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[0:00] I feel quite nosy, and I will look into people's windows as I'm passing by and see what! What they're getting up to, often seeing what's being had for tea or what's on the television.

[0:15] I still remember a few months ago when England made it to the Euro 2024 final and it was extraordinary walking up the road and along and seeing every TV that was on had the England match on.

[0:29] It was quite something. I want to say, when we're thinking about emotions, they are like windows into our hearts. Jesus says this in Matthew 6, 21, where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. So for example, say that you're married and your husband or wife is due to get home from work at 5.30 and then it gets to 6 p.m. and she's still not there.

[1:10] Because you love your wife, you might become anxious. You might become overwhelmingly worried about where is she. I hope she's okay. And so that window into our hearts, into what we're treasuring is our love for our spouse because we're feeling anxious about them. Where are they? I hope they're okay.

[1:37] The response might be another emotion. It might be anger. They might get home and you might say to them, why did you not tell me it'd be late? That anger, whether right or wrong, is coming from a place of love.

[1:53] It's a window into what our hearts are treasuring. It might show us. It might show us other things, but we won't get too deep into that right now.

[2:06] Another response, of course, could be delight. There may be some complications, if that is, but you might think, oh yes, a few more minutes of peace and quiet. At which point we might see other things that you love, as well as hopefully your husband or wife.

[2:28] But the point is that emotions are showing us what's going in our hearts. What are we treasuring? We don't want them to be ruling over us, but we do, we are helped as we see our hearts. What are the states of our hearts before God? And our emotions are part of that, but we are more than our emotions, aren't we? We're thinking and acting and feeling people.

[2:58] Three categories of heart treasure to give to you this evening. First of all, our health.

[3:10] So good health and strength in ourselves and in others, that's something our hearts can treasure. Material treasure, so our jobs, our achievements, our possessions, our money.

[3:25] Relational treasure. So we want acceptance from others. We want to be liked by others, well thought of by others, have a good reputation with others. And so as long as when it comes to our health, as long as the doctors say I'm healthy, that's what matters to me.

[3:51] I don't know about you, but when the slightest thing goes wrong with me, I'm on Dr. Google. And so suddenly a mouth ulcer will turn into some incurable disease that nobody's ever heard of.

[4:08] And when that happens, that's probably showing inside me that I'm loving being healthy and I'm getting anxious when I'm getting anxious when my health is threatened.

[4:23] Or in terms of our material, maybe we keep thinking in our minds, everything will be sorted when I get that pay rise. And then it comes and then we think, well, no, I need another one.

[4:38] Material things. Or in terms of relational, we think, once I'm invited to that party by that person, then I can rest.

[4:50] Then I can know I'm accepted. And if we're thinking like that, if we're getting anxious about relational stuff, that shows us what we love, like to be well thought of by others.

[5:03] If we're thinking a bit like that about the things we treasure, we do need to be thinking, am I treasuring those things more than God?

[5:17] Because all of those are good things. They really are good things. But they should never be a God thing. They're given to us by our Creator.

[5:28] It is good to care for the bodies that we're in. It's good to be thinking about our health. But if we're trusting in our health and well-being more than God, then that's becoming a God thing.

[5:41] An idol. And if those are the things we're looking to and we get anxious about getting them, is that not us saying, I want security, I want the certainty of good health, and I can't be secure until I know I am?

[6:05] Or I want the certainty of the pay rise, and I can't be secure. I can't live securely until I have it. Or I want the security of knowing that other people like me and accept me, and then I can live securely.

[6:23] But certainty and security of these things and of the future are not what human beings have been designed to control.

[6:35] Can we have a look together at James chapter 4, verse 13 to 15?

[6:46] We'll look at a few different passages this evening. We'll start in James. James. James. James chapter 4, verse 13 to 15.

[7:18] Now listen, you who say, today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.

