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The cares of this life.

1 PETER 5:7

CAST YOUR CARES

UPON THE LORD

The cares of this life.

Hebrews 12:1.

Since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.

Have you ever felt that you are getting nowhere,

that you are weighed down with all sorts of baggage and are not making any spiritual progress?

The cares of this life.

ARE THE CARES OF THIS LIFE WEIGHING YOU DOWN? GOD SAYS WE SHOULD CAST ALL OF THEM ON HIM.

1PETER 5:6-7 AMP

THEREFORE, HUMBLE YOURSELVES UNDER THE MIGHTY HAND OF GOD, THAT IN DUE TIME HE MAY EXALT YOU, CASTING THE WHOLE OF YOUR CARE ON HIM, FOR HE CARES FOR YOU AFFECTIONATELY AND CARES ABOUT YOU WATCHFULLY.

WHAT DOES THAT SAY AGAIN?

HUMBLE YOURSELVES,

CASTING ALL OF YOUR CARE.

BOTH OF THOSE THOUGHTS ARE ONE AND THE SAME SENTENCE. THEY ARE NOT SEPARATE ACTIONS, BUT THE SAME ACTION CARRIED OUT TO ITS ULTIMATE END. ACCORDING TO GOD’S WORD, THE BEST WAY TO HUMBLE OURSELVES IS TO

“CAST ALL OF OUR CARE” UPON HIM – TO RECOGNIZE AND ADMIT THAT WE ARE NOT CAPABLE OF BEARING IT OR FINDING SOLUTIONS FOR IT.

The cares of this life.

THAT’S A FAR CRY FROM WHAT MOST OF THE WORLD THINKS ABOUT THE MEANING OF HUMILITY.

MOST PEOPLE SEEM TO THINK THAT BEING “HUMBLE” MEANS THAT THEY ARE WILLING AND EVEN GLAD TO CARRY ALL THEIR OWN PROBLEMS AND BURDENS – WILLING TO SUFFER WITH THEM – WILLING TO HAVE TO FIND SOLUTIONS FOR THEM ON THEIR OWN. MOST OF THE WORLD THINKS THAT A HUMBLE PERSON WILL NOT STRIVE TO MAKE THINGS EASIER ON HIMSELF.

BUT GOD’S DEFINITION OF THE HUMBLE MAN IS EXACTLY OPPOSITE.

IF WE WANT TO BE TRULY “HUMBLE” AS GOD DEFINES HUMILITY, WE MUST DECIDE THAT WE WILL NOT CARRY OUR OWN BURDENS OR WORK OUT THE SOLUTIONS TO THEM. RATHER, WE WILL CAST THEM INTO HIS LOVING HANDS AND REJOICE IN BEING CARE-FREE AND UNBURDENED. AFTER ALL, HE HAS PROMISED

PSALMS 138:8.

THAT HE “WILL PERFECT THAT WHICH CONCERNS US.”

What worrying does to your health (Rosalind Ryan)

When you worry, your body responds to your anxiety the same way it would react to physical danger.

To help you cope with the physical demands you are about to ask your body to perform, your brain releases stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol into the bloodstream. They trigger a range of physical reactions that will equip your body for action.

Your heart rate increases, your breathing becomes heavier and you may sweat more. You may also become pale as the blood moves away from the skin towards the muscles to help them prepare for the 'fight or flight' situation your worry has created.

The 'fight or flight' response is your body's instinctive reaction to danger.

Unconsciously your body prepares itself to either run away from danger or becomes very alert in order to fight predators.

What worrying does to your health (Rosalind Ryan)

But many of the things we worry about today cannot be dealt with by fighting or running away. Credit card bills, bad relationships or stress at work cannot be dealt with physically, so our body remains in a state of anxiety, ready for action.

This means the stress hormones are still circulating in the blood stream. Theresa Francis-Cheung says over a prolonged period of time, raised levels of these chemicals can start to have a toxic effect on the glands, nervous system and the heart, eventually leading to heart attacks, increased risk of stroke and stomach ulcers.

Worrying also has an effect on our brains. Excessive worry disturbs your peace of mind making it harder for you to concentrate on one task at a time.

What worrying does to your health (Rosalind Ryan)

This means it may also be difficult for you to fall asleep at night. Once you are suffering from insomnia, many worriers start to worry about that as well making their symptoms even worse.

Worry may also make you absent minded or neglectful of your health. You may feel too stressed to eat properly so you are not getting enough vitamins and minerals in your diet. This could speed up the ageing process as you are not replenishing your skin, muscles or brain with the right nutrients from your food.

Excessive worry could even lead into depression. If you start to worry about everyone and everything day and night,

feel that life is unfair and justice does not exist or become paranoid that people will betray you, these could be the first warning signs of depression.

The cares of this life.

The cares of this life are a weight and a hindrance that will rob you of your peace and cripple you in your spiritual life.

We hear the word preached every Sunday.

Why is it then that the very word we hear produces little or no fruit in our lives? Why is it that we can’t tell what the word was that was spoken to us on Sunday when Monday comes?

We have our hearts set on our job or our hobbies rather than on seeking God and knowing Him. Be careful, the goals and cares that overwhelm and become the main focus of your heart, will steal your life away from God!

His word will produce no fruit in your life because it can’t take root through all the clutter and cares you filled your heart with,

instead of filling it with His word.

John 15:2

Every branch in me that beareth

not fruit he taketh away…

The cares of this life.

Matthew 13:18-23.

Listen then to what the parable of the sower means:

When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path.

The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.

The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.

But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

The cares, worries, affairs of this world and people.

Has your faith prompted you to let Jesus become the "Lord" of your life?

One thing that may stop you from totally surrendering to God’s will are peer pressures. Friends may come into town to visit you at that same time you were to go to church or a Bible study.

