What does First B Jackson teach about anxiety?
Drawn from the messages where it was actually addressed: the words said from the front, the passages taught, and where to hear the whole thing.
At First B Jackson, the teaching on anxiety starts with a clear fork in the road. In messages from Ray and Pastor James working through Philippians 4, the same practical point surfaces repeatedly: anxiety and prayer are not meant to coexist. Ray puts it plainly, quoting something he carries from memory: "If something keeps coming to your mind over and over again and you're worried about it, you can worry or you can pray, but don't do both." The prayer Paul describes in verse six is not polished or tidy. It includes honest pleading alongside thanksgiving, the kind of thanksgiving that is not pretending things are fine but acknowledging that God is not surprised by any of it, and that it could be worse. What follows that kind of prayer, both Ray and Pastor James taught, is a peace that cannot be explained or manufactured. You just find yourself okay.
The second part of the teaching sits in Philippians 4:8 and 9, the verses people tend to skip on the way to verse thirteen. Whatever is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, praiseworthy: Paul says to let your mind dwell there. Ray was honest that he had to delete social media because of what it was doing to his temperament, not as a rule for everyone, but as a concrete example of what it actually looks like to take that list seriously. Pastor James made the same kind of personal disclosure. The point both teachers pressed is that what you habitually dwell on shapes who you become, and you get to choose what you dwell on.
The thread underneath all of it is relationship with God rather than technique. Pastor James, preaching the week after burying his uncle Jeff, held the passage with personal weight. He described the peace Paul promises as the kind you cannot explain, the kind where the honest thing you can say is that it is the hardest time of your life and you are okay. Ray captures that same idea in a quote worth carrying: "It's the hardest time of my life and I'm okay is a good thing. You're holding on to what it says." The teaching at First B Jackson does not promise God will resolve things the way you want them resolved. It promises that honest, grateful prayer about things you cannot fix produces a peace that stands guard over your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.
Taught from Philippians 4:6 · Philippians 4:7 · Philippians 4:8 · Philippians 4:4 · 1 Peter 5:7
“You can only love God to the measure that you know him.”
From Saddling Up Anyway
The passage taught · 1 Peter 5:7
7 casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you.
World English Bible
The messages that teach on it
- August 30, 2026 Saddling Up Anyway A sermon on Philippians 4:4-9 about rejoicing, gentleness, prayer, and training your mind to dwell on what is true, honorable, pure, and good.
- January 25, 2026 Rejoice in the Lord Always Pastor Eric walks through Philippians 4:4-14, exploring what it means to choose joy, pray through anxiety, and fix your mind on what is true, noble, and pure.
- January 25, 2026 Rejoice in the Lord Always Philippians 4 shows how joy, prayer, and gratitude work together to overcome anxiety, and why context changes everything about the verses you thought you already knew.
Mentioned along the way
- May 31, 2026 Whatever You Ask in My Name Brad Yates walks through John 14:11-14 to show that prayer is not a formula for getting what you want, but a relationship with the God who gives himself to us.
- March 16, 2025 Surrender to the Current Missionaries Anders and Brooke share stories from Zambia and challenge their home church to surrender fully to God and go deeper in faith.
- October 13, 2024 Praying Only for His Will and the Power to Carry It Out Ray McDaniel walks through Step 11 of recovery: seeking God's will through prayer and meditation, and trusting Him for the power to live it out each day.
- June 9, 2024 Comforted So We Can Comfort Pastor Ray walks through 2 Corinthians 1, showing how God's comfort in suffering equips believers to sit with others in their pain and point them to hope in Christ.
- April 21, 2024 God Is Light and in Him There Is No Darkness at All Pastor Ray walks through 1 John 1, showing how confessing sin, walking in the light, and trusting Christ's forgiveness lead to real fellowship and freedom.
- March 3, 2024 Be On Alert: Commands from the Olivet Discourse Ray walks through the Olivet Discourse in Matthew, pulling out Jesus's practical commands: don't be misled, don't be alarmed, endure, stay alert, and love others well.
- February 18, 2024 My Crown Is Called Content Philippians 4:10-23 explored: contentment in plenty and in need, the true meaning of "I can do all things," and why joy and gratitude travel together.
- February 18, 2024 A Crown That Seldom Kings Enjoy Pastor Ray closes out Philippians, showing how Paul learned contentment in plenty and in want, and why "I can do all things through Christ" is about peace, not strength stunts.
- February 11, 2024 Joy in the Lord, Whatever Comes Pastor Carl and Ray walk through Philippians, showing how Paul's joy, humility, and peace in prison point believers toward trusting God over anxiety.
- February 11, 2024 God Saved Me and He Gave Me Peace Pastor Carl walks through Philippians, tracing Paul's call to unity, humility, and the peace that comes through faith in Christ rather than through anything the world offers.
- September 13, 2023 Women's Bible Study - September 13th, 2023 Deborah teaches on truth, spiritual awakening, and rooting into Jesus as the only defense against lies that lead to bondage, in a fallen and confused culture.
- September 6, 2023 Women's Bible Study - September 6th, 2023 Deborah Buckingham opens a women's Bible study on rooting life in Christ, drawing on the resurrection, ancient martyrs, and God's promises to calm anxiety and fear.
- August 20, 2023 The Good Shepherd Calls You by Name Pastor Carl walks First Baptist Jackson through John 10, where Jesus calls Himself the good shepherd who gathers, protects, and lays down His life to give His sheep a rich and satisfying life.
- September 14, 2022 Women's Bible Study - September 14th, 2022 Deborah teaches that thriving depends on what we believe about God, drawing on Moses and the name Yahweh to show why knowing who God is changes everything.
- September 7, 2022 Women's Bible Study - September 7th, 2022 Deborah teaches from Exodus and 1 John on what it truly means to thrive: trusting God's narrative over the world's lies, and living as a child of God.
- June 12, 2022 Humble Yourselves Under the Mighty Hand of God Peter commands humility, sobriety, and resistance against the devil. Pastor Carl walks through 1 Peter 5, showing what we do and what God promises in return.
- June 12, 2022 Humble Yourselves Under the Mighty Hand of God From 1 Peter 5, four clear commands for anyone who feels stuck: humble yourself, stay sober, stay alert, and resist the devil. God promises to do the rest.
- February 6, 2022 The Cure for Anxiety Jesus names worry as divided loyalty and gives a real alternative: seek God's kingdom first. A sermon on Matthew 6:25-34 from the Sermon on the Mount.
- February 6, 2022 The Cure for Anxiety The pastor preaches through Matthew 6 on worry and anxiety, showing why seeking God's kingdom first is the only cure for a divided, anxious heart.
- November 11, 2018 Humble Yourselves Under the Mighty Hand of God Pastor Nathan walks through 1 Peter 5:6-11, showing what believers are called to do about anxiety and pride, and what God promises to do in response.
- February 4, 2018 In Everything and In All Things Paul writes from prison with contentment and joy, showing that in every season of need or abundance, God supplies and Christ strengthens those who trust Him.
- February 4, 2018 I Have Learned to Be Content Pastor Ray walks through Philippians 4:10-20, exploring what Paul teaches about contentment, generous giving, and trusting God to supply every need through Christ.
- January 28, 2018 Meditate on These Things The pastor walks through Philippians 4:8-9, exploring eight things Paul calls us to set our minds on, from truth and purity to what is lovely and praiseworthy.
- August 23, 2015 Thanks Be to God Who Always Leads Us in Triumphal Procession Paul shows that carrying the gospel means being led like a prisoner in Christ's triumph, not marching as the victor. Sufficiency comes from God alone.