[7:28] Why you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You're a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

[7:41] Instead, you ought to say, if it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that. James is showing us that we cannot be certain about tomorrow.

[7:55] None of us are promised tomorrow. Nor we promise that everything will work out the way we want it to be. It's really good and really important to make plans and be organized.

[8:14] But as we make those plans, James is saying, look to God. Trust God. If it's the Lord's will, we will do this. Submit our plans to God.

[8:26] Live under his rule. Jesus is also a brilliant help when we're thinking about this. These things of not worrying, of not being anxious.

[8:41] So Matthew 6, 25 to 34. Matthew 6, 25 to 34.

[8:53] Jesus says to us, Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink or about your body, what you will wear.

[9:17] Is not life more than food and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air. They do not sow or reap or store away in barns.

[9:31] And yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you, by worrying, add a single hour to your life?

[9:45] And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.

[9:59] If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothes you?

[10:13] You of little faith. So do not worry, saying, what shall we eat or what shall we drink or what shall we wear? For the pagans run after these things.

[10:25] And your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness. And all these things will be given to you as well.

[10:38] Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow. For tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Jesus so wisely tells us, do not worry about tomorrow.

[10:58] Maybe we think the problems of worry and anxiety is something new that we're facing as a society or culture. But it's not new.

[11:09] The Bible knows all about it. Jesus knows about it. And he speaks so clearly and pastorally and wisely to us. But there is so much to worry about, isn't there?

[11:24] The cost of living has risen substantially over the last few years. Maybe we worry about what our children or grandchildren are hearing at schools, what they're being told.

[11:35] We worry about where we might live in the future. We worry how we use our time. We worry about our health. We worry about all sorts of things. About death.

[11:48] What will happen to our spouse or children when we're gone. There's so much to worry about. But Jesus isn't saying there's not anything to worry about.

[11:59] He says, today has enough trouble of its own. Don't worry about tomorrow. You don't need to spend your life worrying because your heavenly father cares about you.

[12:15] He cares for you. You can rest secure in him. If he feeds the birds and clothes the grass, how much more will he care for you, children of God?

[12:31] And so he's telling us that don't let worry overtake you. Trust your heavenly father. And instead of worry, Jesus gives us something else to do, something else to pour our energy into.

[12:45] And that is verse 33. Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness. And all these things will be given to you as well. Seek him. Seek his kingdom.

[12:56] Live for God. And trust that he will provide for you day by day as you seek him. An example of someone seeking the Lord in scripture is King David in Psalm 27.

[13:15] So can we turn there as well? Psalm 27. We looked at this a few weeks ago in a prayer meeting. It's good to come back to it. Psalm 27.

[13:36] And I'll read verses 1 to 5. The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear?

[13:49] The Lord is the stronghold of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall.

[14:04] Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear. Though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.

[14:17] One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.

[14:33] For in the day of trouble, he will keep me safe in his dwelling. He will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon the rock.

[14:47] King David in this Psalm has so much to worry about. Verse 2 to 3 show us that. He's got enemies and armies surrounding him, wanting to attack him.

[15:00] But in verse 1, in this situation, David says, The Lord is my light and salvation. Whom shall I fear?

[15:12] The Lord is the stronghold of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? Instead of worrying, David chooses instead to seek the Lord.

[15:29] Verse 4. One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.

[15:43] And so we could say of David in this Psalm, that the treasure of his heart is the Lord's.

[15:55] He wants to seek him, gaze upon him, dwell with him. It's the Lord he is seeking. If it wasn't the Lord he was seeking in this situation, if he was trying to seek his home or his wife, that might be a good thing, but that's not going to help him as he faces a large army.

[16:22] But his treasure is the Lord's. He knows how safe and secure he is in the Lord. His treasure is him. That's who he is seeking.

[16:36] And so it's good for us to ask ourselves, as we're thinking about anxiety, but also any other emotions, we look into our hearts, are we treasuring the Lord like this?

