WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:09.000 As I mentioned at the beginning of the service, my family and I, we've been away on vacation for the last few weeks, and it was a fantastic time away. 00:00:09.980 --> 00:00:14.400 Sadly, because of the way the travel was scheduled, we were traveling on two Sundays. 00:00:14.859 --> 00:00:24.920 This is actually my first time in any church in two weeks, and it's such a joy to be back in our home church with you all. 00:00:24.920 --> 00:00:33.579 But we had a great time away, and it's a vacation that we try to take every summer, get two or three weeks together as a family, and all that was wonderful. 00:00:34.480 --> 00:00:43.640 But as I was thinking about this and coming back, it struck me, if I can be totally honest, that vacations are hard for me. 00:00:44.540 --> 00:00:52.719 I find them difficult. I don't want to sound ungrateful. We had a great time, and the time with the kids was amazing. 00:00:52.719 --> 00:01:07.420 But vacations for me are also a time of anxiety because we go away, and we slow down, and the idea of vacation is to get away from your worries and relax. 00:01:07.939 --> 00:01:16.719 And yet what I find to be true is that the minute I start to slow down, all of these anxieties start to break into my conscious mind. 00:01:16.719 --> 00:01:26.299 They start to crowd in on my thoughts. I can't really explain it, but I find myself worrying about things that I forgot to take care of. 00:01:26.719 --> 00:01:30.539 I find myself ruminating on decisions that I haven't made yet. 00:01:30.659 --> 00:01:38.439 I find myself stressing out over emails that I forgot to return before I leave, and I'm sure I owe half of you an email, so sorry about that. 00:01:38.439 --> 00:01:41.739 But these things start to crowd in on me. 00:01:42.039 --> 00:01:48.719 The fact that I'm turning 40 at the end of the summer, that starts to hammer away in my brain. 00:01:48.819 --> 00:01:53.539 I didn't think that would bother me, and yet, honestly, it's kind of starting to freak me out. 00:01:53.879 --> 00:01:56.560 I'm turning 40, and it feels like a big deal. 00:01:56.640 --> 00:02:02.560 That starts to kind of whisper away in the early hours of the morning in my mind, and then I start thinking about the deeper stuff. 00:02:02.560 --> 00:02:09.800 You know, we're having a baby, God willing, in a couple of weeks, and I start thinking about the birth, and is that going to go okay? 00:02:10.479 --> 00:02:13.319 Is it going to go smoothly, or is there going to be some kind of complication? 00:02:14.180 --> 00:02:18.520 You know, is our daughter going to come into the world as she should, you know? 00:02:18.980 --> 00:02:20.180 And so I start thinking about that. 00:02:20.340 --> 00:02:26.740 I start thinking about the new school that our boys are going to in the fall, and I'm wondering, are they going to be okay with this adjustment? 00:02:28.000 --> 00:02:30.099 All these things start churning away. 00:02:30.099 --> 00:02:39.639 And the best I can figure is that I go at such a pace for most of my life that all these things kind of stay in the back. 00:02:40.259 --> 00:02:49.099 And then the minute I slow down and create enough space, all of it comes crashing in, and I begin to realize, I don't know that I'm actually dealing with these anxieties. 00:02:49.819 --> 00:02:54.319 I think what I'm actually doing is just distracting myself from busyness. 00:02:55.099 --> 00:02:58.120 And the minute I slow down, there it is waiting for me. 00:02:58.120 --> 00:03:06.420 I don't know if you can identify with this, but I assume that anxiety is a very real part of your life as well. 00:03:06.500 --> 00:03:22.200 I assume that job stress and financial stress and figuring out who you're going to date or who you're going to marry, or maybe if you're married, marital stress, kids stress, family stuff, friendship stuff. 00:03:22.199 --> 00:03:26.859 I imagine that these things are weighing on you as they do me. 00:03:27.239 --> 00:03:32.659 And I don't know if you cope like I do by keeping yourself busy or if you have other ways of coping. 00:03:33.280 --> 00:03:36.799 You know, a lot of us love to self-medicate in a whole variety of ways. 00:03:37.479 --> 00:03:41.579 But I imagine anxiety is a kind of ubiquitous experience in this room. 00:03:41.580 --> 00:03:48.380 And, you know, statistically, 40 million adults in the U.S. actually have clinically diagnosed anxiety disorders. 00:03:48.500 --> 00:03:52.840 And I know some of you here in this room have clinically diagnosed anxiety disorders. 00:03:52.840 --> 00:03:59.340 And you know better than anybody the challenge of living daily life struggling with anxiety. 00:03:59.340 --> 00:04:10.860 And so the question that I want us to think about tonight is whether or not it is possible to actually deal with anxiety at its root, to root it out. 00:04:12.439 --> 00:04:20.639 Or is the best we can hope for to cope and to get by a day at a time? 00:04:20.639 --> 00:04:24.680 The good news is this is not a new question. 00:04:24.839 --> 00:04:27.959 This is a question that people have wrestled with for centuries. 00:04:27.959 --> 00:04:41.099 And certainly as we look at Scripture, I think there are very few people who had more anxiety or more reason to be anxious than David, than King David, the author of many of the psalms in the Psalter. 00:04:42.099 --> 00:04:47.959 And David, thankfully for us, I think one of his outlets was poetry and music. 00:04:47.959 --> 00:04:52.279 And I think this was one of the ways that he maybe decompressed. 00:04:52.939 --> 00:04:59.819 And the good news about that is that God uses that to give us a window into his heart. 00:05:00.240 --> 00:05:07.740 So we can actually read the psalms and begin to get a sense of how his spirituality impacted things like anxiety. 00:05:07.899 --> 00:05:09.639 How did he actually deal with these things? 00:05:09.779 --> 00:05:15.039 What did his belief about God have to do with the way he experienced his everyday life? 00:05:15.040 --> 00:05:21.100 And so we turn our attention now to Psalm 23, admittedly the most well-known psalm in the world. 