I Believe In God, Yet I Worry

Getting older is not for the faint of heart, and there's not really an alternative. Um, you know, it's death. Options aren't there. But have you ever noticed that the older you get, we, we change the way we greet each other? And I don't remember ever really being concerned with my friend's, you know, health when I was, you know, in high school or even in college. But anybody besides me notice that the questions you ask change? Like, for example, I've noticed at this point in my life — and I, I, I feel like I'm pretty safe to say I have reached middle age. I'm 46. I doubt very seriously I double my age. And you may think, "Well, that's, that's pretty grim." I'm just, you know, I'm a real kind of guy. I know how I've eaten and treating my body, and chances are I'm probably not going to double 46, but maybe, I don't know. But I hear, I am in the middle of life, and I've found that oftentimes I ask even random strangers on the same in the morning, "How did you sleep last night?"

How'd you sleep? You know, this, this singular, uninteresting question: what was the quality of your duration of unconsciousness? Because I've realized with age how precious it is when you sleep the whole night through. Some of y'all take a victory lap, if you could, right now, but you'd hurt in the morning.

You don't ever see kids asking this question, right? You're there in kindergarten, like, "How was your nap?" And I have another question. Why was nap time reserved for that age? I mean, what's wrong with napping now, man, when you could appreciate the nap? Because when you're five, nobody appreciates that. There's kicking, "God, I don't wanna go to bed." You know, you're like, you really, you don't, you should want to.

You can tell you're getting old by three ways. One is, you make noises when you get up and down out of a chair, whether voluntary or not. There's the next one. You ready for this? This is the sign. All right, everybody brace yourself, because this is the test. If you do one of these three things, you're getting older. So, the one, you make noise — some of you already like, "I'm in right there." Second one, you talk to yourself while you're trying to find a parking place in a parking lot. "Well, I think they're fixing it. Oh no, they're not. What now?" How many besides me, you talk to yourself in the car? Nobody's there, but you're driving around having a whole dialogue, just you. Yeah, you're, we're getting old. The one is when you ask people, "How'd you sleep last night?" There's the third one.

So the Psalmist says in Psalms 4, verse 8: "I will both lie down in peace and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety." I like that.

So, if I get serious now for, for the next few minutes, I'd like to tell you something that I don't always like to admit. I don't always lie down and sleep in peace. I wish I could tell you that I did, but this wouldn't be the truth. I don't always sleep peacefully. More often than I'd like to admit, I wake up in the middle of night, and my mind's just racing. Sometimes it's a problem that I'm trying to figure out, know how to solve. Sometimes I'm worried about a big decision that I got to make, or help somebody else out, and I worry about a difficult conversation I need to have and I'd rather not have it. Or worry about my kids, or worry about my finances. I worry about the future. Sometimes I sit there and I worry, and my imagination takes over. And you've heard me say before, I have a very vivid imagination. By the time it gets a hold of it, man, it makes it way bigger than it ever is going to be.

And it's with us in mind today that I want to talk about — and this is how I title my sermon — I Believe In God, Yet I Worry. Last week, I felt like the Lord was with us. I preached the message "Are You Listening?" And if I could, this is part two: I Believe In God, Yet I Worry.

I'm gonna go to Psalms chapter 121. Taylor was being prophetic when he got up here. I thought maybe he's just going to go ahead and preach my message. I gave him the notes.

See, here's the deal. The goal of this message is, is not to use God so that I can attain a worry-free life. In fact, you're never going to have a worry-free life. That's just a sure way you're going to keep worrying, if you think you can get there. God is not a means of anxiety avoidance. It's not. But I want to look at a few verses here in Psalms 1 21. I want to unpack what I feel like God has laid on my heart for us today.

Psalms 121, verse 1: "I will lift up my eyes into the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help come from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved. He that keepeth thee will not slumber."