[16:50] We're going to think about more anxiety things in a moment and probably get a bit more practical. But firstly, got a bit more from me.

[17:04] And then at the end of this part two, I will sing a song. Then there will be a time for prayer. But before that time of prayer, an opportunity for questions and comments if you want to take that opportunity.

[17:24] So, anxiety. I'm thinking particularly of its physical effects. So the other week I was reading that this guy, Jack Draper, was playing in the US Open semifinal and he was sick on court, partly because of anxiety.

[17:43] And anxiety, it really does have physical effects. All sorts of things.

[17:54] Tension, headaches, feeling sick, feeling dizzy, breathlessness, sleeping problems, trembling, heart racing, sweaty palms.

[18:05] And in sudden and extreme panic attacks, people can feel like they're about to die. Now we're told in the Bible that our bodies have been created by our creator God.

[18:21] We're told that we're fearfully and wonderfully made. And in this little book on anxiety by a lady called Catherine Haddo, she explains our body's response.

[18:37] And I'm going to read directly from the book because I think it's really helpful. And is slightly beyond my understanding. So she says, God in his goodness created our bodies to respond to the frightening situations in life.

[18:55] Anxiety is physically felt in our bodies due to the activation of the well-known fight or flight response. The autonomic nervous system, ANS, controls the heart, lungs, blood, vessels, stomach, and glands.

[19:16] When we are in a relaxed state, the parasympathetic nervous system is dominant, maintaining a state of calm and equilibrium.

[19:27] However, when we perceive a threat, it activates the sympathetic nervous system. And this is a good, God-given response that energizes us into appropriate action when facing real threats.

[19:46] However, in anxiety, the threat is generally anticipated, not realized. And so the sympathetic nervous system continues to respond as if a real threat loomed and required action.

[20:04] The pituitary, I can't say these words, there we go, gland releases hormones to activate the adrenal glands and they produce adrenaline and non, nor adrenaline ready for flight or flight response.

[20:25] Within a matter of seconds, our body does these things. Our blood pressure increases, heart rate increases to provide more oxygen to the muscles, blood is diverted away from non-essential muscle groups such as the digestive system, causing our skin to look pale, leg and arm muscles dilate and widen, body temperature in our extremities reduces, producing cold and clammy hands as blood is directed towards vital organs, senses become heightened, sudden touch will make us jump, sweating increases to stop us from overheating, digestion and secretion stop to conserve energy, bladder, bowels and stomach may sometimes involuntarily involuntarily empty, lung muscles dilate, increasing airflow, oxygen intake is higher due to increased breathing rate, liver and fat tissues release sugar and fats to our muscles for increased energy.

[21:29] All of this is quite normal and helps us when we are facing frightening situations. And so praise God that he has created our bodies to be prepared for these situations.

[21:49] Now some of us are more prone to anxiety than others. And some of us will experience chronic levels of anxiety.

[22:01] So again, quoting from this lady, Catherine Haddard, she says, some people experience chronic levels of elevated anxiety hormones, especially if they are accompanied by anxious thinking and behaviours.

[22:18] Simply exhorting someone who is experiencing anxiety to read the Bible, pray more and stop being anxious for nothing is a failure both to understand our human fragility and love that person the way God loves them.

[22:40] So, if that's true, which it is, if people will experience chronic anxiety, will really struggle with anxiety, and if not saying read the Bible and pray more, if that's not going to help them very much, what can help them?

[23:07] Well, a few practical things for us to think about, and I say these as these can help to calm someone down enough to be able to engage with God more in prayer and reading his words, because we want to say that turning to God is where we need to go when we're feeling particularly anxious.

[23:34] So, practical advice. Breathing exercises. Normal rates for breathing rates for adults is around 12 to 15 breaths per minute.

[23:47] 20 to 30 breaths per minute would be for someone with chronic anxiety. And so, it's worth focusing on someone's breathing if they're particularly struggling with anxiety so that they can calm and focus on their speaking to their heavenly father.