00:05:21.439 --> 00:05:24.480 And so some people may say, well, why are we going to be looking at Psalm 23? 00:05:24.900 --> 00:05:27.160 And I think partly because of the familiarity. 00:05:28.540 --> 00:05:32.780 You know, it can be so familiar that it actually is unfamiliar. 00:05:33.000 --> 00:05:36.259 In other words, we assume that we understand it way better than we actually do. 00:05:36.259 --> 00:05:51.420 I think if we really understand Psalm 23, as much as we've heard it, as much as we know it in our heads, I think the more we really understand it, the more we will realize it is a powerful tool in the battle against anxiety. 00:05:52.159 --> 00:06:03.240 What it says about God and what it says about us, I think has the power to eradicate much of the anxiety that we struggle against. 00:06:03.240 --> 00:06:08.000 So we're going to be looking at it almost as a meditation over the next several weeks. 00:06:08.079 --> 00:06:09.519 We're going to take it verse by verse. 00:06:09.620 --> 00:06:10.920 We want to take it very slowly. 00:06:11.579 --> 00:06:13.060 And our aim is depth. 00:06:14.620 --> 00:06:17.560 And so tonight we're just looking at the first verse. 00:06:17.680 --> 00:06:27.480 And all I want to do is to make a few observations about verse 1 and then try to connect that to the anxiety that I know we are feeling in this room. 00:06:28.319 --> 00:06:31.120 So let me pray for us and then we'll open God's word together. 00:06:31.120 --> 00:06:39.920 Lord, we do ask that as you are the good shepherd, you know, you know the things that are weighing us down right now. 00:06:40.899 --> 00:06:45.720 You know that there is major surgery scheduled for tomorrow. 00:06:46.120 --> 00:06:52.160 You know that there are babies that are overdue or babies that are on their way. 00:06:52.280 --> 00:06:55.100 We know of at least one induction that's scheduled for tomorrow. 00:06:55.780 --> 00:06:58.379 Lord, we know that there are people struggling with cancer. 00:06:58.379 --> 00:07:03.500 We know that there are people fighting anxiety and depression and despair on a great scale. 00:07:04.100 --> 00:07:08.240 Lord, you know way better than we do the needs that are here in this room. 00:07:09.199 --> 00:07:16.219 And you promise that you are the great physician and that your word can do a kind of surgery in us. 00:07:16.839 --> 00:07:19.759 And so we pray that you would use your word in that way tonight. 00:07:19.920 --> 00:07:25.699 That we would come to experience its truth and to glorify you in response. 00:07:25.699 --> 00:07:27.819 We pray this in your son's holiness. Amen. 00:07:30.060 --> 00:07:32.740 So first I just want to read these words to you. 00:07:33.240 --> 00:07:37.099 And as I read this, I want you to think about David, the author. 00:07:37.240 --> 00:07:39.539 Think about the kind of life that David lived. 00:07:39.819 --> 00:07:44.300 It was not a sheltered, privileged life in some tower somewhere. 00:07:46.159 --> 00:07:47.719 David had a hard life. 00:07:47.720 --> 00:07:56.860 As a son, as a young boy, he was systematically overlooked and disregarded by his father in favor of his older brothers. 00:07:57.700 --> 00:07:59.360 Rejection by his father, right? 00:08:00.260 --> 00:08:01.300 He got a little older. 00:08:01.420 --> 00:08:03.600 He was a shepherd in his own right. 00:08:03.640 --> 00:08:06.020 And as a shepherd, he had to face loneliness. 00:08:06.380 --> 00:08:09.500 He had to face the threat of wild animals and robbers. 00:08:09.500 --> 00:08:17.939 Then a little bit later in his life, as a soldier, he was exposed to brutality and trauma and death. 00:08:18.500 --> 00:08:24.579 Some of you have been in the military and you know firsthand the reality of life when you're deployed. 00:08:26.040 --> 00:08:31.500 A little bit later, as a politician, he didn't just have to worry about people assassinating his character. 00:08:31.639 --> 00:08:34.220 He actually had to worry about people assassinating him. 00:08:34.779 --> 00:08:37.580 Most of his career, I think there were people trying to kill him. 00:08:37.580 --> 00:08:41.540 As a husband, he was unfaithful. 00:08:42.600 --> 00:08:44.860 And he had to deal with that guilt and regret. 00:08:45.680 --> 00:08:47.180 He lost his first wife. 00:08:48.139 --> 00:08:49.580 And he had to deal with that loss. 00:08:50.139 --> 00:08:54.320 As a father, he had endured the death of an infant son. 00:08:54.660 --> 00:08:57.780 Maybe a worst fear for parents in the room. 00:08:57.879 --> 00:08:59.639 He had endured the rape of a daughter. 00:08:59.780 --> 00:09:02.100 Perhaps the other worst fear for parents. 00:09:02.840 --> 00:09:06.720 He had endured betrayal at the hands of one of his sons. 00:09:06.720 --> 00:09:09.920 He had endured the murder of another one of his sons. 00:09:10.879 --> 00:09:15.680 So if you think about his life, he had experienced tremendous hardship and challenge. 00:09:16.000 --> 00:09:17.759 As much or more than anybody here. 00:09:18.980 --> 00:09:21.379 And yet, in the midst of all that, he writes these words. 00:09:23.120 --> 00:09:23.940 He writes, 00:09:23.940 --> 00:09:27.480 Because the Lord is my shepherd. 00:09:28.680 --> 00:09:30.200 I shall not want. 00:09:31.560 --> 00:09:34.840 And think about that declaration of confidence. 00:09:35.380 --> 00:09:36.540 I shall not want. 00:09:37.600 --> 00:09:39.520 I shall not want for anything. 00:09:40.000 --> 00:09:40.260 Why? 00:09:41.040 --> 00:09:44.100 Because the Lord himself is my shepherd. 00:09:44.100 --> 00:09:49.080 It's almost as though he has a kind of supernatural contentment. 00:09:49.800 --> 00:09:55.139 This confidence that is inexplicable if you look at the details of his life. 00:09:55.860 --> 00:09:59.899 So the question we ask is, how could he have this confidence? 00:10:00.259 --> 00:10:03.060 And that leads us to the next observation. 