Do Not Be Anxious

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” (Matthew 6:25)

“As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.” (Matthew 13:22)

These 2 verses sum up what is probably the hardest part of being a Christian – walking out how much we trust God to be the provider for us, or us stepping in to try to take over. Most of us would be honest and admit we give lip service to the concept of trusting Him in all things, but is it how we truly live?

This is not saying we sit around doing nothing waiting for Amazon to deliver our daily blessings, but it speaks of our mindset and worldview. Paul tells us in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 that “…If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.” Christ is speaking of our mindset and how we look at life. How does our mind approach the day? Do we enter it with a spirit of gratitude and peace, knowing that God wants the best for us even when it may not look like things will work out? Or, do we start the day relying solely on our own efforts to obtain what we think we need?

The second verse points out what happens when we focus on the “cares of the world” – it literally chokes out his word in us. Does that mean His word is powerless? Not at all! It just means we have the decision on how to let His word work in us. Christ will never force Himself on us yet He stands at the ready to step in and fill us with his unearthly peace, joy and wisdom if we ask.

I think this second verse also applies to how we “feed” our minds – news, social media, etc. You name it and rarely is it good news. The world look bleaker every day, yet that is not where our hope lies.

Christ tells us that when it looks like things are getting bad to “…straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” Luke 21:28