Mike Novotny - What to Do With Worry
I bet if I asked you if you worry, the answer would be obvious. The better question would be: what are you worry about today? Wow! We are here! Jesus was here, not around here. But here. Earlier this year, I got to explore Israel. I'm sitting, literally, in the place where Jesus' feet touched. I saw some amazing places. The old city of Jerusalem. In the Garden of Gethsemane. Beautiful Nazareth. At the Mount of Beatitudes. Capernaum, on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. And I can't wait to share these video devotions with you.
Well, I'm sitting here on a gorgeous day on the Mount of Beatitudes. This is the place, traditionally remembered by Christians, where Jesus taught his most famous sermon, perhaps the most famous sermon of all time, the Sermon on the Mount. And it was right around this very place that Jesus said something that, I'm sure, you need to hear. Because, everyone I've ever met needs to hear it. It's about worry. I bet if I asked you if you worry, the answer would be obvious. The better question would be, "What are you worrying about today"?
I mean, we worry about viruses, and global pandemics, we worry about national elections, we worry about our health, our kids, our finances, our bosses, our jobs, our neighbors, pretty much everything, because it's all temporary. It can all go wrong. We worry. But right here on the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus addressed that. And he told us exactly what to do. Do you know what Jesus told you to do when you worry? This. Did you hear that? In the trees right here on this mountain, there are birds chirping. And they're preaching a sermon that is a thousand times better than mine.
Do you know why they're chirping? Because they're alive. And do you know why they are alive? Because God gave them food. And here's what Jesus said, Now, these birds are beautiful. But Jesus didn't die for birds. He wasn't raised from the grave for the forgiveness of birds. No, that's a gift that God gives to you. And so if God loves birds enough to feed them, to make them live, won't he take care of you?
So, when you're worried, go outside and turn your ear to the sky, and listen to the birds. They're preaching a sermon that God wants you to hear. That our Father knows exactly what you need. He's perfectly capable of providing. And, most importantly, he says you're valuable, because you're connected to Jesus, his Son. So, if you're worried, if you're anxious, if you're nervous, if you're afraid, take a deep breath. Stop talking. And just listen. Because God is telling you the most beautiful message of all. You're loved and you're his. That's the message we learn here at the Mount of Beatitudes.