As I was studying this out — and I don't know if you've ever had an opportunity to do a deep dive into the Psalms — there's a whole lot of depth there, not just simply memorizing or seeing the, the melody sometimes that goes along with it, but uh, there's, there's a lot more richness there if you'll take the time to do a study. And this chapter is one of those. This chapter, if your Bible ascribes who the writer is, you probably are going to notice it doesn't describe this chapter to anyone. This isn't a psalm of Asaph. This isn't a psalm of David. This isn't a psalm of Solomon. This one here is left untitled, but it only, that it is known as one of the Psalms of Ascent. This is one of the songs that they would sing as they were going back to celebrate Passover, as they were making their way back into Jerusalem. This would be a song that they would sing.

But history shows, and a lot of scholars and theologians have the common consensus, that this particular psalm probably was written during the time of Hezekiah. If you're familiar with Hezekiah's reign and what he went through there, there came a time — and I'm not going to unpack the whole story for you, but simply just to lay this out there and then go forward with what I, I feel God has for us today — Hezekiah received a letter from the Assyrian army that they were coming in. And Hezekiah was bothered by this letter so much, because it was pretty much discussing the impending doom that was on its way. And I love his reaction, as he takes the letter and he goes into his, uh, into the temple, and he spreads it out before the Lord. Now, a lot of y'all nodding right now because you know the story. And most, most scholars believe that this psalm was written about that, that when, when we read the words of "I lift up my eyes to the heels, and when it's come with my help," that that was Hezekiah crying out. These first two verses are Hezekiah, and then verse three through eight is actually Isaiah's response, because if you know the story, God speaks through Isaiah and comes back and brings the message to the king.

What I love about the language in the Bible, and, and the Hebrew way of thinking, is that it was filled with all this imagery and pictures. It was, it was very physical. It was, it was very concrete, the reality of that, that you could live a life with God right down where you are, that He's not somewhere high and far away, but that He's a God who's concerned with the comings and goings of, of your life. And what I want to do is walk through these images used here in this psalm, so that you and I can begin to live this reality.

He says, "I will lift up my eyes." What does it mean? It's a common expression that is there in, in the, in the language of the Bible. It doesn't just refer to your physical eyes. It means to notice something. Now, last Sunday — I'm not going to re-repeat that message, and if you were not here, I would encourage you to go back and listen to the message. God was with us last Sunday, but He's here today. He wants to add on to that word. Last week I talked about how the enemy loves to get your eyes to focus on something, but God's constantly reminding you to hear. "He who hath ears, let him hear." But it doesn't mean that God never wants you to see. There's things that God doesn't want you to see. The problem is, He wants you to hear first, so that when you see, you can understand what you're looking at.

So we see in this moment that, that this, the writer of this psalm, is looking up, and he's trying to focus his attention to where he knows it needs to be. This is someone who's exercising wisdom in their life. This is someone who, who understands that God's word has given you instructions for how to live, and if you'll apply those things, God will direct your attention to where He is.

Oh, I'm preaching to somebody right now, that God's been speaking to you some pretty direct words to get your attention. And even though your circumstances haven't changed where you are, I invite you this morning to look up to where your help comes from. Stop focusing on all the distractions around you. That's what the enemy wants you to focus on, all the noise. There's always noise in our life. Noise, noise, lots of noise, lots of distractions, lots of fast things coming at us. But I encourage you this morning, stop for a minute and look up. Look up above the heels. Look up to where He is. Get above the distractions. Get above the noise. He's already spoke the word of life. Now look up to where He is. Be aware of the possibilities. Find where it is that He wants your attention to be, and grab a hold of it.

For this is being used in a positive way. This happens in Scripture. We've seen this before in Genesis, when God is speaking to Abram. It says in chapter 13, verse 14: "And the Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are, northward, southward, eastward, westward, for all the land which you see I'm going to give to you and your descendants forever."

God is speaking to him, saying, "I got something for you. Don't focus on what's been taken from you." Oh boy, don't we do that? Isn't that, somehow, that grabs our attention. We always are focusing on what has been taken from us. And even in this moment, God's redirecting Abram's attention. "Don't pay attention to where Light's going right now. He is separated. I want you to look to what I have for you, what I'm going to give for you, what, what I have in store for you in your life."

