Why Do I Still Worry About Money Even When Things Are Okay?

You've worked hard, your budget set, your savings are growing, the debt is gone. And on paper everything looks good. But deep down you still feel it. That subtle anxiety. What if I lose my job? What if the market crashes?What if something unexpected wipes this all out? Let me tell you right now, you're not alone thinking that way. Studies show that nearly 70% of Americans worry about money. And here's the sad part.Even when their finances are stable. So why does this piece feel so slippery? And here's the answer. Because true confidence isn't found in perfect numbers.It's found in an unshakable peace that only comes from somewhere else. And stick with me today because I'm breaking that cycle of financial worry. And.And I'm going to show you where the true anchor of our peace would come from. And that's Christ. But I'm going to explain it on today's show.This is Financially Confident Christian, your daily dose of gospel, grounded insight and faith driven tips to help you break the cycle of financial shame with confidence. Hello there. Welcome back to Financially Confident Christian. I'm Ralph and I am so excited that you've chosen to join me.Every day I help you break that cycle of financial shame and step into confidence. And we're continuing in our series Breaking those Financial Chains. We're handling those 30 things that trip so many of us up financially.And if you missed yesterday's show, we talked about why progress doesn't stick. We really got talking about that consistency. We talked about grace. So if you missed yesterday's show, I'm going to encourage you to go check it out.You can find all of our episodes and@financiallyconfidentchristian.com but today we're going to go a little deeper. We're going to go great, a bit underneath the surface. We're going to get into a deeper struggle. It's a struggle that so many of us face.And I'm going to be honest with you, I've faced this many times. It's why we still worry. When things look okay, things look good on paper. We've got that healthy emergency fund. Maybe we've conquered that debt model.That debt mountain is all gone. Our income is stable. We've had the same job for a while, but for so many of us. And maybe you're listening right now. You're like Ralph, man.It always seems like something else happens. That anxiety starts to creep in. We start worrying about a job loss. Maybe we start worrying about a sudden expense we weren't expecting.We're going down the road and something happens to our car. Or maybe it's just an overall economic downturn. It really keeps a lot of us up at night.And for so many of us, and you might be that person right now, peace feels just out of reach. Just a little about out of my reach, Ralph. And you're not alone in this. I found this statistic from the APA Stress in America report.It said this 63% of people feel financially secure, still report worrying about money at least once a week. Think about that for a second. These are people who feel secure. They've done all the right things, they made all the right decisions.But 63% of those people still worry about money once a week. Put me on that list, because I'm right there with them. And I really said, okay, what is causing this? Because that's really what we got to do.We got to get under the surface today.The root issue, in my humble opinion, and this is going to be a little bit brash, it's going to be a little bit bold, but the root issue is so many of us are trying to find security in money instead of God. That's the reason I do this show. That's the big audacious reason I do this goal. There is a huge faith connection here.Because I'm going to tell you something right now, and this might dispel a lot of rumors. True peace does not equal perfect financial conditions.You're never going to find true peace in your money, in your wallet, in your bank account, in your retirement account. Hear me on that. So many people are searching for true peace and they're looking for it in the wrong places. And that's why they're not finding it.That's why 63% of people are still facing anxiety and worry, because they're looking for that peace in all the wrong places. So now you're asking, Ralph, where is true peace? Well, true peace, in my humble opinion, is in the presence of Christ in every single circumstance.And yes, this isn't a popular notion. A lot of people say, ralph, don't talk about money and faith at the same time.But we have to, because that is the core of who we are as Christian children. And when you do, this worry can be misplaced in trust in numbers instead of God.Because I truly believe that worry, what really is causing this worry is that misplaced trust in numbers, that misplaced trust in money, and that misplaced trust in yourself instead of where it should be. And that's with God. Let's get right to the Book of Word. Let's get right into the Word of God. Let's start with the Book of John, chapter 14, verse 27.I love this verse. When I'm feeling that pain or when I'm feeling like I'm not good enough, I read this again. John 14:27. Peace I leave you. My peace I give you.I do not give it to you as the world gives. I want you to remember that I do not give it to you as the world gives. But do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid.What is that really saying to us? And I think this is so crucial for today's discussion. Not as the world gives us. See, Jesus offers peace the world cannot provide.The world lies to you. The world tells you you'll find peace in stuff. You'll find peace in financial success. You're never going to find it there.The only true place to find peace is in Christ. Let's go into the next verse. This is Philippians chapter 4, verses 6 to 7. Again, this is Paul writing. What a great verse this one is.Again, Philippians 4, 6, 7. Do not be anxious about anything. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.Now you notice I skipped around a little bit about that, but I wanted to key on two main core things here. What did Paul tell us? Don't be anxious about anything. Well, there's a word to speak right there, isn't there? What is the four telling us?Do not be anxious about anything. What does it lead to? Peace of God will guard our hearts. See, prayer and surrender is going to be a piece you'll never be able to get from money.You'll never be able to get it from stuff or achievements or any of those things. That is truly the secret to finding true lasting peace. And this is the final Bible verse for today.It's From Colossians, chapter 3, verse 3 says this again, Colossians 3, 3. For you died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. Now that might seem like a Ralph that doesn't have anything to do with finances.Oh yes it does. You died to your prior self. You died to those lusts of the flesh, as they say. But you live hidden in Christ.And I want you to just think about that for a second.Because true security, if you want to get past this worry, you want to get past this anxiety, you want to finally break those financial chains, true security rests in him, not in the market. I love this is what Reverend Billy Graham said, one of my favorite men of faith from out all of history. Billy Graham said this.And we can all be profitable in learning from this. This is what Billy Graham said. He said, when wealth is lost, nothing is lost. When health