Pathway to Victory

Speaker 1

Hey podcast listeners, thanks for streaming today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.

Pathway to Victory is a nonprofit ministry featuring the Bible teaching of Dr. Robert Jeffress. Our mission is to pierce the darkness with the light of God's Word through the most effective media available, like this podcast.

To support Pathway to Victory, go to ptv.org/donate or follow the link in our show notes.

Now here's today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.

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Hi, this is Robert Jeffress and I'm glad to study God's Word with you every day.

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This Bible teaching program on today's edition of Pathway to Victory.

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Faith is an attitude we choose in life. And it's the attitude choice that we're talking about today in our series, "Choose Your Attitudes, Change Your Life."

Today we're going to talk about that conscious choice we have to make. When troubling situations come into our life, we choose faith over worry.

Speaker 1

Welcome to Pathway to Victory with author and pastor Dr. Robert Jeffress. What's at the top of your worry list? Maybe it's a medical condition or a financial problem. Maybe a relationship that seems to be constantly in conflict.

Today on Pathway to Victory, Dr. Robert Jeffress challenges us to make our worry list into our prayer list and to let God turn our fears into peace.

But first, let's take a moment to hear some important ministry updates.

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Thanks, David, and welcome again to Pathway to Victory. As a pastor and Bible teacher, I find that people often feel stuck. They want a change but can't seem to get any traction. Well, I'm convinced that true life change begins with our attitude. And today we're going to continue our study titled "Choose Your Attitudes, Change Your Life." Our focus in the next half hour is choosing faith over worry.

Just a few weeks ago, I had the privilege of speaking with one of the champions of our Christian faith. His name is David Green, founder and CEO of Hobby Lobby. The Green family's been bold in standing for their faith, and David's written a brand new book called "The Legacy Life." David argues that legacy isn't about what you accumulate or even what you leave behind; it's about what you set in motion.

Now he shows how ordinary Christians, not just business leaders, can build impact that outlasts their lifetime. If you've ever wondered whether your life will matter beyond your years, David's insights in "The Legacy Life" will reshape how you think about generosity, purpose, and multi-generational influence. I want to send you a copy today when you become a Pathway Partner or give a one-time generous gift. A Pathway Partner agrees to give an automated monthly gift, and by doing so, your partnership will put your legacy in motion today. It's a legacy that will last through eternity.

I'll tell you more about this book and other resources later in the program, but right now, let's get started in our study of God's Word together. I titled today's message "Choosing Faith Over Worry."

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Now, before we talk about how to choose faith in our life, let's look at some common causes of worry.

Cause number one: a wrong value system. Most worry involves a fear of losing something important to us. Whenever your heart and affections are built around things that can be taken from you, there is going to be a low-grade anxiety that consumes your life. And that's why Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-20, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal." Sometimes our anxiety reveals a wrong—not a sinful, but just a wrong—value system, building our affection around the temporal instead of the eternal.

A second cause of worry in our life can be unconfessed sin. Whenever we are consistently and willfully disobeying God, the byproduct of that disobedience is anxiety and worry.

There's a third cause that we don't talk about often. Some of our worry is the direct result of Satanic attack in our life. Now, I know that sounds extreme, so don't write me off before I explain what I mean by this. In Ephesians chapter 6, Paul describes the spiritual armor that is available to every Christian to fight against Satan's attack. Remember, Paul reminds us that our struggle in life is not against flesh and blood. It's really not against other people. Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, Paul says, but against the unseen forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Spiritual warfare demands spiritual weapons.

In verse 16, he describes one of those pieces of armor available to us: "In addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one." What does Paul mean by the shield of faith? Well, a Roman soldier had this shield made of wood. It was about 2.5 feet wide and 4.5 feet long, and it would be covered in leather that had been soaked in water. The enemy would often shoot an arrow, but before shooting the arrow, he would dip the tip of that arrow in pitch and then set it on fire. When that flaming missile, that flaming arrow, would come toward the Roman soldier, all the soldier had to do was lift up that shield. When that flaming arrow made contact, immediately it was extinguished.