[24:11] Muscle relaxation. Things like exercise is very important, even if it's making sure you're just going for a 10-15 minute walk a day.

[24:26] But there are also various muscle relaxation things that you can do that aren't as weird as they might sound. And again, help us to be able to focus on talking to our heavenly father.

[24:42] I don't know if anybody's come across grounding techniques. I have sometimes done this at the end of a busy day. So, you get your finger and name five things.

[24:58] Five things you can see, four things you can feel, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste.

[25:10] And that can just be a really simple way to sort of switch off from the anxieties or the things that are going around in your head. I've been helped by that.

[25:23] And in some cases, medication. Someone with chronic anxiety can get medical help. And medication may well help them.

[25:35] It's not a quick fix, nor does it cure anxiety, but can be for a time, whether just a short little time or a long period of time, really help somebody who is struggling with anxiety.

[25:53] But it's not the cure, and not a quick fix. Now, me saying breathing exercises, muscle relaxation, things like that, you may be fearing that I'm talking about some sort of weird Buddhist meditation mindfulness stuff, try to take our minds away from present realities.

[26:17] I'm not advocating that at all. I'm just saying there are various practical ways can help ourselves or somebody else to calm down in order to help us meditate on God, who, as we sung, can be our ever-present help in times of trouble.

[26:38] Because we don't want to let emotions be the rule of our lives. We want God and his word to be the rule and guide of our lives.

[26:51] We won't turn to it, but many of us know Psalm 1 well, and it speaks in Psalm 1 of the blessed person, of living the blessed life.

[27:03] The blessed person, it's the one that meditates on God's law day and night, who take delight in God's word, whose treasure is found in God and in his word.

[27:19] And as we do that, it describes the blessed person as someone being rooted like the tree that is planted strong and vibrant and healthy by streams of living waters.

[27:32] growing good roots down. And so all those practical things can help us in living that kind of blessed life.

[27:46] Looking at God's word, delighting in it, treasuring our gods. God's word, we are in broken bodies, we are in a broken world, but we have a God who cannot be broken, whose words cannot be broken, a God who transforms people's lives and hearts, and who is certain hope for people who struggle in times of anxiety.

[28:17] anxiety. And anxiety, particularly anxiety disorders, are a reminder of our brokenness. But however we experience anxiety, whether in a small way or whether we feel like life is overwhelmingly full of it, we do need to come to God, don't we?

[28:37] Know his strength and get help from the one who does not get anxious. Got two more thoughts on anxiety. I wasn't quite sure where to fit them in, so just thought I'd put it as two more thoughts, random thoughts at the end.

[28:52] So firstly, anxiety is a blessing. It's a God-given thing. We've already seen how amazing our body's responses to frightening things are.

[29:04] Anxiety is a good thing. It can protect us, it can keep us safe. For example, just crossing the road and seeing a fast car and we think, oh, whoa, stay back. And that can not just help keep us safe, but it could help us when we're helping a child cross the road or an old lady cross the road.

[29:28] And then secondly, two promises of God to cling to. So a couple more passages. Firstly, Philippians chapter 4. Philippians chapter 4.

[30:05] I'm going to read from verse 4 to 6, but we'll read some more as well. No, sorry, 4 to 7, but we'll also read verse 8 in a moment. Philippians chapter 4 from verse 4.

[30:21] Paul writes, Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again, rejoice. Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your request to God.

[30:39] God. And here's a wonderful promise. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

[30:52] Now, Paul, when he says, do not be anxious, that's not Paul flippantly just saying, don't be anxious. Come on, get a grip. No, that's Paul lovingly saying, the Lord is near.

[31:07] Yeah. Do not be anxious. The Lord is near. The Lord who is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, he is near to his people.

[31:21] He is near to you. He is close to you. He loves you. He's in control of all things. You can trust him. He wants you to trust him.