is lost, something is lost.When character is lost, all is lost. And then he ends it with this beautiful quote. Our true security is in God alone. Well, I tell you what, Billy Graham could say it.When wealth is lost, we haven't lost anything. When health is lost, sure we've lost something. But when we've lost our character, what's he really getting to there?When we've lost our connection to Christ, when we've lost our connection to God, all is lost. Because what does he end with? Our true security is in God alone. So now you're asking, Ralph, how do we cultivate that peace?How do we get to that financial peace that you're talking about, Ralph? Well, the answer is actually pretty simple.It's the daily surrender of your money worries to Christ and to start build confidence not in your bank account balance, but in God's provision. And Corrie Ten Boom said, this worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength.So here's your one action step for today that will help you find finally that financial peace. I want to encourage you, first thing to do, identify your peace thief. You got to know what, what's stealing it.Write down those fears that are stealing your peace. What are those things? Maybe you write down job loss. You're really worried about losing your job.Or maybe you've seen others around you who are dealing with medical bills. Maybe that's a one for you. Write that medical bills down. Maybe it's the economy. You hear this thing on the TV all the time. The economy's failing.People are in tough shape. Write those things down. Start there. Second thing I'm going to encourage you to do is practice spiritual surrender.You might be saying, ralph, what does that look like? Well, it's really pretty simple. Just have a quiet prayer, just you and God.Say, lord, I'm worried about whatever those things are that you wrote down. Lord, I'm worried about losing my job. I'm worried about providing for my family. I don't know what I would do if that happened, Lord.Or maybe, Lord, I'm worried about medical bills. I've got this medical diagnosis and I'm just concerned that something's going to happen. I'm not going to be able to afford it.Maybe it's a bigger one. Lord, I'm Worried about the economy.I'm worried about what that's going to mean for me and my family and my children who are just starting out, maybe in their first home and maybe they just had a baby. But all those things are getting to you. They're causing anxiety. And end it with this. But Lord, I trust you.I trust only you with this because you are my security. So practice that spiritual surrender. And then I'm going to encourage you to do one more thing. I've given you a couple scriptures today.I would encourage you to memorize those. Meditate on God's sovereignty. Just pick one of those. Pick one of those scriptures we talked about. John 14:27, where it talks about his peace.Or Philippians 4. 7, where it talks about his guarding. Or Romans. I didn't mention this one in the show, but Romans 8, 28, go read that. Today. His purpose.And I'm encouraging you. When they feel that anxiety, when things are starting to feel like, man, Ralph, this is getting out of control. I don't feel like I can do this.Well, you've already got the answer. Go right back to those Bible verses. Pray about it. Ask God to give you that peace through that difficult time.Because when you do this, and I truly believe that you can do this, when you do this, you're going to confront anxiety head on and you're going to twist the script completely. You're going to reorient your trust to God's control and realize that you can't control. Here's a little truth bomb right now.Ultimately, you can't control any of this, but God can. You gotta trust in that. You gotta put your life in his hands.And when you do this consistently, day in and day out, it's slowly gonna replace that fear with lasting peace. How about we pray together? Father God, thank you for being our faithful provider and our unshakable anchor, Lord, in all the storms of life.And we confess that even when things look stable, Lord, we let fear still creep into our hearts, Lord, because of our flesh. And Lord, we just ask you today that you would help us surrender our money worries daily to you.Guard our minds with your peace, Lord, that surpasses all understanding. That's what your word promises. And remind us that our true security is hidden in Christ, not in our numbers or not in our bank account balances.Give us courage, Lord, to trust you fully. And grant us freedom, freedom from anxiety, Lord, so we can live in confidence and peace. And we ask this in confidence in the name of Jesus. Amen.True confidence isn't in a bank balance, you're never going to find it there. If you're looking for it there, you're never going to find it. True confidence is found in Christ alone. So I'm going to encourage you one more time.Your action step today, identify that one financial fear, surrender it and anchor your peace in him. You don't have to live chained in financial worry anymore. God's already broken the chains and God's peace is available to you right now.You just have to ask him for it and start living in that reality. And I love what Max Lucado said. He said the presence of anxiety is unavoidable, but the prison of anxiety is optional.We don't have to live in this prison anymore.And while I'm here, if this episode has encouraged you, I want to encourage you to share it with a friend who looks financially fine on the outside, but deep down they've shared a couple things with you and you know they're struggling. You know they're struggling with worry.Just encourage them, send them a link to the show because sometimes the ones that seem okay when it seem on the outside, they got it all together, they need the most encouragement. Just share the show with them. Send them financiallyconfidentchristian.com say to them, hey listen, I listen to this guy Ralph.He had a great show the other day about anxiety and how to finally break free of that. And while you're there, go to our website, get a free copy of my book.And this is really building on the momentum that we've been doing for the last 30 days. I just finished writing this third book. It's called how to Become a Financially Confident Christian. It's truly a guidebook.It's got a bunch of great case studies in there, people that I've worked with over my 30 year career. I'm gonna encourage you to get a copy. You can download a free copy right now. People are doing this and they're loving the book.Just go to financiallyconfidentchristian.com/becoming again, that's financiallyconfidentchristian.com/Becoming and download your copy today and really invest some time in it. You are going to be finding it truly profitable.Now tomorrow on the show we're going to talk about how to create a simple daily intentional living check in to sustain the piece that we built and sustain that progress. I'm going to give you some real life examples of how to build that daily check in so you can keep up the momentum and keep that consistency going.You don't want to miss tomorrow's show. And as we go out today, I want to encourage you go become and go live as a financially confident Christian. You can do this. I truly believe in you.Believe in yourself. And more importantly than any of those things, God believes in you. Stay financially savvy, God bless you, and you have a great day.