There's a wonderful use of this looking up in Genesis chapter 24, where Rebecca sees her future spouse for the first time, and says, "Rebecca lifted up her eyes and saw Isaac," and asked, "Who is that man, that, that striking figure of a man there?" I wonder how many of your wives, the first time you've seen your husbands, you had that thought, "Is that good looking guy over there?" Boy, some of y'all missed an opportunity for some brownie points right there. I just threw you a softball, and then she went right by.

When I was preaching last Sunday, talked about listening, but God wants you to focus in. Whatever is going on in your life, whatever's going on, whatever attention, whatever problems, whatever worry, whatever's going on, God has something for you. Whatever's going on in your bank account, whatever, whatever's going on in your house, in your office, you can do that right now. You can learn to turn your attention to God. Now, let's learn behavior, and we'll need help, but we can still learn things, can't we? Yes, we can.

It says, "I lift my eyes up to the hills." Now, we tend to think of hills around here. You know, we, we live in Middle Tennessee, and it's just — man, God took a little extra time here, and as He continued to move east in the state, it just gets prettier and prettier. Hills turn into mountains, and we just love it. Now, if you go west, it's like God took an iron, just flattened everything out. It's like, you made all things beautiful over here, then He's like, just iron that out there. We like that. We, we, we enjoy the beauty that is there in the hills, and, and, but in the ancient world, in the, in the Bible times, if you were traveling hills, you didn't look forward to that, because they didn't have their SUV. They had their Jerusalem cruisers on, and they were footing it. So when you come up to the hill, they'd be like, "Oh, it's another one. Here we go again." So for them to talk about the hills, it, it, they, in their mind, if they had their perfect plan, everything would just be flat, because you wouldn't have to struggle. Plus, it's always hard to see around the corner. What's, what's lying over the next hill? So there could be somebody who's waiting to do you harm, or to rob you, or beat you.

So, so it was referring to something that, that necessarily, we think of hills, we think of pretty and beauty and leaves changing and all this scenery. We enjoy that. But here, here it's a little bit different, the imagery that's there. In fact, Isaiah goes on to say, Isaiah 40, verse number 4: "Every valley shall be exalted, in every mountain hill brought low. The crooked places shall be made straight, and the rough place is smooth." Because there's going to come a time when this is going to happen. In fact, this exact verse gets repeated by John the Baptist, talking about things to come.

In other words, the better way to think about the word heal in this instance is to think about circumstances. Circumstances, what we deal with, what we go through, how we have to handle life. Am I in a room where there's anybody else besides me that has circumstances? Anybody have a circumstance, at least one? Yeah, yeah, we got them. We got stuff we, we have to deal with, and we don't like going through it. I see my circumstances, and sometimes they could be a good circumstance, but sometimes their problems. Money problems, job problems, family problems, and health problems, and emotional problems, and secret problems, and relational problems, and, and now comes worry. This kind of settles in on us.

We don't intentionally go out looking for worry. Nobody in their right mind goes and signs up for that. "Oh, I'd love to have a little anxiety today. Where can I pick some of that up at? Oh, I'd love to just be out of my mind. Wouldn't that be great, just to be like crazy right now?" Nobody, nobody goes out for that, but, but it happens to us. See, it's, it's the circumstances of life that we get presented with. And as we're going through these things, if we're not careful where we direct our attention to, we'll focus on all the things that are there, and we become overwhelmed. And that being overwhelmed brings the worry. It brings the anxiety. And, and, and facing all of this stuff — and something that's interesting to me is, the word worry comes from the Old English word w-y-r-g-a-n, which originally meant to strangle, to harass. And over the years, it turned into the word anxiety. That's worry.

Now, if you want to, let's just be interactive for a minute, if you don't mind. Just turn around your neighbor, and I want you to just, just go in for a minute and just take your hands and slip around their neck and just squeeze for a minute. No, no, no, no, no, really, don't do that. Yeah, you can see, like, you know, that that's what it's saying. Worries like that. It just, just — and now, how many would, would be willing to say that they agree with this? It just has a way of choking the life right out of you. Anybody? Even, I'm talking about, yeah, that comes in, and it just — and you don't want it, but, but it just slides in. It's kind of sneaky in the floor. You know, you just, boy, you just — and it's, it's bringing you, and it's, it's, it's dragging you.

