Mike Novotny - GOD Is Here! You Don't Have to Be Anxious
There are three words that God used to change my life. Three words so powerful that I wrote a whole book about it, called "3 Words That Will Change Your Life". If you want to get a copy of the book, you can jump over to timeofgrace.org/3Words But for this week I hope you enjoy this series. A couple years ago, I unpacked exactly what those three words were and how they can change your life just like they changed mine. I hope you enjoy this week. God bless you. And we'll talk to you soon. Do you ever struggle with anxiety? I'm talking about that kind of anxiety where you really want people to like you. You're anxious. You're nervous. Will people be impressed? Will they applaud you? Will they accept you? Will they think that your work is good enough? Will they think that you're good enough?
I remember something that happened to me a few years ago where I should have been super anxious, but by the grace of God, I wasn't. I was about to actually present to the biggest audience of my entire career, about a thousand of my colleagues. But the Holy Spirit helped me remember, just before I stepped up on stage, something that changed my whole perspective. He reminded me, "GOD is here". I have this amazing father who loves me. He doesn't make me work for his acceptance. He delights in me. He was right there in that room. And, whether I killed it, or I bombed it. Whether I embarrassed myself or people stood up and applauded. That same God would be waiting for me as soon as I was done.
Man, I wish I could remember that. That was like the exception and not the rule for me. But I want it to be the rule. Just to remember, when I stand up before people, I don't have to live with the fear of people. What they think. How they judge. I get to live in the presence of God because of what Jesus did. And that's a message that so many of you need to hear. You don't have to be anxious. You might be facing a big project at work. You might be meeting, maybe your future in-laws, for the first time. You might have a new supervisor, a new manager. You might be at a new school. You might be in a new place. A new neighborhood. You're trying to meet people. You want to make a good impression.
And that's great and we can work for it. But don't put your heart there. Instead, put your heart in the simple sentence, "GOD is here". An accepting, loving, compassionate God is right here. I love how the apostle Paul said it in Philippians, chapter 4. In verse 6, he said, About anything! Nothing you're facing. Don't be anxious about it. Which seems crazy, but do you know the words that Paul said right before that? He said, God's not far away. This amazing God who can satisfy your heart, he's near. So don't be anxious. He says in verse 4, He says in verse 7. He says later on, "You can learn the secret of being content". What does that all come down to? The simple life-changing sentence. "GOD is here". He's not there. It's not that he will be here. It's not that some small god is here. But a big beautiful GOD is here. Believe that and your life will not be the same. Let's pray.
Dear Father, we pray today that you could free us from the fear of needing people's approval. It's great when we have it. It's great to do work well. But, Jesus, you died so that we wouldn't have to work to satisfy our hearts. That we could actually rest in your presence and in your promises. And so I pray today for all my brothers and sisters who are anxious. All those who are so scared of their next presentation, their next exam, their next test. Help them to serve you with all their hearts and to do their best. But to remember that at the end of the day, no matter what happens, no matter what people think, that you are still going to be here. I thank you God for that sentence, that promise that is changing lives all over the world. And we pray it in Jesus' name. Amen.
The struggle with pleasing people and social anxiety is such a huge part that so many brothers and sisters in the church struggle with. So what do you do to overcome it? What promises of God? What passages help you move past that and remember that GOD is here and he's all that I need? I'd love for you to share a story in the comments section. Or to copy and paste a passage that can bring our entire community great hope as we remember the beauty and power of those three words: GOD is here.