By Chris WittsThursday 7 Mar 2024Morning Devotions with Chris WittsFaithReading Time: 1 minute
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Transcript:
I spoke yesterday about worry. What’s the point of worry? In fact, I said that Jesus said, “Can worry make you live longer?” Well, it really can’t. And that’s a reading there. Taken from Matthew 6. Actually, it can’t do anything much except, perhaps give you an ulcer or a stroke or migraine or even a heart attack.
Why Worry? – Part 1 — Morning Devotions
That’s a funny thing about worry, but one thing worry can’t give you actually is a longer life. It’s been said people worry themselves to death, but you can’t worry yourself into a longer life. It’s only God who knows when your time is up. So that means you don’t have to worry about dying because that’s really out of your hands. I don’t know. You don’t know. Therefore, relax, enjoy life and live each day according to the way that God wants you to live and let God worry about how things will turn out. So really worrying is really quite senseless and stupid.
Many have recognised that this is quite an unnecessary thing. We you know, we say things. There are only two things you can worry about – things that you have control over and things you don’t have control over. So it makes no sense to worry about things that you’ve got control over because if you have control over them, then you can do something about it. And there’s no sense in worrying over things that you have no control over, because you wouldn’t be able to influence those things even if you wanted to.
It is a well-known fact that most of the things that we worry about don’t actually happen
So can you think of one good thing that worry adds to your life? No? Actually, it is harmful because Jesus doesn’t sort of talk about the physical harm that worry causes – he doesn’t talk about people’s physical health.
But he it says in in this reading in verse 32 – only people who don’t know God are always worrying about such things. But your Father in heaven knows that you need all of these things. Look at the birds of the air, he said. You know, take that as an example, your Heavenly Father feeds them. So it’s obvious here that the rest of God’s creation, the birds, they don’t worry.
And yet God provides for them. So I guess the logical question is, will he not also do that for us? So this does not mean that we shouldn’t work hard, but only that we shouldn’t worry while we work. In fact, work may be one of the natural helping stabilisers when we worry, because if you’re working, for example, at least you’ve got your mind on something productive.
Have you noticed? With birds they sing. Many birds sing very beautifully. Their singing brings glory to God. And so we could say, well, sing your troubles away. Whoever saw a bird worry? Who’s ever seen a bird with worry lines?
And I’ve never seen a bird with feathers gone grey. Jesus tells us the Father actually feeds the birds. He provides food for the birds. They go around and they find food. They don’t just stand in one place and sing all day. They search and they sing.
So the way that Jesus asks us to imitate birds is really not all that difficult. So he’s saying, be like the birds – don’t worry, sing. Search for God’s provision and don’t fret. That’s also another thing, because in that lovely illustration there, Jesus said, why worry about clothes? Look at how the wildflowers grow. They don’t work hard to make their clothes. Solomon in all his wealth and he certainly was a wealthy man. He wasn’t as well clothed as one of them.
And that’s true, isn’t it? Flowers bloom right where they’re planted. Isn’t it true that sometimes we need to stop? We need to stop wasting our time worrying and allow God to do something with us, and I think that’s what God wants us to do.
The flower, of course, just does it automatically. The blooming flower that is so beautiful. And of course, there are today many beautiful people in the world. I don’t necessarily mean in looks in the outward beauty, but there’s a lot of people who have an inner beauty, a sense of calm and peace that’s very attractive because they trust God so that’s what Jesus is saying. Have a good look around and learn from that.
Let’s Pray
Thank you, Lord, that in you, you hold things together. We can trust you and not worry. Amen.