Now, when you are under attack from Satan, hold up that shield of faith with which you can extinguish Satan's flaming arrows in your life. I frankly think Satan has a number of flaming arrows he shoots into different people's lives. One of them is labeled greed. Another one might be labeled lust. He knows exactly what arrow to use at the right time on the right person. But I think among his favorite arrows is worry. He loves to send that flaming arrow of worry. In our life, many times our worry can be attributed to Satan himself.

We've talked about the causes of worry. Now, how do we erect that shield of faith in our lives to extinguish the flaming attack of anxiety? Well, let me give you just four positive steps that you can take, all based on God's Word.

Number one, and most importantly, repent of known sin in your life. If some of our anxiety is because of a wrong value system, that worry is like a headache; it shows something else is wrong in our life. Maybe for you, you realize that you have built your life around the temporary—not necessarily the sinful, but things that could be easily taken away from you. You need to change where you're putting your affections and your desires. Colossians 3:1-2 says, "If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is. Set your mind on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth."

That word "repent." And again, we're talking about this next week when we talk about choosing repentance over guilt. But I'll give you a sneak preview. The word repentance, "metano," means a change of mind that leads to a change of direction in life. For some of you, to repent in your life means to change your value system, to change your mind about what you value. For others of you, repenting may mean letting go of things in your life that you know are displeasing to the Lord. It may be a wrong relationship, a dishonest practice you're involved in, or an addiction. You know God is displeased, and you have this sense that if you don't stop, if you don't change, God is going to send His discipline into your life, and that fear is not without merit.

Hebrews 12:6 says, "For those whom the Lord loves, He disciplines, and He scourges every son whom He receives." If you're involved in sin in your life, it's not a matter of if God is going to send discipline; it's only when that discipline is going to come. He sends it into your life not because He hates you. He doesn't send it into your life because He doesn't love you. He sends discipline into your life because He loves you. Just like a parent who loves his child disciplines his child, so God, our loving heavenly Father, sends discipline into our life as well.

I can tell you from personal experience, God's discipline is never pleasant. There are times in my life—don't ask for details, I'm not going to.

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Give them to you.

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But I can tell you there are times that I have not been doing the right thing. And God put his heavy hand upon me, and I can tell you for sure, I never want to experience that again. The good news is we don't have to experience it. We can't escape God's loving but painful discipline in our life. How do we do that? 1 Corinthians 11:31 says, "But if we judged ourselves rightly, we should not be judged." Right now you have the chance. Right now you have the opportunity to say, "I'm not headed in the right direction today. I'm gonna start walking in a new direction." That's one way to avoid fear in your life: repent of known sin.

Number two, remove unnecessary fear in your life. You know, much of the fear we have can be easily removed simply by confronting the source of our fears. For example, many of us are anxious about not doing things we know we ought to be doing. For example, we know we ought to go see the dentist. It's been a year since we've been to the dentist, but we're afraid of what he might discover in our mouth. And so we put it off. The longer we put it off, the more we worry, thinking, "You know, these cavities are multiplying in my mouth, and I know I need to do something," but we can't bring ourselves to do it. Or maybe you know you need to reconcile your bank statement, but you're afraid to do that. You don't want to find out that you're in worse financial shape than you thought. So you keep postponing that, and you carry around that low-grade fear in your life because you're not doing something you know you should be doing.

You know, a doctor has said that the three killers of our age are a clock, a calendar, and the telephone. You know why that is? All three of those instruments remind us of things we should be doing that we're not doing. Let me give you three words that can remove a lot of the unnecessary fear in your life. You ready for them? Here are the three words: Do it now. Do it now. Do you have a hard telephone call you need to make? Do it now. Do you have a difficult letter or email you need to send? Do it now. Do you have an appointment that you need to make? Do it now. Proverbs talks about the diligent person versus the lazy person who is always finding an excuse to postpone to tomorrow what should be done today.

You know, removing unnecessary fear can also mean dealing realistically with your anxiety. Do you remember Willard Scott, the old weatherman from the Today show? He was so much fun. I remember reading a story that he wrote about a fear he had in his own life. He was deathly afraid of bridges. He was always fearful that if he drove across a bridge, it would collapse. So many times he would spend hours going out of the way, driving someplace to avoid a bridge. And he thought, "This is silly. I'm wasting valuable time in my life. I'm going to confront my fear." You know what he did? He rode in his convertible across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge 45 times, back and forth across that bridge until he conquered his fear of bridges.