00:10:04.100 --> 00:10:04.740 And that is this. 00:10:04.740 --> 00:10:10.299 I want you to think about the kind of relationship that David is describing having with God. 00:10:11.180 --> 00:10:12.960 Think about the way we think about God. 00:10:13.600 --> 00:10:16.000 The ideas that we have about what God is like. 00:10:16.100 --> 00:10:20.299 And think about the kind of relationship that David is describing having with God. 00:10:20.659 --> 00:10:23.120 The Lord is my shepherd. 00:10:23.980 --> 00:10:27.379 You know, that word shepherd is a powerful word. 00:10:27.379 --> 00:10:33.100 He's saying that God is not a distant, impersonal deity. 00:10:33.379 --> 00:10:37.580 He's not out there sort of concerned with other more important things. 00:10:37.860 --> 00:10:42.939 He's not overlooking David or dropping the ball or just hasn't gotten around to it yet. 00:10:43.820 --> 00:10:53.080 He's saying that God is intimately, personally caring and compassionate and involved in the details of David's life. 00:10:53.080 --> 00:10:55.240 The little things that David cares about. 00:10:55.240 --> 00:10:59.759 The seemingly insignificant details that God cares about those things. 00:10:59.899 --> 00:11:01.180 Because he cares about David. 00:11:01.779 --> 00:11:04.840 You know, like any God shepherd, he's saying God is my provider. 00:11:05.980 --> 00:11:07.000 He's my physician. 00:11:08.500 --> 00:11:08.879 Right? 00:11:08.940 --> 00:11:09.940 He's my protector. 00:11:10.840 --> 00:11:11.820 He's my guide. 00:11:12.639 --> 00:11:17.560 This is the kind of ongoing reliance that I experience with the Lord. 00:11:17.659 --> 00:11:20.419 It's an active, dynamic, dependent relationship. 00:11:21.360 --> 00:11:24.180 And it's an amazing statement for somebody to make about God. 00:11:24.179 --> 00:11:25.479 Especially in the Old Testament. 00:11:25.839 --> 00:11:32.739 In the Psalter, this is the most intimate by far way that God has been described at this point in the Psalter. 00:11:33.279 --> 00:11:34.179 He's not just a king. 00:11:34.279 --> 00:11:35.199 He's not just a creator. 00:11:35.339 --> 00:11:36.639 He's not just the giver of the law. 00:11:36.879 --> 00:11:37.659 He's my shepherd. 00:11:40.599 --> 00:11:42.059 And that's an amazing statement. 00:11:42.179 --> 00:11:44.459 But it also raises a question. 00:11:45.579 --> 00:11:45.799 Right? 00:11:45.799 --> 00:11:47.479 We always want to be comprehensive here. 00:11:47.539 --> 00:11:49.120 We always want to ask the hard questions. 00:11:49.639 --> 00:11:55.359 This, for me, a kind of red flag popped up when I was reading this a couple of weeks ago. 00:11:56.719 --> 00:11:57.559 Here's the question. 00:11:57.679 --> 00:11:58.779 If it hasn't occurred to you yet. 00:11:59.559 --> 00:12:07.740 If God is David's good shepherd, then how do we explain that list that I just laid out for you? 00:12:07.740 --> 00:12:12.180 How do we understand all of those horrible things that David has endured? 00:12:12.519 --> 00:12:13.379 Where was God? 00:12:14.039 --> 00:12:16.100 How was God letting those things happen? 00:12:17.360 --> 00:12:19.039 Was God just off duty? 00:12:20.139 --> 00:12:21.259 How do we understand it? 00:12:22.299 --> 00:12:27.419 And I think the key, and this leads us to the third observation, is understanding the word want. 00:12:27.419 --> 00:12:29.719 The Lord is my shepherd. 00:12:29.799 --> 00:12:30.759 I shall not want. 00:12:31.459 --> 00:12:36.699 You know, for years I would hear this and see it in pastels framed on people's walls and things. 00:12:37.139 --> 00:12:40.799 And I would think, what that means is, the Lord is my shepherd. 00:12:41.199 --> 00:12:45.599 I no longer have any wants because God gives me everything that I want. 00:12:46.559 --> 00:12:47.979 You know, I want it. 00:12:48.079 --> 00:12:48.479 I ask God. 00:12:48.539 --> 00:12:49.139 He gives it to me. 00:12:49.179 --> 00:12:49.679 He's my shepherd. 00:12:49.679 --> 00:12:53.019 Therefore, I don't have anything else to want because he's given it all to me. 00:12:53.059 --> 00:12:53.879 And I thought, that's great. 00:12:55.179 --> 00:12:57.240 But the good news is, that's wrong. 00:12:58.159 --> 00:13:00.139 The good news is, that's wrong. 00:13:00.240 --> 00:13:01.759 That's not, in fact, what it says. 00:13:01.839 --> 00:13:04.379 The Hebrew actually is better translated, lack. 00:13:05.740 --> 00:13:06.719 I shall not lack. 00:13:07.419 --> 00:13:10.719 There's a big difference between want and lack. 00:13:11.579 --> 00:13:11.799 Right? 00:13:11.860 --> 00:13:12.639 Because what is he saying? 00:13:12.740 --> 00:13:17.179 He's saying, God is not the kind of God who gives us everything we want. 00:13:17.959 --> 00:13:20.559 He's the kind of God who gives us everything we need. 00:13:21.059 --> 00:13:24.399 And there are times when the thing that we want is also the thing that we need. 00:13:24.500 --> 00:13:25.699 And God gives us what we want. 00:13:25.799 --> 00:13:27.139 And hallelujah, praise Jesus. 00:13:27.879 --> 00:13:28.679 God the provider. 00:13:30.000 --> 00:13:36.459 But there's an equal number of times, and if you're anything like me, probably more often, when the thing we want is not necessarily what we need. 00:13:37.179 --> 00:13:41.339 And by not giving us what we want, God is, in fact, giving us what we need. 00:13:41.419 --> 00:13:43.500 And so what David is saying is, God is the good shepherd. 00:13:43.500 --> 00:13:45.620 Just like we prayed in that collect earlier today. 00:13:45.919 --> 00:13:48.220 God knows better than we know what we need. 00:13:48.320 --> 00:13:51.159 He knows the things that we're too ignorant to ask for. 00:13:52.240 --> 00:13:55.759 And because he's the good shepherd, he gives us those things. 00:13:55.820 --> 00:13:58.299 And often, they may be things that we don't want. 00:13:58.299 --> 00:13:59.679 We say, I do not want that, God. 00:13:59.740 --> 00:14:00.539 Get that out of my life. 00:14:00.719 --> 00:14:01.500 I don't want to have to deal with it. 00:14:01.519 --> 00:14:02.279 I don't want to have to think about it. 00:14:02.359 --> 00:14:03.219 Please keep it away. 00:14:05.120 --> 00:14:06.919 God says, I love you, and you need this. 00:14:07.699 --> 00:14:08.299 You need it. 00:14:08.299 --> 00:14:11.919 And it's hard to understand how it all plays out. 00:14:12.699 --> 00:14:18.719 I don't think in this life we ever will understand how all of it plays out, how it all makes sense. 