Now, worry chokes the life out of you. That's why Jesus says in John 10:10, "The thief does not come except to steal, kill, and destroy. But I've come that you have life, and that you can have it abundantly." Because what the enemy is going to bring is stuff that's trying to kill you, to choke you to death. But Jesus is coming to free you from those things.

Worry is never God's will for anybody's life. Now, I'm, I'm going a little slower for my Sunday message today, so this, for those of you that maybe you have a guest by, just turning them right now and say, "You know, Pastor, he, he's going to be okay. Your toes might hurt a little bit, so go ahead and put your toes out there." Worry is never God's will for anybody. Worry is never God's will. Worry is never God's will. Worry is never God's will. And just so you don't be left out and worry about why I didn't say to y'all, worry is never God's will. Okay?

So here's the deal. If you find yourself in a constant state of worry, you are outside of God's will for your life. I need to let that settle in for just a minute, because I'm going to build on it. And I know it hurts to process what I just said, but if you find yourself in a constant state of worry, you are living outside of God's will. It's never His will for you to live with anxiety all the time.

Now, go a little further before you give up on me. Let's go back. "I will lift up my eyes into the heels, from which cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth." I lift up my eyes. I see my circumstances, but I can't stop on my circumstances. I need to go above that. See, see, in that day, Hezekiah knew this. If this was Hezekiah — and I feel like it is — if this was Hezekiah's response, that "I'm overwhelmed in this moment, I looked to the hills," he wasn't looking to the hills around Jerusalem, because that's where all the pagan worship was at. "I looked to the hills, but where does my help come from? My help doesn't come from that pagan stuff. No, my help comes from the Lord."

You got to get above your circumstances. You got to get above of what might be some temporary relief. I feel the Holy Ghost moving right now, because there are some things that can mask the worry for a little bit. Oh, you, you can push it off for a little bit. You can medicate it. You can drink it down. You can smoke it down. You can, you can push that stuff off for a little bit, but that doesn't take the circumstances away. It doesn't change. Oftentimes, it makes what you're going through even worse over time. But the Psalmist says, "I'm not stopping at the hill. I'm going to look on up to where my health comes from." Quit looking at the problem. Quit trying to medicate the problem. We're trying to cover up the issue. Look up to where God is, because He can handle your problem. Not from the heels, not from me, but from the Lord.

Worry takes many forms. Are you okay? Yeah. Look at your neighbor, say, "Put your toes back out." Comes in many forms. Sometimes it's the pain of anxiety, where he also takes on the form of unresponsiveness, or being a workaholic. Sometimes people try to avoid worry about medicating themselves with alcohol, with achievements, to find some purpose or meaning. On the internet, very often, we deal with worry by going into control mold. But here's the deal. I want you to know, right, a little exercise. You're ready? You're not gonna choke each other this time, all right? Everybody free up. You ready? A little exercise. All right, here's the deal. I want you to say this with me, all right? "I am not in control." That feel good? I feel better just saying. Let's do it again. "I am not in control."

Now, for those of you in the room who are controlled maniacs — no pointing fingers — you seen your anxiety meter go off the chart by just saying that, just that. Now, I know, because that is me. If I'm not in control, then I'm out of control. And you've heard me say, well, I believe in transparency, and to let you know that I'm right there with you in all these struggles. That's why, most of the time, I'm never going to ride with you. You're going to ride with me. I'm sorry, I'm pastor. I'll pull that trump card. No, you need to ride with your man of God. To be honest with you, I, I've seen you drive, and I'm not — no, because I know, I know how I drive. I don't know how you drive. That, it's just one.

