Many fatalities are caused every year by accidental poisoning. Others die from the bites of venomous snakes or the stings of poisonous insects. But many victims are saved by antidotes and serums which counteract the effects of the poison. Jesus warned about a poison which attacks not the body, but the soul: worry. Do you know that worrying is one of the worst habits that has ever afflicted mankind? It causes people to lose sleep, lose their appetite and lose their effectiveness. Medical research has proven that worry breaks down our body’s resistance to diseases, and causes stomach ulcers, headaches and heart problems. When carried to an extreme, worrying brings about severe depression, irrational behaviour and even suicide.

Unfortunately many people take the wrong antidote for this poison of the soul. Some resort to chanting mantras in transcendental meditation to get rid of their anxiety. Others try to pickle their anxiety in alcohol. They go on a drinking binge and end up with a bigger problem to worry about! The best antidote for worry is the one that was prescribed by our Lord Jesus. This antidote contains 5 "doses" of truth…

Matthew 6:25 – "Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?"

We should not become so concerned about these mundane things that they become all that we care about. For many people, the meeting of physical needs has become their primary concern in life. Here in Singapore this concern is not so much about bare subsistence as it is about buying a house, a car, a personal computer and all the equipment that are deemed necessary for our survival in this city-state. The anxiety about these needs is translated into anxiety about getting and holding on to a well-paid job to pay for these things. And that anxiety is in turn translated into the anxiety to get the right educational qualifications and therefore getting good grades for exams. And so what Christ said in v.25 is something that perhaps the majority of us may be guilty of – we do take much thought of these things – even more than we ought.

This is one reason why many Christians have no time to be involved in Christian service, in evangelism, even in attending church and prayer meeting regularly, or in keeping their daily devotions – They are just too busy taking thought of their physical needs. When important exams are around the corner, they cease all spiritual activities. When faced with the option to take or not to take a well-paid job that requires them to be absent from church on Sundays, they take it, thinking that their livelihood overrides every other consideration. And when, for some reason, their income is cut and they earn less, they stop giving to the Lord.

If we have this attitude, we are really denying one very important principle. And that is found in the words of Jesus – "The life is more than meat and the body than raiment." There is really more to life than just making a living and keeping ourselves alive. There is much more to life than just plain survival. Life is meant for us to know God and to glorify Him. After all, God is the One who gave us life and without him we would not have life at all. But the question may be asked, how can we glorify God if we can’t survive? How can we glorify God if we do not worry about our physical needs? The answer from Jesus is that we need not worry because God Himself will ensure that our physical needs will be met. He who gave us life is surely concerned about our survival. This brings us to the second dose of the antidote for anxiety:

Two illustrations are given for this, one from the animal kingdom and the other from the plant kingdom. Matthew 6:26 – "Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?" This addresses the need for food and daily sustenance.

The other illustration addresses a different need – the need for clothing: Matthew 6:28-29 – "And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these." Do you know that lilies, especially Easter lilies, are some of the most sought after flowers for wedding bouquets? It is because of their beauty. Did they have to toil or spin a single thread? Did they have to weave it into cloth, sew it and put clothes on in order to gain such beauty? Not at all. God took care of all that.

The thrust of both of these illustrations is the same: If God loves and provides for the animals and even the plants, how much more concerned must He be for our welfare, who were created in His own image and likeness? Matthew 6:32 tells us: "for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things."

Here we can see what a terrible sin worrying is: It insults God on at least two counts. Firstly, it insults God’s fatherhood. Just as a human father has a responsibility to care for his own children, God our heavenly Father has taken upon Himself the responsibility of our care. Worrying about our daily provisions in effect portrays God as being an irresponsible father – so irresponsible that we have to make up for His shortcomings by depending on ourselves and others!

Secondly, worrying insults God’s knowledge. What is the use of God’s fatherly care if He does not know what we need? When people see us worrying constantly about our daily provisions they may be led to think that God does not know our needs well enough. Now that we can see what a bad testimony we bear to the world about God whenever we worry, let us quit worrying and start believing! Let us also take the next dose of the antidote to heart:

Matthew 6:27 – "Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?"

Matthew 6:33 – "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."

The key word here is the word ‘first.’ We cannot give our best efforts to God’s kingdom if we are preoccupied with accumulating wealth and "security." How do you think the Lord feels when He sees us giving greater priority to our own physical needs than to Him? How do you think He feels when we seem to doubt that He loves us enough to take good care of us, and so we take upon ourselves entirely the task of meeting our own needs? How do you think that makes Him feel? The Lord is grieved that we do not trust Him; He is grieved because we doubt His power and His love.

There may be times in your life when you will face a crisis. Your livelihood may be endangered, and your savings may be depleted. Your physical well-being may be affected, When this happens what will you do? Will you forget the Lord or will you trust Him to help you? Beloved brethren, please remember that the Lord must always be of greater importance to you than your physical needs and well-being.

Rather than seeking to meet all our physical needs, we should seek the Kingdom of God. That is the key to a truly fulfilled life. Set your heart on loving the things of God. Realize how much they are worth pursuing. When your heart is set on loving the things of God, your life will begin to show it. While others spend most of their time in the things of the world, you will spend most of your time in your relationship with God and in promoting His kingdom.

Your energies will be diverted to glorifying God in every possible way and in every area of your life. Your heart will be excited for spiritual gains. Your mind will see everything from a different perspective – God becomes the reference point of all your thinking. Your pursuits will not include anything that would hinder the Kingdom of God. If these things are present in your life it shows that your heart is truly set on seeking and loving God’s kingdom.

Thus far we have seen four doses that are prescribed for the overall antidote against anxiety. There is one more dose we must take to make it complete:

Matthew 6:34 – "Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."

We will go a long way toward reducing stress and worry if we will learn to take life one day at a time. Why should we borrow trouble from tomorrow? Oftentimes the things that are feared about tomorrow never come to pass!

When Jacob was traveling with his family and flocks on his way back to Hebron, he received news that his brother Esau was coming to meet him with 400 men (Genesis 32:6). He must have imagined the worst that could happen. He worried so much about what Esau and the 400 men were going to do to him because of his past misdeeds, that he tried every means to prevent the inevitable revenge from coming: Sending generous gifts to Esau.

But that did not reduce his worry at all. That night he could not sleep but got up to divide his family and flocks into two camps separated from each other by a river. In that way, at least half of what he had would survive an attack. When the next day arrived, so did Esau and the 400 men. Instead of the expected massacre, Jacob and Esau had a blessed reunion! If only Jacob had trusted God, he could have spared himself from a day and a night of heart-wrenching anxiety!

So let us trust God about tomorrow and not be overly concerned. While it is good to be prepared to face the contingencies of the future, we should not allow the uncertainties of the future to rule our lives at present and make us worry unnecessarily, wasting lots of time and energy on things that may never happen.

Finally, instead of having the habit of worrying, we should develop the habit of praying. Coming regularly for our Tuesday night prayer meeting can help you to develop this habit to counteract your habitual worrying. Each time you feel like worrying – remember to pray. And as you pray, your worrying will gradually give way to a wonderful sense of serene calmness and peace. This is an inward peace that comes from God, a wonderful peace that passes all understanding. There is nothing in this world that can bring such perfect calmness and peace to the anxious Christian than prayer. As the hymnwriter Joseph Scriven wrote:

"Oh, what peace we often forfeit,
oh what needless pain we bear.

All because we do not carry
everything to God in prayer."

Now that you know the antidote for anxiety, why do still wait to take it? Take your doses now and be healed! It comes from the Great Physician Himself. —CS