00:14:19.319 --> 00:14:20.959 I don't know if you're familiar with Elizabeth Elliott. 00:14:22.079 --> 00:14:29.939 But she's kind of been a sort of mentor, or when she was alive, a kind of mentor and continuing to be to me through her writing. 00:14:30.359 --> 00:14:32.399 And she lost her husband. 00:14:32.939 --> 00:14:34.740 Tragically, he was killed on the mission field. 00:14:34.740 --> 00:14:39.799 And so she writes about the pain and the struggle of trying to make sense of that. 00:14:40.360 --> 00:14:42.720 And so in one of her books, she's writing about that. 00:14:42.840 --> 00:14:45.299 And she actually writes about British shepherds. 00:14:46.159 --> 00:14:50.879 She says, you know, British shepherds have this thing that they do regularly for their sheep, where they will take their sheep. 00:14:51.500 --> 00:14:55.000 And they have this big vat of antiseptic liquid. 00:14:55.379 --> 00:14:56.120 Smells bad. 00:14:56.240 --> 00:14:56.960 Smells like chemicals. 00:14:57.120 --> 00:14:57.700 Looks horrible. 00:14:57.799 --> 00:14:58.340 It's terrifying. 00:14:58.840 --> 00:15:04.180 And they will lift the sheep up, and they will plunge the sheep into this vat of antiseptic liquid. 00:15:05.060 --> 00:15:08.139 And they have to submerge the sheep entirely. 00:15:08.279 --> 00:15:10.840 They have to get the ears, the nose, the mouth, the eyes. 00:15:10.919 --> 00:15:12.860 It all has to go completely under. 00:15:13.259 --> 00:15:13.440 Right? 00:15:13.519 --> 00:15:16.340 And if the sheep tries to get out, there are sheep dogs barking. 00:15:16.500 --> 00:15:17.180 And they have sticks. 00:15:17.279 --> 00:15:18.879 And they're prodding the sheep. 00:15:18.940 --> 00:15:20.560 And they're trying to push it under the water. 00:15:20.639 --> 00:15:23.320 And if you just walked in off the street, you would say, animal cruelty. 00:15:23.460 --> 00:15:24.879 You would call the authorities. 00:15:24.879 --> 00:15:26.879 And you would say, put a stop to this right now. 00:15:28.220 --> 00:15:29.740 The sheep are terrified. 00:15:30.879 --> 00:15:32.940 And they're fighting and fighting and fighting to get out. 00:15:32.940 --> 00:15:35.240 But the shepherds have to do it. 00:15:35.320 --> 00:15:35.580 Why? 00:15:36.100 --> 00:15:45.340 Because if they aren't regularly treated with the antiseptic, they will be victim to disease and to parasites that will ultimately cause horrible suffering and death. 00:15:45.340 --> 00:15:49.840 And so it's absolutely necessary for the well-being of the sheep. 00:15:50.460 --> 00:15:53.340 And here's what Elliot says about this. 00:15:54.300 --> 00:16:00.660 She says, I've had some experiences in my life which have made me feel very sympathetic to those poor sheep. 00:16:00.659 --> 00:16:05.919 I couldn't figure out any reason for the treatment I was getting from the shepherd I trusted. 00:16:06.879 --> 00:16:09.699 And he didn't give me a hint of explanation. 00:16:10.579 --> 00:16:14.839 As I watched the struggling sheep, I thought, if only there were some way to explain. 00:16:15.959 --> 00:16:18.000 But such knowledge is too wonderful for them. 00:16:18.259 --> 00:16:18.959 It is high. 00:16:19.860 --> 00:16:21.199 They cannot attain unto it. 00:16:21.200 --> 00:16:30.600 The point is, I think David, probably many times in his life, felt like he was being plunged under the dark water. 00:16:31.500 --> 00:16:32.540 It didn't make sense. 00:16:33.780 --> 00:16:35.379 God didn't explain himself. 00:16:36.340 --> 00:16:39.460 He looked up from the depths of woe and cried to God, why? 00:16:39.800 --> 00:16:40.660 Why is this happening? 00:16:40.840 --> 00:16:41.840 Why are you doing this to me? 00:16:42.040 --> 00:16:42.780 Where were you? 00:16:43.140 --> 00:16:44.460 Why are my prayers unanswered? 00:16:44.460 --> 00:16:45.460 Why are you doing this to me? 00:16:46.960 --> 00:16:48.280 And he didn't understand. 00:16:49.120 --> 00:16:53.800 And I think that many of us have been through, are going through, or will go through those experiences. 00:16:54.379 --> 00:16:59.940 Looking up from under the water, feeling overwhelmed and suffocated and crushed. 00:17:00.700 --> 00:17:01.960 Pressed to our limits. 00:17:03.160 --> 00:17:04.079 I can't take it. 00:17:04.079 --> 00:17:09.859 I don't think we're ever going to understand in this life. 00:17:10.960 --> 00:17:16.259 All the whys behind why God does what he does when he does it. 00:17:17.720 --> 00:17:22.399 And yet if you look at David's words, his heartfelt prayer. 00:17:23.740 --> 00:17:25.339 He trusts God. 00:17:26.399 --> 00:17:28.899 Even though he doesn't understand why. 00:17:29.599 --> 00:17:30.599 He trusts him. 00:17:30.599 --> 00:17:35.299 And that leads us to the last observation that I want to make. 00:17:35.399 --> 00:17:39.819 Which I think really gets to the heart of this verse and how it connects to our lives. 00:17:40.599 --> 00:17:42.500 Notice the structure of the verse. 00:17:43.599 --> 00:17:45.199 If you want to understand the psalm, look at the structure. 00:17:47.399 --> 00:17:51.259 The Lord is, I shall. 00:17:52.339 --> 00:17:55.299 The Lord is, I shall. 00:17:55.299 --> 00:17:57.419 You can almost insert a therefore. 00:17:57.420 --> 00:18:00.960 Therefore, the Lord is, therefore I shall. 00:18:01.060 --> 00:18:02.460 Do you see the principle there? 00:18:03.580 --> 00:18:06.200 Whatever it is that we believe about God. 00:18:06.259 --> 00:18:08.140 And I'm not just talking about does God exist. 00:18:08.259 --> 00:18:08.400 Right? 00:18:08.460 --> 00:18:09.600 That is an important question. 00:18:09.720 --> 00:18:10.660 But it's not the only question. 00:18:11.960 --> 00:18:13.620 Whatever we believe about God's character. 00:18:13.920 --> 00:18:15.560 What kind of God is he? 00:18:17.060 --> 00:18:21.880 Will directly determine how we experience everyday life. 00:18:21.880 --> 00:18:24.019 Including things like fear and anxiety. 00:18:24.019 --> 00:18:26.559 And to reverse that. 00:18:27.379 --> 00:18:30.180 However we experience our daily life. 00:18:30.240 --> 00:18:32.460 And however we try to deal with things like anxiety. 