So, for those of you in the room, this, this, I need to do it again to help all of us. "I am not in control." Not, you're not. And the quicker you can let some of that go, the quicker that anxiety can run away from you. Because you get constantly built up, worked up — and I find myself doing this all the time, for the craziest things. That anybody else besides me, you find yourself like, "Why are we not moving? Why is this not going? Why is somebody not here?" I'm, I'm confessing, that's me. And then I find myself, I'm just all bent up out of shape. And then I'm like, "Why am I even doing this? I can't. The only person who's suffering right now is me." So I have to — and I've done this before, and it helps me — when I'm in traffic, which is one of the places where my Holy Ghost gets tested the most, as I find myself times doing this: "You are more than important to me." If you ever see me off on the side road somewhere, you see me doing this, what I'm saying to myself is, "You are more important than me." "Sure, come on in. Sure, sure. The red light is green now, but I don't know, maybe you don't like that shade. We'll wait on something. Maybe there's another color you like." "Yes, it is legal to turn right on red, but maybe you don't like that law. Maybe that's not for you." I feel better already. It's like therapy in here. Did it make me feel better?

"I am not in control of anything but me." So let's say it again. "I am not in control of anything but me." Me, I can control me.

Can anybody here guarantee that your body's gonna stay healthy? No. I mean, you can eat right. You can nip it, tuck it, flip it, slap it, grease it. You can work out. You can do your cardio. You can, you can do that. You can count your metrics and weigh out your fat and all, whatever, whatever. We can do all that. But does that guarantee 100% you're gonna be, gonna be healthy? No, no, no, because the clock keeps on ticking. I read this, I read this statement this week. It made me laugh out loud. Joey and I laughed so hard at this. It said, "Just about the time you get comfortable in your skin, it gets saggy." Well, you know the truth. Just about the time you're like, "I'm feeling pretty good who I am," old gravity — clock keeps on ticking. Ultimately, your body's not in your hands.

Can you control the — can you, can, can you intro control the economy? No. How many of you Bitcoin folks are sweating right now? It's the currency of tomorrow. God loves you too. You can't control the economy. Can you control your spouse? My God, the altar will be open here in a little while, brother. The correct answer would be no. Not so eagerly said, maybe. But, but here's the good news: God can change your spouse. And what's even better news is, God can change your spouse's spouse. Somebody, I won't get that to you, go to the restaurant.

See, here's the deal. Let me get serious. Our default setting, all of us, our default setting is simply this: I want to trust in me. I want to trust in my strength, and my gifts, and my abilities, my will, my education, my social skills, my finances, my, my network of friends and people, my list of names. That one day I'm going to run into a hill where none of that stuff is any help. And so were you. And on that day, you're going to want to know where you can lift your eyes up too. You got to lift them up to where your help comes from. It comes from the Lord.

But what kind of help? Because I think that's an important question to ponder in our mind. What kind of help are we going to get? And this gets us into the deep, deep issues of the kingdom, that God is more than anxiety avoidance. I'm going to say that again, because you're quiet. God is more than just anxiety avoidance. It's important to understand this. It doesn't mean I will get help in getting the little projects done. It doesn't mean I'm going to get help so that I can be ushered into the exactly kind of circumstances that I have dreamed up in my mind, perfect, with, without any complications. No, that, that world doesn't exist. We still live in a world of broken humanity and sin. No, it doesn't mean I will get help from God to assist me in getting ahead, because it's so important that I get ahead. He, we, we think with such limited scopes, thinking, "Well, if I just had more money, if I just had, uh, this, or just had that," we, we have our list. Everybody has a list. If I was to ask you and really push you, you could tell me there would be a few things about you that you wished were a little bit different, and then, if they were different, that you would be in a better position in life. But every time we think down those paths, we are looking at God, saying, "You created me wrong."

I want you to notice something. Once you go back to Psalms 121 of me, I want you to notice that there's a, there's a phrase that gets repeated over and over again. I'm going to read it to you in the New Leaving Translation, because it's, it's more of today's language. Let me read to you, start in verse number three: "He will not let you stumble. The one who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. The Lord himself watches over you. The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over you, your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever."

