celebrate big, welcome those born into God's family.
Greater Guild Announcer:That's it for today's quest fellow adventurers. Thank you for joining us on Church Nerds United where faith and fandom unite in an epic saga. We hope you enjoyed the journey and found inspiration in the intersections of scripture, gaming, cosplay, and anime. Before we log off, remember that your support is crucial to keeping our adventures going. Going.
Greater Guild Announcer:Please consider donating to the greater guild@greaterguild.org. Your contributions help us continue this podcast and fund amazing initiatives like church gaming events, creating teen centers, and launching nerd centric missions both in the US and around the world. Together, we can build a community where faith and fandom flourish. Until next time, keep the faith, stay geeky and may the spirit of adventure guide you always.