Concern is a healthy, God-like care; worry is a pointless anxiety that prayer and the gospel should replace.
Les Feldick describes God as concerned for the whole person—body, soul, and spirit—and for every facet of our lives. He also confronts fatalistic worry about election, saying a person does not need to worry about being elected; the real issue is what he does with the gospel. Daniel's prayer is the model, pouring out a genuine heart to God instead of sitting in anxious helplessness.
Daniel 9:18 — Daniel brings a real burden to the Lord in passionate supplication, appealing to God's mercy rather than his own worth—showing the difference between concern and worry.
The Bible does not reduce 'worry' and 'concern' to a single dictionary definition, but it gives a striking picture of the difference in Daniel's prayer. In Daniel 9:18-19, Daniel is not detached or fatalistic; he pours out his heart to God over Jerusalem's desolation. He does not claim personal righteousness, but appeals to God's great mercies, asking the Lord to hear, forgive, and act. This is biblical concern expressed in earnest prayer rather than anxious, helpless fretting.
Les doesn't lecture on 'worry' as a separate formal topic in these clips, but his teaching draws a clear line. He describes God's own concern: God is not concerned just for the soul, but for the whole person—body, soul, and spirit. In fact, God is concerned with every facet of our lives, physical and material as well as spiritual. So concern, for Les, is a legitimate, God-like attention to what really matters.
According to Les, no. God Himself is concerned for the whole person—body, soul, and spirit—and for every facet of life, including physical and material needs. A concern is therefore a caring attention to real needs, like Daniel's concern for Jerusalem. Worry becomes the problem when it replaces prayer and drives a person to helplessness.
God is just as concerned about the body as about the soul. Les points out that in the eternal state we will all have new bodies, so God's concern for the whole man spans this life and the life to come. He is also concerned with every facet of our daily lives—physical, material, and spiritual—not just 'spiritual' things.
Bring them to God in prayer. Les uses Daniel's example of not just uttering words or spinning a prayer wheel, but pouring out his heart to the same God we pray to today. Daniel did not present his supplications because Israel deserved help; he appealed to God's mercy. Les says everything we receive is by grace, so we can approach God honestly with our cares.
Yes, according to Les. A man once said that if he was elect, he had nothing to worry about, and if he wasn't, nothing could be done. Les replied that you don't have to worry about being elected; what matters is what you do with the gospel—whether you believe it and are among the elect or reject it and face doom. The proper focus is not fatalistic worry but a response to the gospel.
Daniel's Heartfelt Prayer
Daniel's prayer is the model of a burdened heart: he pours out his heart to God instead of merely saying words, and he appeals to mercy, not merit. This is concern expressed as prayer, not worry.
God's Whole-Person Concern
God is not only concerned about the soul; He is concerned about the salvation and redemption of the body, soul, and spirit. Legitimate concern is a whole-person care.
Genesis 2-3 Bible Study: How the Fall of Man Changed Everything
Because you see, doubt stands in bold relief against the other main word in Scripture, and that is what? Belief. See? Belief. But opposite is doubt. And this is Satan's big gun. Oh, as soon as he can get a human being to doubt the word of God, to disbelieve it. You know where he's got that person? Right in his hip pocket.
God vs. Satan's Magicians: Why Aaron's Rod Swallowed Theirs
The average person can't see any difference between the average Christian and the average person of the world. But God didn't intend it that way. Just as sure as He separated Israel from Egypt, He wants to separate you and I from the world. Now like I said a couple of programs ago, not that we're to be oddballs. We aren't to be just constantly asking for persecution by our actions.
God Cares for the Body
God is just as concerned about the body as about the soul, and we will all have new bodies in the eternal state. Concern for physical and material things is not unscriptural.
Every Facet of Life
God is concerned with every facet of life—physical, material, and spiritual. Believers can share that kind of practical concern without it becoming worry.
Election Worry vs. Gospel Response
A man used election as an excuse for worry, but Les says you do not have to worry about being elect; the real concern is what you do with the gospel.
Tongues, Prophecy & Order in Worship - 1 Corinthians 14:14-40 Explained
Wherefore, brethren, covet or desire to prophesy, to speak forth the Word, because the printed Word hasn't come yet, and forbid not to speak in these languages. Nor will I, because of this verse. It's a commandment from the Lord Himself not to forbid the use of languages. Now then, verse 40. Let all things, regardless of what it is in the local congregation, is what we're dealing with.
Daniel 9:18: O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.
Daniel's prayer models heartfelt concern, not anxious worry, as he brings Jerusalem's desolation before God.
Daniel 9:19: O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name.
This urgent plea shows that deep concern is expressed in petition to God, not passive fretting.
Yes. Les says God is concerned with every facet of our lives—physical, material, and spiritual. God is also just as concerned about the body as about the soul, since we will all have new bodies in the eternal state.
Like Daniel prayed. He poured out his heart to God instead of just saying words, and he appealed to God's mercy rather than his own worth. Les reminds us that everything we have comes by grace, so we can bring any concern to the same God.
Les says you don't have to worry about being elected. The real question is what you do with the gospel—whether you believe it. That redirects fatalistic worry to a real decision.
Watch the Teaching: Why God Says Pray About Everything — Philippians 4:6-7