You say, "Well, that sounds like a bunch of positive thinking mumbo jumbo. Where is that in the Bible?" I'm glad you asked. Ephesians 6:14 talks about the spiritual armor we have: "Stand firm, therefore, having girded your loins with truth." 1 Peter 1:13 says, "Therefore gird your minds for action." What's all this about girding and loins and all of that? Well, another piece of spiritual armor the Roman soldier had was a belt, a belt around his waist. And here's why that was important. Every soldier had that free-flowing tunic that he wore. But if he went into battle with that tunic flowing this way and that way, an enemy could grab hold of it and gain an unfair advantage. So before the soldier went into battle, he would take the ends of that tunic and tuck it into the belt so that there were no free-flowing ends to that tunic.

What the word of God is saying, Paul is saying we need to take these loose thoughts or even thoughts that are based on unrealistic fears and confront them with truth—the truth of God's word, the truth that the bridge isn't going to collapse. That kind of truth makes worry evaporate in our life.

Number three: Remember God's past faithfulness in your life. One way to erect that shield of faith is to remember and meditate on God's past faithfulness. You know, if you read through the Psalms, you'll discover that David battled with worry all of the time. So many of his Psalms convey the anxiety he was feeling, and many times with good cause. For example, I think about Psalm 3 that he penned. He wrote that when his son Absalom was building a rebellion against his father. You'll recognize these words because our choir sings them so beautifully in a song: Psalm 3, verses 1 and 2. "Oh Lord, how my adversaries have increased! Many are rising up against me. Many are saying of my soul, 'There is no deliverance for him in God.'" Jerusalem Times is saying, "I'm going to lose this battle against my son. I'm done for; it's over."

But then, notice the quick change of mind he adds in verse three: "But Thou, O Lord, art a shield about me, my glory, and the one who lifts up my head." Can't you hear our choir singing that? "I was crying to the Lord with my voice, and he answered me from his holy mountain. I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustains me. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me roundabout."

Now, how do you account for that attitude change in the white space between verses 2 and 3? What caused him to quit worrying? He remembered God's past faithfulness to him. He remembered how God had delivered him in the past. And he said, "You know what? The same God who delivered me in the past will deliver me from this." You say, "Pastor, you're reading a lot into that. How do you know that's what caused David to suddenly lose his anxiety?" Because David made a history of focusing on the past faithfulness of God years earlier in his life when he confronted that giant 9 feet 9 inches tall named Goliath. Remember what he said in 1 Samuel 37? David said, "The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, he will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine. I don't have anything to fear."

David said, "When I was a little shepherd boy out there where nobody knew me, God miraculously delivered me from lions and bears. He's going to take care of me today." And we know the story—he did. Now, years later, the same David, much older, is fearing what his own son Absalom is going to do to him. David said, "The same God who delivered me from the paws of the lions and the bears and the hand of that giant Goliath, just as he did years ago with Goliath, he's gonna do for me today." Reflect. Remember God's past faithfulness.

I hope you have in your mind, I hope you have somewhere in the spiritual journal milestone events in your life when God intervened miraculously, when something happened in your life to deliver you out of a predicament that can only be explained by the power of God. We all need events like that. That's why I keep a prayer journal, a list of God's answered prayers, so that I can go back, and I do it often, and reflect on God's past faithfulness. It's the secret for erecting faith in our life.

Finally, how do you choose faith over worry? Remain in contact with God. Turn over to Philippians 4. You remember the situation when Paul wrote to the Philippians? As one of my mentors used to say, Paul wasn't sitting on the French Riviera sipping a piña colada; he was in prison, facing what could have been his execution. He was waiting for the verdict of the trial, whether he was going to live or die. Nineteen times in that letter to the Philippians, he talked about rejoicing in the Lord. Look at what he says in verse 6: "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God."

And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Remaining in contact with God means talking to God about what's on your heart. I like the way the Living Bible paraphrases that section of Scripture: "Don't worry about anything. Instead, pray about everything. Tell God your needs and don't forget to thank him for his answers."