[31:34] And there's a call by the apostle Paul here. Instead of being anxious, pray.

[31:49] By prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God. Don't be anxious, pray. And as you pray and as you seek God about the things that have been going on in your minds, they're causing you to be anxious, he says here in verse 7, in the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

[32:20] So a call not to be anxious, but instead let it lead you to prayer. prayer. And also, Paul in verse 8, talks about our thinking.

[32:35] Anxiety and thinking go together. Verse 8, finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think.

[32:54] about such things. And I think of all those things, as you go through them, you could say that each one of them is so true of the Lord Jesus.

[33:12] And so as we, when we feel anxious in situations, we can pray and we can think on these things that should lead us to the Lord Jesus.

[33:29] The other place I want us to turn to is Matthew 11. Matthew 11 from verse 25, first of all, 25 to 27.

[33:55] At that time, Jesus said, I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to little children.

[34:10] Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do. all things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son, and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

[34:30] So Jesus, in verse 27, says, all things have been committed to me by my Father, given to me. And no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son.

[34:44] We're reminded of Jesus' greatness, been given all things, he's all powerful. And then the all powerful Lord says these words in verse 28, come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

[35:07] 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.

[35:18] For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. In our anxiety, in our restlessness, in our weariness, we can come to Jesus.

[35:33] If you are feeling burdened by the weight of anxiety this evening, Jesus, the all-powerful Lord says, come to me. In him, in the Lord Jesus, we are new creations who by his grace can learn to grow and treasure Jesus as our saviour, as our glory, as our prize.

[36:04] We can learn to glory in him, delight in him, treasure him. And that will help us in all sorts of emotions we experience, but particularly as we're thinking about anxiety this evening.

[36:19] We're going to respond in song, and then there's a chance for questions and comments if you have them. if it's turned up, we should be able to go for it.

[36:32] Hello? Yeah. Something came to mind when you were speaking, touching what Phil just raised, the idea of fear, was that time when the Lord Jesus was in the boat with his disciples. Can you hear me?

[36:44] Hold it close. The Lord was in a boat with his disciples, and he was asleep, and the weather became mischievous and worrying, so much so the disciples began to fear, and they woke the Lord Jesus.

[37:01] He was a little bit, the Lord Jesus was concerned about their faith, you know, that they should be wired, and they realise who they're in the boat with. Anyway, the Lord Jesus stood up, and he spoke to the weather.

[37:13] He spoke to the wind, and he spoke to the sea, and they responded, and they calmed, and the disciples, you know, they gathered, you know, who's in the boat with us?

[37:27] The weather responds to what he says. I was thinking somewhat like, you know, every day all of us are in a boat with the Lord Jesus, and you might understand the circumstances in your life as being the weather, but the Lord Jesus being in the boat with us, never to forsake us, certain expectations about our faith, can and will speak to whatever the weather is, so we can rest with him in that boat.

[37:53] And if you like, here's a poem, all right, that I'll give to Ruthie later, that celebrates a little bit about, you know, the Lord looking after us, and who he, I'm sorry, the Lord looking after us, and who he is with us in the boat, exactly, day by day.

[38:10] Yeah, it's funny really, because the one who's in the boat with us, speaking to the weather like he does, is holding all things together, even while we're here now, he's holding the universe, all things together, held together in the Lord Jesus, and our lives.

[38:29] this is the day the Lord has made, and he will walk you through. Trust and rest and believe in whatever may befall.

[38:43] He wants you to understand the more how much, how much he loves you. King of kings, Lord of lords, who was, who is, and is to come, Lord God almighty, unapproachable in his holiness, with us in the boat, it's unbelievable, isn't it?

[39:05] Unapproachable in his holiness, magnificent in his glory, everlasting in his love, born to us a babe, died for us in shame, unsearchable mercy and grace, hold us in his love forever, forever in his name.

