"What's The Sense In Worrying?" - Barrett Hendrickson

Ask my kids what they know. The first thing they'll tell you: "God is always in control." It's a tough concept to get under. "God is always in control." What would life look like if we really believed that? The Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF) starts chapter 3 like this: "From all eternity and by the completely wise and holy purpose of his own will, God has freely and unchangeably ordained whatever happens." It has a whole slew of scripture to back it up as well. Eph 1.11, Rom 11.33, Heb 6.17, Rom 9.15,18, Acts 4.27-28, Mt 10.29-30, Eph 2.10, Is 45.6-7.
This Sunday, we'll be looking at Psalm 46, the Psalm that Martin Luther was reading when he wrote "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God." There is a lot of power in the Psalm. The imagery of it can be kinda scary: Earthquakes, wars, destruction. But in the end we see that God is always in control.
So, in preparation for Sunday morning, I'd love for you to read this Psalm, morning and evening. Take the beginning of the Psalm, ch 46:1-2a,

God is our refuge and strength,

a very present help in trouble

Therefore we will not fear...

and use it as an anchor reading the rest of the psalm, apply the universal truth of "God as refuge and strength, and help, therefore I won't fear" to the rest of the chaos in the psalm. Think of that earth shaking day that you saw mountains falling into the heart of the sea. What is the sense in worrying.

Questions to consider:

1. What is the role of open water in the Bible? Look at Genesis 1, 7, Matt 8:23-27, 14:22-33, Mark 4:35-41
2. What is a earth shattering day that you've experienced that you saw figurative mountains crashing into the sea?
3. Where does God dwell?

I'm excited to show you what God has been teaching me through my study of Psalm 46 over the past few weeks. I hope you'll join us for worship at 8:15, 9:15, or 10:45 on Sunday morning.