Remember that hint I gave to you a couple of years ago? If you're plagued with worry, how do you apply this verse? Take out a sheet of paper and put at the top "My Worry List" and start listing everything you're worried about. Some of us need more than one page. That's okay. Just keep writing and writing and writing until you've emptied every worry you have in your life onto that sheet of paper. And once you're finished, take your pen, cross out the word "worry," and write above it "Prayer." Make your worry list your prayer list. Those are the things you start praying about. Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.

And what happens when you do that? Look at verse 7: "And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Underline that word "guard." Paul was saying, as he was chained to that Roman guard in prison, he was saying, "You know what? Just as this Roman guard is guarding me, watching over me, when I pray, God watches over me. He marches around my heart, keeping it safe and free from anxiety."

One way we remain in contact with God is by talking to him, but we also need to allow him to speak to us. That's what he says in verses 8 and 9: "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, lovely, and of good repute, if there is any excellence, and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things." What is he talking about here? We don't have time to do it today, but if you go to Psalm 19:7-10, you'll see all of these words are used to describe the word of God.

When you let your mind dwell on God's unchanging truth, it causes worry to flee from your life. Why? Because the Bible is a reminder that God never changes. The Bible is a record of God's past dealings with his people. And when we read these accounts from thousands of years ago, we're reminded that God has the ability to take care of us, and meditating on God's word gives us peace. And that's why he says in verse 9, "The things which you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things." And what? There it is again: "The God of peace shall be with you."

Prayer—talking to God, meditation on Scripture, allowing God to talk to us—freed the apostle Paul from many anxious moments while he was in prison. And that same peace of God is available to you when you take concrete steps to remain in contact with Him.

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**Steps to Choose Faith Over Worry**

Isn't it remarkable that Paul's counsel came not from the comforts of his own home, but from a prison cell? Even while suffering, Paul chose faith over worry. And you can, too.

Well, if you're like me, you've thought about what you'll leave behind for your children and grandchildren. David Green, the founder of Hobby Lobby, has wrestled with this same question, and his answers are compelling. In his new book, *The Legacy Life*, David shares how he built a business empire not as an end in itself, but as a means of advancing the gospel when you become a pathway partner.

Today, I want to send you David's book as my thanks for joining me in this mission to reach the world with the hope of Jesus. Plus, you'll receive my own book, *Choose Your Attitudes, Change Your Life*, to help you live out these principles starting today.

So please join us in giving generously to Pathway to Victory. God will use your gift to pierce the darkness with the light of His Word. Here's David with all the details.

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You're invited to request a copy of the Legacy Life when you give a generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory or when you sign up to become a Pathway Partner. Plus, you'll receive the book by Dr. Jeffress called *Choose Your Change, Change Your Life*. To make your request, call 866-999-2965 or go online to ptv.org. When your gift is $100 or more, we'll also send you the audio and video discs for the *Choose Your Attitudes, Change Your Life* teaching series. Additionally, you'll receive a study guide for individual or group study. To request the complete package of resources, call 866-999-2965 or go to ptv.org. You could also send your request by mail. Write to P.O. Box 223609, Dallas, Texas 75222. Again, that's P.O. Box 223609, Dallas, Texas 75222.

I'm David J. Mullins. You know Romans 3:23 says, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." So whenever you experience moments of moral failure, are you going to deny it or repent? Learn how to choose repentance over guilt. That's Tuesday on Pathway to Victory.

Pathway to Victory with Dr. Robert Jeffress comes from the pulpit of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas. Alaska's pristine wilderness showcases God's glory like nowhere else on earth, and you're invited to experience it firsthand on the Pathway to Victory.

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You made it to the end of today's podcast from Pathway to Victory, and we're so glad you're here. Pathway to Victory relies on the generosity of loyal listeners like you to make this podcast possible. One of the most impactful ways you can give is by becoming a Pathway Partner. Your monthly gift will empower Pathway to Victory to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ and help others become rooted more firmly in His Word. To become a Pathway Partner, go to ptv.org/donate or you can follow the link in our show notes.

We hope you've been blessed by today's podcast from Pathway to Victory. Oh, and one last thing before we go. Have you reserved your spot yet for the 2026 Pathway to Victory cruise to Alaska? You've been hearing me and Dr. Jeffress mention it, so what are you waiting for? Just picture yourself on the deck of Holland America's elegant Konings Dam and stepping out on deck to witness nature's grandeur. It's beautiful.

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