But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Mt 6:33-34
I’ve thought of this passage many times in the last few weeks. My wife has been battling a MRSA staph infection that she contracted from a recent surgery. With her in and out of the hospital, three children to care for, a ministry to attend to, work, bills, food…it would be easy to fold under the pressure! But the passage above has been used of God to maintain my focus. This passage is for our benefit! We can’t handle the responsibility of tomorrow. To deal with today is enough. I had to simply put tomorrow in God’s hands and be obedient to His command to “be anxious for nothing….” (Ph 4:6)
Oh, Christian! The peace is there, but we too often keep ourselves from it! 1 Pet 5:6-7 instructs us to “humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God…casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” Did you catch the “all” in that passage? That doesn’t leave any care for us to deal with ourselves, does it? You see, our shoulders were not designed to bear that load. We are simply to fix our hearts upon the Lord. He knows what we need better than we do! (Mt 6:8,32) When we let go, we find that He has a plan that exceeds anything we can come up with in every way.
When my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer a few years ago, our world was turned upside down. As she went through weeks of chemo and radiation, I struggled to care for her and the kids (the youngest was only 18 months old). It was a hard road to travel, and I found at times I didn’t handle it so well. But looking back on it now, I realize that it was a failure to practice our passage above that made these times so stressful. It has been encouraging this time around to see that God has made some headway in my life when it comes to worry. What a load has been lifted from me as I’ve simply taken each day as it comes, trusting that God will work things out and provide the strength sufficient for that day!
It’s been amazing to see God take care of things. He really cares about every aspect of our lives. If we had time, I could witness to the truth that there is no detail to small to Him! I’ve found the little phrase in the middle of 1 Cor 10:13 to be absolutely true: “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.” God is faithful! Don’t forget it Christian! Don’t doubt it for a second! He “works all things according to the counsel of His will.” (Eph 1:11) And guess what His will is concerning these “all things?” He has determined that they should “work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” so that we would “be conformed to the image of His Son!” (Rom 8:28,29) Seek Him first, children. He will take care of the rest!
Jamie