Did you notice how that little word watch keeps getting repeated five times in those verses? It says that He's watching, or He's watching over us. How amazing is that, this truth, that our God sees us. He knows where we are. He is watching over us. God is the watcher. I am the watchee. And I'm the one who needs to be watched over. And if no one's watching over my little life, then I'm doomed. But I'm not alone. I have a watcher. I'm not alone. I have someone who's watching over me. Even though everyone else in my life may have seemingly turned their back on me, or given up on me, or labeled me a failure, or a disgrace, or a has-been, or never will be, it doesn't matter if nobody else ever pays attention. My God watches over me.

Oh, I love when Job says, "I'm looking around and I can't find Him, to the left or to the right, but He knows the way I take." Job understood, "My life is the way I want it to be right now," but even in the midst of everything I've lost, my God still knows right where I'm at. And He knows where you're at right now. I don't know what you're going through. Everybody else may have written you off, but He still considers you to be His child. He watches over me.

Over and over, the Psalmist says, God is watching over you. Whatever's going on in your life, whatever's going on in your body, whatever's going on in your mind, whatever's going on with your money, with your relationships, He's watching. So when fear seems to come knocking at the door, you don't have to answer, because He's watching over you. Psalms 121:8, "The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever."

When you wake up — this is a very technical phrase — when you wake up in the morning, you go out to the world, and when you work, and you, and you do everything you do, or you play, or whatever. Then when you come home at night, to rest and relax and sleep, the Lord is watching over you. When you come and when you go, wherever you are, He's watching over you. It's a beautiful way of saying, in every single moment, He's there.

As I was unpacking this — I was studying through this — I was saying to myself, verse number six: "The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night." Again, it's called the Psalm of Ascent. It's one of about 15 psalms of the journey up to Jerusalem for their festivals. And when you're traveling by day — then, they didn't, again, they were outside walking — that sun could be brutal. It could be harsh. It could come down on you. And it says that, that He is there. But, but the moon, I thought this was kind of interesting. It's strange to me, at first, as I began to study it out. Like, what, what's up with the moon? I mean, I've never really been outside and thought, "Boy, that moon, this is so bright." No. So what was it about, about the moon bowling? In, in Bible times, the moon was often associated with, with mental illness and impairment. It's where in the English word we get are from luna, the word lunacy and lunatic.

In the heat of life, when the pressure, when it's hot and things are going on, He's there to be your shade. In the dark of night, when it seems you're about to lose your mind — anybody know what I'm talking about? When you're, when you're laying there in bed and you're wide awake, and you shouldn't be awake, you should have been long gone to sleep, and you feel like you're about to lose it all, He's there. Oh, He doesn't sleep. He doesn't slumber. You, you can call out His name in the darkest of night. He's there.

This is the Psalmist is saying to us, whatever's going on, He's watching over you. Even when nobody else thinks you're saying, He's there, watching over you.

Verse 3: "He will not let you stumble. The one who watches over you will not slumber." What's this about? It's very common picture in the Bible. Does not mean what we might want it to mean. It does not generally refer to being kept physically safe, or financially. It's a, it's a way of talking about leaving the path of obedience. In the Old Testament, it talks often about the path of righteousness. We sometimes refer to it as God's will for your life. So, to have a foot slip means to sin, to leave God's path.

I think there's a classic example, this, in the Psalms already, in Psalm 73. David, David's talking, it says: "But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled. My steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the boastful, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked." David is saying this: when I, when I seen that I was struggling, that other people were getting away with stuff, and it seemed like I was living a life that was unnecessary for success in this world, I almost stumbled. I almost compromised. I almost convinced myself that's what I should be doing. But I love that the psalm goes on to say, "Until I went in to the house of the Lord. When I came into Your presence, then I remembered, oh, the end that that path brings, and all the end that this path brings."

The path of righteousness may not be the easiest road you ever walk, but I like where the destiny ends up being. There may be easier ways you can walk on this earth. There may be things you can compromise, and for a little while seem like you have success, and everything you touch is golden. But I asked the question, what's the ultimate destination on that path? Have you, have you made a choice to a place that's going to cause your foot to slip?