[39:22] Thank you, Michael, thank you. Yeah, just thinking back to the whole disciples in the boat and the storm, that can sort of be an image of what anxiety feels like, a storm raging on, out of control, but yes, great that Jesus walks with us, Jesus is in the boat, he is God, he is all powerful, thank you, Michael.

[39:54] Steve? On coming back again to a more practical level, let me say a few words of testimony and experience and also when things have gone wrong from my point of view.

[40:05] Yeah. Let me say first of all that some of the things you suggest like breathing exercises and relaxation do actually help. I can't say I've tried grounding, but I've tried some of the others and sure that helps.

[40:21] helps more in case of a sort of sudden panic attack rather than, as you say, in chronic anxiety. Another thing is, of course, you could say is, if you can, remove whatever is causing the stress.

[40:37] I mean, if you're scared of heights, don't take up bungee jumping. But more seriously, perhaps, one thing you only touched on is actually how you help people suffering from anxiety.

[40:58] And I do think it's good to do that, to talk to somebody you trust, and yet there are certain dangers in it.

[41:09] One danger is that, particularly if it's somebody very close to you, like a spouse or something, if you're not careful, you'll end up blaming the person for the problem you've got.

[41:24] And that obviously doesn't produce a desired effect, obviously. So, yes, talk to somebody, but not necessarily the closest person, somebody to you.

[41:37] Sometimes it's better to talk to somebody else, but still somebody you trust. conversely, if you're that person or indeed if you are a spouse or a close relative or a father or a child or something, trying to help people, it's not easy.

[41:58] And the danger is, as it's suggested on that thing, that you just sort of start quoting Bible texts at people. In a sense, I think you have to try and enter into their experience.

[42:13] It's not an easy thing to do, but I think that's what we have to try and do if we really want to help people and get them to talk through the things.

[42:28] That's old saying, a trouble shared is a trouble halved. There's some truth in that, I think. I'm sure we all suffer from anxiety sometimes, and as you say, in some people, it's chronic.

[42:47] Just some comments. I think particularly, we all need to think about how we can help people, and if we're in that situation, how we can ask for help without blaming the person we're talking to.

[43:02] thank you, Steve. Just really helpful wisdom from you. Thank you. Aaron's got his hand up.

[43:13] Yeah, just wanted to make a comment, something I noticed in the scripture, actually. I'm okay to make this comment, I haven't interrupted anybody. No, carry on.

[43:24] Okay, cool. Just in Philippians 4, Paul was very keen to say rejoice, rejoice in the Lord always. The Lord is near, and I think a lot of the time with anxiety, certainly my experience of anxiety is at that moment in time, that's all that seems to exist, and there seems to be no way out of that anxiety, and I guess the one thing that I think about in this rejoice, rejoice, the Lord is near, and something I've experienced through the work that I do with older people, there's often not a bright tomorrow to look forward to, and I think there's something amazing about remembering the fact that anxiety is one of those things that's dealt with on the cross, because in, I know I always go back to it, but in Revelation 7, when all tears and pain and all of those things are done away with once and for all, there's an answer there, say actually it's not going to always be like this, and in those moments we can remember what the

[44:36] Lord has done and rejoice and say actually there is an end to this, because the Lord has declared that there is an end to it, and he said it is finished, he's talking about all of that stuff, I found that very helpful just reading that, thinking rejoice, that there is reason to rejoice, certainly remembering that in the midst of anxiety is helpful.

[44:56] Thank you, absolutely, as Christians we can indeed rejoice. Ruth? Just a quick add-on, I'm just remembering back to a sermon to you years ago now, I don't remember Phil whether it was like the prayers in the New Testament or short prayers or something like that, but I just remember, again, on a practical level, a total amen to the breathing exercises, which I use a lot, and just some of those short prayers that we see in scripture that when it just feels like there's just too much, just the Jesus help me, God save me, you know, just coming back to just the basics can be so just over and over again can be, I guess, I found that, yeah, both whether there's pain of some kind or anxiety, there can be that, yeah, real help with the simple prayers.