00:18:32.720 --> 00:18:36.940 That is going to reflect what we ultimately actually believe about God. 00:18:38.059 --> 00:18:41.220 And so we can tell from David's words. 00:18:42.400 --> 00:18:43.619 We can trace that back. 00:18:43.680 --> 00:18:48.160 And say even though David doesn't understand why he's had to go through some of the things he's had to go through. 00:18:48.359 --> 00:18:49.500 He trusts God. 00:18:49.500 --> 00:18:52.279 He believes in God's goodness. 00:18:53.119 --> 00:18:55.960 He believes that God is his good shepherd. 00:18:57.819 --> 00:19:00.279 So I just want to pull all of this together. 00:19:00.519 --> 00:19:04.700 David is this man who has faced tremendous hardship and anxiety throughout his life. 00:19:05.680 --> 00:19:08.519 And yet he seems to have had this supernatural contentment. 00:19:08.799 --> 00:19:11.619 Because first of all he knew that God was his good shepherd. 00:19:12.920 --> 00:19:14.079 Not just a nice idea. 00:19:14.180 --> 00:19:14.940 He knew it here. 00:19:15.720 --> 00:19:17.019 Knew that God was his good shepherd. 00:19:17.019 --> 00:19:19.059 He knew that because of that. 00:19:19.879 --> 00:19:22.799 God would therefore provide everything he needed. 00:19:22.940 --> 00:19:23.920 Not necessarily what he wanted. 00:19:24.160 --> 00:19:24.960 But what he needed. 00:19:26.220 --> 00:19:28.960 And he believed that even in the hardships and struggles. 00:19:29.400 --> 00:19:31.099 God was providing for him. 00:19:31.379 --> 00:19:32.559 Why and how did he know that? 00:19:32.740 --> 00:19:34.599 Because ultimately when it came down to it. 00:19:34.740 --> 00:19:36.619 He trusted God's character. 00:19:37.460 --> 00:19:38.740 He trusted God's character. 00:19:38.740 --> 00:19:39.740 God's character. 00:19:39.740 --> 00:19:49.079 So now let's ask how does this all tie into and connect with our daily lived experience here in Washington, D.C. 00:19:50.120 --> 00:19:54.940 And as I think about anxiety and all that has been written and said about anxiety. 00:19:55.039 --> 00:19:59.140 There are many explanations out there for why anxiety even exists. 00:20:00.259 --> 00:20:00.420 Right. 00:20:00.420 --> 00:20:04.480 Some people say well fundamentally it's a physiological issue. 00:20:04.700 --> 00:20:05.940 And it's a physiological problem. 00:20:06.180 --> 00:20:07.720 And there's a DNA component. 00:20:07.940 --> 00:20:09.100 And it's hereditary. 00:20:09.340 --> 00:20:10.800 And to a certain extent some of that is true. 00:20:12.100 --> 00:20:12.259 Right. 00:20:12.279 --> 00:20:15.500 Other people say well this is fundamentally a philosophical issue. 00:20:15.600 --> 00:20:18.380 People like Spinoza say this is rooted in philosophy. 00:20:18.560 --> 00:20:19.620 Other people say well this is a. 00:20:19.860 --> 00:20:22.320 It's indicative of other underlying medical conditions. 00:20:22.440 --> 00:20:24.320 Other people say it's purely psychological. 00:20:24.580 --> 00:20:27.019 It's the result of repressed drives and urges. 00:20:27.019 --> 00:20:30.220 Other people say well actually this is a cultural thing. 00:20:30.339 --> 00:20:32.019 We live in an anxiety producing culture. 00:20:32.819 --> 00:20:36.019 And that's why we have 40 million adults with anxiety disorders. 00:20:36.160 --> 00:20:39.359 And you know there are parts of all of those things that are true. 00:20:39.500 --> 00:20:41.299 And some people are more prone than others. 00:20:41.400 --> 00:20:43.079 And some people need medication. 00:20:43.240 --> 00:20:44.740 And some people need therapy. 00:20:44.859 --> 00:20:45.839 And all of that is true. 00:20:48.500 --> 00:20:50.180 But under all of that. 00:20:50.579 --> 00:20:51.619 At the core. 00:20:52.900 --> 00:20:54.759 Anxiety is a spiritual problem. 00:20:54.759 --> 00:20:58.059 It's a spiritual problem. 00:20:59.680 --> 00:21:02.799 Because the Bible says that our core problem. 00:21:03.480 --> 00:21:06.680 Is that we live life separated from God. 00:21:07.599 --> 00:21:14.099 That our earliest grandparents decided they no longer wanted to worship God as God. 00:21:14.099 --> 00:21:16.740 Rather they wanted to become like God. 00:21:17.519 --> 00:21:18.680 Little gods. 00:21:19.420 --> 00:21:22.000 And so in effect they said to God. 00:21:22.660 --> 00:21:24.339 The Lord is not my shepherd. 00:21:24.759 --> 00:21:27.160 The Lord is no longer my shepherd. 00:21:27.279 --> 00:21:30.480 In fact it's demeaning to call me a sheep. 00:21:31.119 --> 00:21:32.099 I'm not a sheep. 00:21:32.519 --> 00:21:33.379 I'm a shepherd. 00:21:33.940 --> 00:21:35.099 I don't need a shepherd. 00:21:35.319 --> 00:21:35.759 Thank you. 00:21:36.160 --> 00:21:39.680 I am fully capable of living life on my own. 00:21:39.900 --> 00:21:40.819 By my rules. 00:21:41.099 --> 00:21:42.079 On my terms. 00:21:43.680 --> 00:21:45.200 And because of that. 00:21:45.539 --> 00:21:47.619 And the separation that has resulted. 00:21:47.619 --> 00:21:49.639 We find ourselves. 00:21:50.139 --> 00:21:51.259 In a world. 00:21:52.939 --> 00:21:54.219 Trying to control. 00:21:54.639 --> 00:21:56.599 What we ultimately cannot control. 00:21:57.919 --> 00:22:00.079 And you know a great definition for anxiety. 00:22:01.239 --> 00:22:02.319 Trying to control. 00:22:02.579 --> 00:22:03.939 That which we cannot control. 00:22:05.299 --> 00:22:06.719 That's what anxiety is. 00:22:07.259 --> 00:22:08.619 It's all about control. 00:22:09.179 --> 00:22:10.739 I mean think about the things that haunt you. 00:22:10.839 --> 00:22:12.219 So I just think about the things that haunt me. 00:22:12.419 --> 00:22:13.179 What haunts me? 00:22:13.180 --> 00:22:14.460 Well if I'm honest. 00:22:14.580 --> 00:22:16.160 I'm trying to control other people. 00:22:16.900 --> 00:22:17.580 And what they do. 00:22:17.680 --> 00:22:18.620 The decisions they make. 00:22:19.299 --> 00:22:20.960 I'm trying to control their opinions. 00:22:21.500 --> 00:22:23.360 I'm trying to control how they think about me. 00:22:23.920 --> 00:22:25.539 I'm trying to manage those things. 