Do not worry

This week I feel thankful for God's care. I have recently been thinking about this a lot. It is amazing that the God of the universe cares about our tiny worries and gives us the answers to them. God's care is one of the basic facts of the Christian faith, and yet often I fail to grasp the wonder and reality of it.

Matthew 12 was one of the passages in my Bible reading plan recently. I was blessed as I read these familiar verses. God tells us that we should not worry about anything, because God cares even for the lilies and the birds and he will also provide for us.

25 And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 26 If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest? 27

29 “And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. 30 For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. 31 But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you.

God cares about our anxious minds, and he gives us the answer to them. Trust me, he reminds us! God has commanded us not to allow the heaviness of cares to oppress us, because he carries our cares for us. The burdens he gives us are light. If we are carrying heavy burdens they are not from him. They are usually a result of our sinful lack of trut in him.

Trusting in God and forsaking anxiety is part of being humble. C.J. Mahaney points out in Humility: True Greatness that in 1 Peter 5:6-7, God first tells us to be humble and then teaches us how: "casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." C.J. argues that if we are truly humble we will be "genuinely care free" even in the midst of our responsibilities.

"Where there's worry, where there's anxiousness, pride is at the root of it. When I am experiencing anxiety, the root issue is that I'm trying to be self-sufficient."

I am deeply grateful to serve a God who cares. He cares to address the damage to our lives that worry brings. I am happy that he teaches us that while worry is both useless and sinful, there is something effective we can do instead. We can pray. The Bible repeats many times that God loves to answer prayer. When I worry instead of praying, I am expressing distrust in God through my actions. It is a blessing to be reminded through God's word that I can trust him.