[46:01] Thank you, absolutely. I mean, when I get fearful in the night time, I will often just say the Lord's Prayer and find that really helpful.

[46:13] Ray? Yeah, I mean, it's interesting to reflect on the disciples in the storm. Also, we think back to Moses, I can't do this, I can't speak.

[46:25] So God says, your brother will do the speaking, you tell him what to say. And also anxiety, depression, which I've suffered with is sort of closely allied, I think, to some extent.

[46:38] The situation with Elijah, Mount Carmel, mountaintop down in the valley, he needed food, he needed sleep, and God gave him that.

[46:49] And then God told Elijah, go back to where you came from and carry on. And so I think it's useful to think about scripture. We sometimes get anxious about being anxious and forget, I think, that we are human and it's good to be reminded that that's part of our makeup and God has provided endocrinology within our bodies to work that through.

[47:17] Thanks, Rui. I think I'll send her hand up. Yeah. Is that a yes? That is a yes. Okay, go for it.

[47:27] Lady like yes. As you all know, I suffer from anxiety and depression.

[47:47] Every so often it comes upon me. But one thing, a phrase that I'm hanging on to and you know, sometimes you feel like the Lord isn't there.

[48:07] You may be on the boat but I not on the boat with him. You wonder what's going on you. But a phrase that I was told some years ago when my mother died and I was in deep depression for about a year, I think it was, and I thought I was going to lose my job, going to be homeless, going to be this, going to be that.

[48:35] somebody said to me, this too will come to pass. And at the time I didn't take on board, but it's so true.

[48:50] Whatever you're going through, whenever you're going through it, this too will come to pass. and I think it's such a comforting phrase, truth, this too will come to pass.

[49:12] Why? Because God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, they're with you and they will see you through it. It's not easy, it is painful, but this too will come to pass.

[49:28] Thank you Asama for sharing that. Thank you. Any final comment or question?

[49:43] It's okay if there's not. A couple of things. Firstly, Steve mentioned talking. It is good to talk with people about these things.

[49:57] With a trusted Christian brother or sister in Christ, come and chat with me or I'm sure Phil or Jerome, where they're able to. We'd love to chat with you if you're struggling in any of these things.

[50:12] Also, some books. It's good to read. I've got three of the four books on there with me. first of all that book I quoted from jars of clay by Catherine Haddo.

[50:24] It's an excellent book. A book in the middle there I haven't read but Helen Thorne is a great writer, author. Some of us have heard her speak doing seminars at Bible by the beach.

[50:40] She's got a book on anxiety, hope in an anxious world. would recommend looking that up. Or there's these, this one is why am I feeling like this and the other one that accompanies it is why is my teenager feeling like this, which helps teenagers and parents when thinking about anxiety.

[51:05] Yeah, there's a big, it seems to be a big issue amongst a lot of our young people. So those are a couple of books. I would point you to. Let me say a prayer and we'll sing and close our service.

[51:22] Oh, Father God, thank you that in the Lord Jesus we do have things to rejoice in.

[51:33] We can rejoice in you always as Paul tells us to. But Father, we thank you that Jesus also knows about the worries and anxieties that we face in life.

[51:48] And we thank you that he is near to us, that you are near to us. You have shown us how much you love and are interested in us at the cross.

[52:02] As the Lord Jesus would lay down his life for us. Father, we thank you. you are near to those that you love.

[52:13] You are near to your children. We don't need to worry about tomorrow. For you are our heavenly father who cares for us. And so we ask, please, would you help us not to be overwhelmed with the anxieties of life.

[52:28] But when we are, we pray that you'd help us to pray. We pray that you'd help us a look to you and we pray that we would know your peace which transcends all understanding.

[52:42]  And with that guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.