00:22:26.400 --> 00:22:27.480 What else am I trying to control? 00:22:27.580 --> 00:22:29.120 I'm trying to control my own body. 00:22:29.220 --> 00:22:30.460 I'm trying to control my own health. 00:22:30.560 --> 00:22:31.840 I'm trying to do things. 00:22:31.900 --> 00:22:33.940 To try to add a year or two to my life. 00:22:34.000 --> 00:22:34.519 But ultimately. 00:22:34.860 --> 00:22:35.840 It can all end tonight. 00:22:36.820 --> 00:22:38.039 What else am I trying to control? 00:22:38.120 --> 00:22:39.180 I'm trying to control outcomes. 00:22:39.180 --> 00:22:39.980 I'm trying to control outcomes. 00:22:40.720 --> 00:22:41.120 Situations. 00:22:41.299 --> 00:22:42.940 And the way they're going to play out. 00:22:43.019 --> 00:22:44.580 I'm trying to control the future. 00:22:44.740 --> 00:22:47.259 I'm trying to control all of these things that I can't control. 00:22:48.480 --> 00:22:49.980 And that will drive you crazy. 00:22:51.460 --> 00:22:52.680 It will make you anxious. 00:22:54.259 --> 00:22:56.880 And I think deep down we all actually know that. 00:22:57.720 --> 00:22:58.560 That's the thing. 00:22:58.660 --> 00:22:59.720 I think we know that. 00:23:00.220 --> 00:23:01.420 On some deep level. 00:23:02.519 --> 00:23:04.019 There's an op-ed that I clipped. 00:23:04.420 --> 00:23:05.480 Back in 2013. 00:23:05.960 --> 00:23:06.580 That I love. 00:23:06.580 --> 00:23:08.259 And I come back to it from time to time. 00:23:09.180 --> 00:23:10.660 The title of it. 00:23:10.700 --> 00:23:11.519 It's by Mark Epstein. 00:23:11.640 --> 00:23:12.299 Who's a psychiatrist. 00:23:12.860 --> 00:23:13.620 In the New York Times. 00:23:13.720 --> 00:23:14.420 And the title is. 00:23:14.779 --> 00:23:16.539 The Trauma of Being Alive. 00:23:17.620 --> 00:23:18.220 Isn't that great? 00:23:18.740 --> 00:23:20.500 And I think he wrote a book by the same title. 00:23:20.600 --> 00:23:22.080 The Trauma of Being Alive. 00:23:22.140 --> 00:23:22.940 And here's what he says. 00:23:24.080 --> 00:23:25.480 An undercurrent of trauma. 00:23:25.940 --> 00:23:27.420 Runs through ordinary life. 00:23:28.180 --> 00:23:29.560 Shot through as it is. 00:23:29.740 --> 00:23:32.100 With the poignancy of impermanence. 00:23:33.140 --> 00:23:33.840 Isn't that fascinating? 00:23:34.759 --> 00:23:36.660 Life is traumatic on a daily basis. 00:23:36.660 --> 00:23:40.060 Because of how poignantly aware we are. 00:23:40.140 --> 00:23:41.140 That nothing lasts. 00:23:42.860 --> 00:23:44.100 That everything fades. 00:23:45.240 --> 00:23:47.120 He says there's no way to be alive. 00:23:47.180 --> 00:23:48.300 Without being conscious. 00:23:48.300 --> 00:23:50.360 Of the potential for disaster. 00:23:51.279 --> 00:23:52.100 And some people are like. 00:23:52.220 --> 00:23:52.920 That is me. 00:23:53.500 --> 00:23:54.259 That is me. 00:23:54.380 --> 00:23:54.560 Right? 00:23:54.680 --> 00:23:56.000 I mean I know some people are just like. 00:23:56.080 --> 00:23:57.620 That's how I live every day of my life. 00:23:57.759 --> 00:23:59.560 I know that disaster is out there. 00:23:59.779 --> 00:23:59.940 Right? 00:24:01.019 --> 00:24:02.320 And he says you can't live life. 00:24:02.400 --> 00:24:03.040 Without that awareness. 00:24:03.560 --> 00:24:04.220 One way or another. 00:24:04.400 --> 00:24:05.960 Death hangs over us all. 00:24:06.660 --> 00:24:07.820 Nobody is immune. 00:24:07.820 --> 00:24:10.580 Our world is unstable and unpredictable. 00:24:11.060 --> 00:24:12.660 And operates to a great degree. 00:24:13.160 --> 00:24:15.620 And despite incredible scientific advancement. 00:24:16.140 --> 00:24:18.560 Outside our ability to control it. 00:24:19.480 --> 00:24:20.960 We have no control. 00:24:22.300 --> 00:24:24.460 And in the face of that reality. 00:24:24.860 --> 00:24:25.720 We have a choice. 00:24:25.720 --> 00:24:31.420 Either we go on living as our own shepherds. 00:24:31.420 --> 00:24:33.160 Trying to make our way. 00:24:34.200 --> 00:24:38.120 Trying to control things that we ultimately cannot control. 00:24:38.240 --> 00:24:42.180 At the mercy of a cold, unfeeling universe. 00:24:45.319 --> 00:24:49.380 Or we run into the arms of the good shepherd. 00:24:49.380 --> 00:24:53.980 We run into the arms of the good shepherd. 00:24:55.980 --> 00:25:00.440 And that's the decision I think that lies at the heart of every major anxiety in our lives. 00:25:00.500 --> 00:25:01.120 As I think about. 00:25:01.280 --> 00:25:01.740 And you know. 00:25:01.920 --> 00:25:03.380 Life is anxiety producing. 00:25:04.280 --> 00:25:05.760 There are lots of little anxieties. 00:25:05.940 --> 00:25:06.040 Right? 00:25:06.180 --> 00:25:07.480 Traffic makes us anxious. 00:25:07.700 --> 00:25:10.380 But when there's an anxiety in your life that is overwhelming. 00:25:11.260 --> 00:25:13.880 When it's the kind of thing that you just cannot get away from. 00:25:14.020 --> 00:25:15.920 And it churns and churns and churns. 00:25:15.920 --> 00:25:18.740 Chances are at the core of that. 00:25:19.500 --> 00:25:20.519 This decision. 00:25:21.940 --> 00:25:22.940 Lies at the heart of it. 00:25:24.259 --> 00:25:25.580 The decision of. 00:25:26.580 --> 00:25:28.860 Am I going to be my own shepherd? 00:25:29.080 --> 00:25:31.100 Or am I going to actually trust. 00:25:31.860 --> 00:25:32.820 The good shepherd? 00:25:32.960 --> 00:25:33.160 Am I. 00:25:33.279 --> 00:25:33.680 Am I. 00:25:33.880 --> 00:25:35.400 Am I rejecting God? 00:25:35.500 --> 00:25:36.300 Or am I rejecting. 00:25:36.700 --> 00:25:38.279 What scripture says about God? 00:25:38.340 --> 00:25:40.900 Or am I actually clinging to him? 00:25:41.920 --> 00:25:42.320 Right? 00:25:42.380 --> 00:25:43.580 And I'm saying on one level. 00:25:43.680 --> 00:25:44.920 We may be doubting his existence. 00:25:45.060 --> 00:25:45.759 But as I said before. 00:25:45.759 --> 00:25:46.879 I think for many of us. 00:25:46.879 --> 00:25:47.819 Especially who are Christians. 00:25:48.019 --> 00:25:48.859 This is not a Christian. 00:25:48.920 --> 00:25:49.680 Non-Christian divide. 00:25:49.980 --> 00:25:50.839 Lots of Christians. 00:25:51.740 --> 00:25:52.579 At our core. 00:25:52.700 --> 00:25:53.379 In these little areas. 