Opening Question:

What is something you tend to worry about more than you’d like to admit?

Key Takeaways:

• Jesus does not pretend that life will be free from trouble, but He teaches us not to live controlled by anxiety about what might happen tomorrow.
• Anxiety can consume our attention without actually giving us control over the situation.
• Worry can become a distraction that keeps God’s Word from producing fruit in our lives.
• We are called to seek God and His kingdom first rather than allowing our worries, needs, or desires to become our highest priority.

Discussion Questions:

Part 1: Understanding Anxiety

1. What do you think anxiety is trying to accomplish for us? Why do you think our minds naturally want to think through every possible outcome when we’re worried?
2. What is something you currently worry about that is completely outside your control? How does recognizing that change the way you might respond to it?

Part 2: What We Do With Our Worry

1. 1 Peter 5:7 says, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”
   What do you think it practically means to “cast” your anxiety on God? What might that look like on an ordinary Tuesday?
2. Have you ever experienced a season where worry became so loud that it was difficult to focus on anything else? What helped—or what do you wish you had done differently?

Part 3: Seek First / Submit & Trust

1. If you genuinely believed that God already knows what you need, what is one area of your life where you might be able to loosen your grip?
2. The second part of the message says, “If you will submit, then your Father will promote.” James 4:10 and 1 Peter 5:6 both connect humility and being lifted up by God.
   What does submitting to God actually look like? How is it different from simply saying, “I trust God”?
3. How would your prayer change if you moved from “God, please make this happen” to “God, I trust You with whatever happens”?

Part 4: Living Without Being Controlled by Anxiety

1. What is one lie anxiety tends to tell you? For example: “I have to figure this out,” “Something bad is going to happen,” “I’m on my own,” or “If I don’t control this, everything will fall apart.”
   What truth about God speaks against that lie?
2. What is one practical thing you can do this week when anxiety shows up?
   How can you turn that moment into an opportunity to pray, surrender, and trust God instead of allowing the worry to take over?