In review of Matthew 6:31-34 this morning, it says “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today’” (NLT).
To "seek the Kingdom of God above all else" means to put God first in my life, to fill my thoughts with his desires, to take his character for my pattern, and to serve and obey him in everything. What is really important to me? Things and desires all compete for priority. Any of which can quickly become the most important if I don't actively choose to give God first place in every area of my life.
Planning for tomorrow is time well spent; worrying about tomorrow is time wasted. Sometimes it's difficult to tell the difference. Careful planning is thinking ahead about goals, steps, and schedules, and trusting in God's guidance. When done well, planning can help alleviate worry. Worriers, by contrast, are consumed by fear and find it difficult to trust God. They let their plans interfere with their relationship with God. Don't let worries about tomorrow affect my relationship with God today.
How do I know if I’m not experiencing the love of God? I’m worried. I can’t simultaneously worry and worship God. Every time I worry, I’ve forgotten how much God loves me. Worry is really acting like an atheist. It’s pretending I’m an orphan rather than a child of God.
Jesus tells me there’s a truth that’s much more important than anything I’m worrying about: I have a heavenly Father who created, loves, wants what is best, and is watching over me. He is working for my good and has given me hundreds of promises of his faithfulness.
Worry is pretending I don’t know any of that.
I’ll either worry or worship for the rest of my life. I’ll either panic or pray. I’ll either look at my problems or look at God. Which of these will I choose?
In summary, I shouldn't worry about little things and allow them to dominate my thoughts. My heavenly Father already knows all of my needs. Rather I'm told to seek the Kingdom of God above everything else, to live righteously, and he will provide everything that I need. I need to put God first in my life. I need to fill my thoughts with his desires, to take his character as my pattern, and to serve and obey him in everything. Planning is time well spent, worrying is time wasted. Careful planning is thinking ahead and trusting in God's guidance. Worry gets me nowhere. Also, I can't simultaneously worry and worship God. Jesus wants me to know that there's something much more important than anything I'm worry about: and it's that I have a heavenly Father who created, loves, and wants what is best. He is always watching over me and working for my good. So I can either worry or worship, panic or pray, look at my problems or look at God.
Today’s passage reminds me that I shouldn’t really spend time worrying about and getting stressed out over things that are constantly coming in or the perceived time pressures that others have. I need to look at things and situations in light of how Jesus would handle them. I need to live righteously and serve them well. But I can’t let the pressures affect me. Father I pray that I will see things from your point of view and respond / react with how you would, adopting your character for how I look at life. I pray that you hand is guiding my Doctor’s to help with me swelling issues. I also ask for your wisdom and guidance for my day, my leadership and my interaction with others. These things I pray through your Son Jesus name, amen.
0 comments:
Post a Comment