00:25:53.519 --> 00:25:54.839 Are functional atheists. 00:25:56.039 --> 00:25:56.240 You know. 00:25:56.279 --> 00:25:57.019 I'm a Christian in name. 00:25:57.059 --> 00:25:57.779 I go to church. 00:25:57.839 --> 00:25:58.940 I really believe this stuff. 00:25:59.099 --> 00:26:00.079 But in this area of my life. 00:26:00.099 --> 00:26:01.220 Where there's a tremendous amount of anxiety. 00:26:01.319 --> 00:26:02.680 I'm actually a functional atheist. 00:26:02.940 --> 00:26:04.599 I really don't believe that God is here. 00:26:04.779 --> 00:26:05.599 I don't trust God. 00:26:05.640 --> 00:26:06.140 If he is there. 00:26:07.339 --> 00:26:09.339 So it's worth going deep in your heart. 00:26:09.420 --> 00:26:10.220 And asking yourself. 00:26:10.339 --> 00:26:10.700 Honestly. 00:26:10.900 --> 00:26:12.299 Do I really believe. 00:26:12.500 --> 00:26:13.480 That God is good? 00:26:13.480 --> 00:26:14.599 Do I really believe. 00:26:14.599 --> 00:26:15.719 That he's trustworthy? 00:26:16.299 --> 00:26:17.000 Do I really believe. 00:26:17.119 --> 00:26:17.939 That he's compassionate? 00:26:18.319 --> 00:26:19.039 Do I really believe. 00:26:19.159 --> 00:26:19.719 That he cares? 00:26:21.000 --> 00:26:21.959 Or do I believe. 00:26:22.039 --> 00:26:22.899 That God is distant? 00:26:23.259 --> 00:26:23.939 Do I believe. 00:26:24.019 --> 00:26:25.240 That God is capricious? 00:26:25.639 --> 00:26:26.399 Do I believe. 00:26:26.500 --> 00:26:28.019 That God is untrustworthy? 00:26:28.179 --> 00:26:29.059 Do I believe. 00:26:29.259 --> 00:26:29.619 That he's. 00:26:30.899 --> 00:26:31.379 Preoccupied. 00:26:31.959 --> 00:26:33.219 That I'm not worth his time. 00:26:33.339 --> 00:26:34.519 What do I actually believe? 00:26:35.719 --> 00:26:36.779 And as we said before. 00:26:36.859 --> 00:26:37.879 Whatever that is. 00:26:37.939 --> 00:26:39.500 It will dramatically impact. 00:26:39.500 --> 00:26:40.559 How we face. 00:26:40.880 --> 00:26:41.859 Anxious situations. 00:26:41.859 --> 00:26:43.440 So the last question. 00:26:43.519 --> 00:26:44.140 We'll ask is this. 00:26:44.559 --> 00:26:45.440 How do we know. 00:26:45.859 --> 00:26:48.119 That we can actually trust God. 00:26:48.660 --> 00:26:50.859 With those precious areas of our life. 00:26:51.059 --> 00:26:52.079 That we cling to. 00:26:52.180 --> 00:26:52.940 With a white knuckled grip. 00:26:53.140 --> 00:26:53.920 How can we know? 00:26:56.279 --> 00:26:57.859 Thus lies the power. 00:26:58.059 --> 00:26:59.079 Of John chapter 10. 00:27:00.680 --> 00:27:02.539 Where Jesus shocks his listeners. 00:27:03.059 --> 00:27:04.559 When he says in verse 11. 00:27:05.339 --> 00:27:06.519 I am. 00:27:07.220 --> 00:27:08.059 The good shepherd. 00:27:09.279 --> 00:27:11.359 The good shepherd lays down his life. 00:27:12.119 --> 00:27:13.059 For the sheep. 00:27:14.460 --> 00:27:15.039 And you know. 00:27:15.099 --> 00:27:15.980 Everybody knew. 00:27:16.119 --> 00:27:17.559 What he was really saying. 00:27:17.639 --> 00:27:18.919 This is not a teacher. 00:27:19.279 --> 00:27:20.819 Using a mifty metaphor. 00:27:21.079 --> 00:27:22.220 To describe how much he cares. 00:27:22.220 --> 00:27:23.519 For his students. 00:27:24.679 --> 00:27:27.220 He's referring to Ezekiel chapter 34. 00:27:27.379 --> 00:27:28.399 This amazing place. 00:27:28.500 --> 00:27:29.460 Where in verse 15. 00:27:30.039 --> 00:27:31.379 God who is fed up. 00:27:31.659 --> 00:27:32.599 With the unfaithfulness. 00:27:32.919 --> 00:27:33.980 Of the teachers of Israel. 00:27:33.980 --> 00:27:34.839 He's fed up. 00:27:36.420 --> 00:27:37.220 And he says. 00:27:37.339 --> 00:27:38.099 The day is coming. 00:27:38.279 --> 00:27:39.240 When I myself. 00:27:40.180 --> 00:27:41.000 I myself. 00:27:41.000 --> 00:27:42.400 Will be the shepherd of my people. 00:27:43.360 --> 00:27:44.299 See other religions. 00:27:44.500 --> 00:27:45.099 The founder. 00:27:45.220 --> 00:27:45.980 They found the religion. 00:27:46.200 --> 00:27:46.920 And then they die. 00:27:47.000 --> 00:27:48.480 And then the followers take over. 00:27:48.519 --> 00:27:49.000 And it morphs. 00:27:49.000 --> 00:27:49.519 And it changes. 00:27:49.759 --> 00:27:50.779 And so on and so forth. 00:27:50.980 --> 00:27:51.440 God says. 00:27:51.480 --> 00:27:51.620 No. 00:27:51.740 --> 00:27:52.759 That doesn't happen here. 00:27:53.380 --> 00:27:54.120 One day. 00:27:54.360 --> 00:27:55.599 I will be the shepherd. 00:27:56.519 --> 00:27:57.440 I will come. 00:27:57.640 --> 00:27:59.339 And I will make them lie down. 00:27:59.440 --> 00:28:00.279 I will lead them. 00:28:00.279 --> 00:28:01.400 To green pastures. 00:28:01.480 --> 00:28:02.539 Besides still waters. 00:28:02.539 --> 00:28:03.980 I will do these things. 00:28:04.399 --> 00:28:05.039 In the flesh. 00:28:06.659 --> 00:28:07.180 And so of course. 00:28:07.279 --> 00:28:08.059 When Jesus stands. 00:28:08.139 --> 00:28:08.460 And he says. 00:28:08.599 --> 00:28:09.420 I am the good shepherd. 00:28:09.700 --> 00:28:10.399 Everybody's hearing. 00:28:10.720 --> 00:28:11.500 Ezekiel 34. 00:28:11.619 --> 00:28:12.139 How do we know? 00:28:12.299 --> 00:28:13.240 Because in verse 31. 00:28:13.460 --> 00:28:14.539 They pick up stones. 00:28:14.819 --> 00:28:15.619 To kill him. 00:28:15.740 --> 00:28:16.700 For blasphemy. 00:28:17.379 --> 00:28:18.500 Who says this? 00:28:18.500 --> 00:28:21.619 But of course. 00:28:21.700 --> 00:28:23.019 Jesus was true to his word. 00:28:24.380 --> 00:28:25.640 He did exactly. 00:28:25.779 --> 00:28:27.140 What the good shepherd should do. 00:28:27.700 --> 00:28:27.859 Right? 00:28:27.980 --> 00:28:29.240 He laid down his life. 00:28:29.359 --> 00:28:30.000 For the sheep. 00:28:30.799 --> 00:28:31.380 How do we know? 00:28:31.480 --> 00:28:32.880 That he's the shepherd. 00:28:33.039 --> 00:28:34.200 Who will make sure. 00:28:34.359 --> 00:28:35.319 We lack for nothing. 00:28:36.720 --> 00:28:38.180 Because he gave up. 00:28:38.559 --> 00:28:38.920 Everything. 00:28:39.779 --> 00:28:40.720 He gave up. 00:28:40.880 --> 00:28:41.299 Everything. 00:28:42.039 --> 00:28:43.400 So that we would lack. 00:28:43.900 --> 00:28:44.220 Nothing. 