This is what is being written to us, that He has the ability to keep your foot from slipping, if you'll stay on the path of obedience. To say that God will be there, to understand and commit your life to obedience, and follow in His life, brings with it a comfort and a peace that can only come from God. Not everything temporary is at risk: my job, my body, my bodies of people that I love, my money. But the reality is this: when you make a commitment and you build your life on God, His principles, on His word, the longer you live that life committed, the longer you live that life in obedience, longer you live that life without compromise, the more secure you become in this world, and the less worry and anxiety has hold on you.

That's why some of you in this room, some of you precious saints of God, you've weathered some storms. You've been through some things, and you held true. You held fast. You, even in the midst of overwhelming circumstances, when seemingly everybody around you was almost encouraging you to just give up, you didn't. You stayed true to what you know your God wanted you to be. Now, at this season of your life, you say with confidence, "Hey, it hasn't always been easy, but it's the best life I've ever lived. For I know my Redeemer lives. And though this hasn't always been an easy path to take, it has been a sure way for me to walk." And in the ups and downs, and everything I've went through, when I got really discouraged, I looked above the heels, and I've seen that my help comes not from me, and not from my ability, and not from people around me, because they disappoint. But my God has never left me. He's never disappointed me. He's never forsaken me. He has always proven Himself, time and time again, through the highs and the lows, through the ups and the downs. And not only that, I have a surety that this is not the best I have. The best is still yet to come. And even though I may be limping when I cross over into glory land, I'll have a new body on the other side, and I'm going to shout around the throne of glory, because my God keeps His word.

That's why Paul could write in Romans chapter eight — and I'm ending, the musicians can come — Paul said this in Romans eight, verse 38: "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, no principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created things, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. For we are more than conquerors."

Oh, to understand, to understand. I believe in God, yet I worry. Oh, child, let that worry go. It is never God's will for you to worry. That doesn't mean there's not times that come where you may be afraid for a moment. But it's me trying to encourage you today, to go back to 121, Psalms 1, and look up. Look up. Quit focusing so much on where you are, and what's trying to push you down. Look up. Look up. And if you'll get up, pull your eyes up, and see that He is still right there where He has always been, and He is watching over you. He is watching over you. He is always watching, from you coming and you're going, no matter what's in your life, He is watching over you.

I know this isn't one of those hallmark psalms. This is not a promise that your life will always be easy. These are the words of a noble and a steep journey. For there is going to be another hill. There's going to be another mile. There's going to be another trial. There's going to be another set of circumstances. Even after that psalm was written, there was another hill, many, many miles away. On that hill was a cross. On that cross was a man. And that man took on all my sins, and all yours. He took our place, with a promise that after he died, he would come back and send his spirit in his name, so that you too could have that same resurrection power living in us. So that when I face my trial, when I go through my circumstance, when I am feeling overwhelmed and about to lose my mind, that I am not alone. If I will just look up, I can see my Savior's face, for He watches over me.

You don't mind, if you're comfortable, and I ask you to close your eyes as I say this prayer. This altar is open for anyone that wants to come. "Holy God, we are in the most precious of moments in this service today. I pray, God, that that drawing spirit I feel moving right now would continue to pull people, bring them to a place where they can deepen their relationship with You. God, no matter how dark the night, no matter how lonely I feel, I'm not alone. You are there with me. God, I pray that somebody today in this room would lift their eyes up, and see that there has never been a moment that they have been forsaken, but that You have been there through every up and every down, every high, every low. You've seen every tear. You know every pain, and every heartache, every sorrow they've endured. You've been there. You've seen it. God, I pray that they could see the face of their Savior today, see the face of their Redeemer today, to know, God, You walk with them. Lord, do what You do best. You take broken lives and make them beautiful. In the mighty name of Jesus, this altar is open. I'd invite you to come. God desires to do work and lives today. I'd encourage you, don't waste this opportunity. Don't live with regret, something you wished you would have done. Allow the ministry to pray with you today. Allow God to do what He does."