You may disobey God by refusing to give up unsaved boy or girlfriends, or other friends. So you live in disobedience to God, and yet pray to God to help you with this or that. Are your prayers bouncing off the walls?

Children may keep you from obeying God or even your wife or husband. If you obey God, your husband or wife may threaten to leave you. Do you love wife, or husband, or children more than God?

The cares, worries, affairs of this world and people.

When these and other things that follow hinder or stop a person from doing the "WILL OF GOD," there is no doubt they are being used by Satan to accomplish his purpose. Will these things stop you from going to church, prayer meetings, Bible studies, fellowshipping with other strong believers, studying your Bible, memorizing Scripture, witnessing for Jesus, serving Jesus, and doing the will of God?

Family problems may arise. You may need to go on a honeymoon, or go and see a house, land, merchandise, or an automobile you want to buy. Perhaps you have to sign papers to buy it, and it just happens to be when the church service is being held or a Bible study.

Or perhaps you need to paint your house, repair a faucet, wash the dog, mow the grass, clean the swimming pool, wash the car, and cook meals…..

Cast your cares on the Lord.

Psalm 55:22.

Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.

1 Peter 5:7.

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you

Matthew 11:28-29.

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart,

and you will find rest for your souls.

For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Cast your cares on the Lord.

Luke 21:34-35.

Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap. For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth.

Philippians 4:6-8.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things.

The cares that should concern us.

2 Corinthians 11:23-29.

I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea,

I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have laboured and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.

Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?

The cares that should concern us.

1 Corinthians 12:25-26.

There should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

Galatians 6:2.

Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:9-10.

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

The cares that should concern us.

Philippians 2:4.

Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

James 2:14-17.

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

The cares that should concern us.

Matthew 25:31-46.

..Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me…. And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.

Hebrews 13:1-3.

Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it. Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.

I am amazed at the lack of response when we ask for a volunteer to accommodate visiting speakers to our Assembly, we not asking people to put up someone homeless.

The cares that should concern us.

Galatians 2:2-10.

Then after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. I went in response to a revelation and, meeting privately with those esteemed as leaders, I presented to them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. I wanted to be sure I was not running and had not been running my race in vain. Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. This matter arose because some false believers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.

The cares that should concern us.

Galatians 2:2-10. (continued)

As for those who were held in high esteem whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not show favouritism they added nothing to my message. On the contrary, they recognized that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised. For God, who was at work in Peter as an apostle to the circumcised, was also at work in me as an apostle to the Gentiles. James, Cephas and John, those esteemed as pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised. All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along.

The poor.

Which category do you fit into?

The poor.

In the world today, more than 6 billion people live. If this world were shrunk to the size of a village of 100 people, what would it look like?

Of the 100 people in this village: 20 are undernourished 1 is dying of starvation, while 15 are overweight. Of the wealth in this village, 6 people own 59% 74 people own 39%, and 20 people share the remaining 2%. Of the energy of this village, 20 people consume 80%, and 80 people share the remaining 20%. 20 have no clean, safe water to drink. 56 have access to sanitation 15 adults are illiterate. 1 has an university degree. 7 have computers.

If the world were a village of100 people.

6 own 59%

74 own 39%

20 own 2%

The poor.

If you do not live in fear of death by bombardment, armed attack, landmines, or of rape or kidnapping by armed groups, then you are more fortunate than 20, who do.

If you can speak and act according to your faith and your conscience without harassment, imprisonment, torture or death, then you are more fortunate than 48, who can not.

If you have money in the bank, money in your wallet and spare change somewhere around the house, then you are among the richest 8.

The cares that should concern us.

James 1:27.

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

The problem with the average Christian is that they care about the things they shouldn’t and don’t care about the things they should.

The cares that should concern us.

Caring for widows and your own family.

1 Timothy 5:3-8. RSV

Honour widows who are real widows. If a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn their religious duty to their own family and make some return to their parents; for this is acceptable in the sight of God. She who is a real widow, and is left all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day; whereas she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. Command this, so that they may be without reproach.

If any one does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his own family, he has disowned the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

The cares of this life.

Luke 12:22-34.

Then Jesus said to his disciples: Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field,

which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, you of little faith!

The cares of this life.

Luke 12:22-34. (continued)

And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

The cost of following Jesus.

Luke 14:25-33.

Large crowds were travelling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters yes, even their own life such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.

The cost of following Jesus.

Luke 14:25-33. (continued)

Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand?

If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace.

In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.

The cares of this life.

The truth of the matter is that most professing 1st world Christians are more concerned about their pension in 20 years time than they are about the person on their doorstep who has nothing to eat.

This is far more of a problem in our European culture where people don’t even care about their own flesh and blood as they pursue careers and wealth. On the other hand we see in the black culture that when a brother or sister dies the family takes the children in and the little that they have has to go further.

The average affluent Westernised Christian is consumed with their own comfort and security and have no resemblance to the Christ they call their Lord, who said:

Matthew 8:20.

Jesus replied, Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.

The cares of this life.

Does Jesus Care ?

Does Jesus care when my heart is pained too deeply for mirth and song; As the burdens press, and the cares distress and the way grows weary and long ? Does Jesus care when my way is dark with a nameless dread and fear ? As the daylight fades into deep night shades, does He care enough to be near ?

Does Jesus care when I've tried and failed to resist some temptation strong; When for my deep grief I find no relief, though my tears flow all the night long ?

Does Jesus care when I've said, "goodbye“ to the dearest on earth to me And my sad heart aches till it nearly breaks, Is it aught to Him? Does He see?

Oh, yes. He cares; I know He cares His heart is touched with my grief When the days are weary, the long nights dreary I know my Saviour cares

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