00:28:44.220 --> 00:28:46.279 In what we ultimately need. 00:28:46.339 --> 00:28:47.100 As human beings. 00:28:48.039 --> 00:28:49.039 In this world. 00:28:50.480 --> 00:28:51.339 So how do we know. 00:28:51.380 --> 00:28:52.000 We can trust him? 00:28:52.079 --> 00:28:52.819 Look at the cross. 00:28:53.759 --> 00:28:54.420 Look at the cross. 00:28:54.960 --> 00:28:55.559 And so. 00:28:55.680 --> 00:28:56.880 Over the next few weeks. 00:28:56.980 --> 00:28:57.579 What I hope. 00:28:57.660 --> 00:28:58.519 We can do together. 00:28:58.519 --> 00:28:59.299 As a community. 00:28:59.500 --> 00:29:01.279 Is to look at Psalm 23. 00:29:02.039 --> 00:29:03.039 Verse by verse. 00:29:03.759 --> 00:29:04.920 And what I want you to do. 00:29:05.000 --> 00:29:06.079 I'm just going to invite you. 00:29:06.079 --> 00:29:06.799 To do this. 00:29:07.480 --> 00:29:08.960 Just look at your life. 00:29:09.059 --> 00:29:09.619 And figure out. 00:29:09.740 --> 00:29:10.659 Where are the things. 00:29:10.919 --> 00:29:11.379 That I am. 00:29:12.139 --> 00:29:13.359 Where am I ruminating? 00:29:13.519 --> 00:29:14.019 Where am I spending. 00:29:14.159 --> 00:29:15.079 Too much time and energy? 00:29:15.460 --> 00:29:16.440 Where is the anxiety. 00:29:16.659 --> 00:29:17.599 Really sourced. 00:29:17.680 --> 00:29:18.599 In my life right now? 00:29:18.879 --> 00:29:20.039 And identify those areas. 00:29:20.299 --> 00:29:20.940 And then I invite you. 00:29:20.960 --> 00:29:21.899 To begin to pray. 00:29:22.139 --> 00:29:22.980 These words. 00:29:23.019 --> 00:29:23.779 Of Psalm 23. 00:29:24.079 --> 00:29:25.379 Into those situations. 00:29:26.220 --> 00:29:27.299 Don't expect magic. 00:29:27.419 --> 00:29:27.879 Don't expect. 00:29:27.879 --> 00:29:28.819 An overnight cure. 00:29:29.139 --> 00:29:29.859 What we're talking about. 00:29:29.980 --> 00:29:30.879 Is rehabituating. 00:29:31.099 --> 00:29:32.059 Our hearts. 00:29:32.440 --> 00:29:33.319 Learning how to. 00:29:33.659 --> 00:29:34.259 Stop being. 00:29:34.519 --> 00:29:35.279 Our own shepherds. 00:29:35.519 --> 00:29:36.680 And to run into the arms. 00:29:36.799 --> 00:29:37.759 Of the good shepherd. 00:29:37.919 --> 00:29:39.220 We have to habituate. 00:29:39.319 --> 00:29:40.319 Ourselves to do that. 00:29:40.619 --> 00:29:41.259 Through prayer. 00:29:41.940 --> 00:29:42.740 So you can just take. 00:29:42.839 --> 00:29:43.259 Verse one. 00:29:43.339 --> 00:29:44.319 The Lord is my shepherd. 00:29:44.399 --> 00:29:45.200 I shall not want. 00:29:45.279 --> 00:29:46.039 I shall not lack. 00:29:46.200 --> 00:29:47.180 And pray that. 00:29:47.539 --> 00:29:48.599 Into the situation. 00:29:49.639 --> 00:29:49.899 Right. 00:29:49.960 --> 00:29:50.720 So I think about. 00:29:50.819 --> 00:29:51.980 The birth of our daughter. 00:29:52.180 --> 00:29:52.740 Coming up. 00:29:52.779 --> 00:29:53.240 And I think. 00:29:55.159 --> 00:29:56.019 I would pray. 00:29:56.019 --> 00:29:56.500 Lord. 00:29:59.039 --> 00:30:00.000 You're my shepherd. 00:30:02.299 --> 00:30:03.139 You're the shepherd. 00:30:03.319 --> 00:30:03.740 Of my wife. 00:30:03.819 --> 00:30:04.079 Laura. 00:30:04.240 --> 00:30:04.839 You're the shepherd. 00:30:05.059 --> 00:30:05.680 Of Riley. 00:30:05.899 --> 00:30:06.379 And Maddox. 00:30:06.380 --> 00:30:07.440 And you're the shepherd. 00:30:07.440 --> 00:30:08.260 Of this little girl. 00:30:08.400 --> 00:30:08.760 Already. 00:30:08.960 --> 00:30:10.020 In a way that I can't even. 00:30:10.120 --> 00:30:11.000 Begin to understand. 00:30:11.200 --> 00:30:12.260 You know her into me. 00:30:13.960 --> 00:30:14.480 And Lord. 00:30:14.540 --> 00:30:16.060 I know that because I can trust you. 00:30:16.640 --> 00:30:17.660 When I look at the cross. 00:30:17.760 --> 00:30:19.280 And I see the kind of God you are. 00:30:19.380 --> 00:30:20.600 I know that I can trust you. 00:30:20.660 --> 00:30:21.040 With her. 00:30:21.540 --> 00:30:22.320 And my wife. 00:30:22.560 --> 00:30:23.320 In this situation. 00:30:23.440 --> 00:30:24.300 That I cannot control. 00:30:24.440 --> 00:30:24.900 I know that. 00:30:25.080 --> 00:30:26.400 However things play out. 00:30:26.440 --> 00:30:27.320 Or whatever happens. 00:30:27.980 --> 00:30:29.020 You are always. 00:30:29.260 --> 00:30:30.560 Constantly providing me. 00:30:30.760 --> 00:30:31.800 Exactly what I need. 00:30:31.799 --> 00:30:34.839 And so I relinquish this part of my life to you. 00:30:34.899 --> 00:30:35.680 I trust you. 00:30:36.500 --> 00:30:38.440 It's better in your hands than in mine. 00:30:39.899 --> 00:30:40.519 Take it. 00:30:41.559 --> 00:30:42.500 Be my shepherd. 00:30:43.259 --> 00:30:45.200 And we can pray these things. 00:30:45.759 --> 00:30:46.960 Into these situations. 00:30:47.659 --> 00:30:49.099 To preach to our own hearts. 00:30:49.180 --> 00:30:50.279 To teach our own hearts. 00:30:50.819 --> 00:30:52.039 How to trust the good shepherd. 00:30:52.259 --> 00:30:53.039 More deeply. 00:30:53.419 --> 00:30:54.539 With more of our lives. 00:30:54.539 --> 00:30:57.259 So let's stop coping. 00:30:57.639 --> 00:30:59.059 And start beginning to root out. 00:30:59.180 --> 00:31:00.299 And deal with our anxiety. 00:31:00.440 --> 00:31:00.920 Because ultimately. 00:31:01.079 --> 00:31:01.700 What is anxiety? 00:31:02.240 --> 00:31:03.440 It's a daily reminder. 00:31:05.139 --> 00:31:06.159 That on our own. 00:31:06.259 --> 00:31:07.559 We are separated from God. 00:31:07.680 --> 00:31:08.639 The source of life. 00:31:09.279 --> 00:31:09.819 And meaning. 00:31:10.279 --> 00:31:10.819 And provision. 00:31:11.119 --> 00:31:11.659 And projection. 00:31:13.059 --> 00:31:14.059 And guidance. 00:31:16.359 --> 00:31:17.519 And it's an invitation. 00:31:17.779 --> 00:31:18.920 Every time we feel anxiety. 00:31:19.079 --> 00:31:20.319 Either to continue. 00:31:22.240 --> 00:31:23.519 Trying to be our own shepherds. 00:31:23.519 --> 00:31:25.139 Which is crazy making. 00:31:26.139 --> 00:31:27.319 Or it can be something. 00:31:27.440 --> 00:31:28.879 That drives us into the arms. 00:31:29.799 --> 00:31:30.700 Of the good shepherd. 00:31:31.319 --> 00:31:31.779 Let's pray.