By David ReayMonday 31 Dec 2018LifeWords DevotionalsFaithReading Time: 2 minutes
Read Matthew 6:25-27
25 “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? 27 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? (NLT)
There is an old saying that today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday. Many of us are experts at worrying, and are also pretty good at telling others and ourselves not to worry. But it is not so easy to avoid anxiety.
The root meaning of the word ‘anxiety’ is ‘distraction’. When we worry, we are distracted in our life focus. Jesus is telling us to get our focus right. Look to him, consider his goodness and faithfulness. What we so often do is to merely look at our immediate and possibly threatening circumstances. These overwhelm us and so we lose sight of the God who promises to care for us.
And it is not as if worry achieves anything. Jesus reminds us it doesn’t help at all. Careful planning and prayerful reflection about the future is right and proper. But merely going round in anxious circles about it is not. How much of our lives has been taken up with chewing the cud of our fears, imagining all the worst-case scenarios in our life?
Anxiety can consume us, can prevent us enjoying the certainties of today whilst being nervous of the possibilities of tomorrow.
Blessings
David Reay