Luke 12

 

Do Not Worry

²² Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. ²³ Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. ²⁴ Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! ²⁵ Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? ²⁶ Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

²⁷ "Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ²⁸ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you-you of little faith! ²⁹ And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. ³⁰ For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. ³¹ But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

 

³²"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. ³³ Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. ³⁴ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 

 

 

I've done a few pieces in Ponderings on worry; May 23 of last year and February 6 and 7 of this year. Here is a repeat from February 7.  

 

Let me offer here thoughts on how we can keep unhealthy worry (which is what Jesus is addressing) from taking a toll on us. In essence, let me say that there are some antidotes to excessive, unhealthy worry. 

1. Give up fretting over what cannot be changed. Remember the words from The Serenity Prayer... God, grant me the serenity to accept the things that cannot be changed, the courage to change the things that can, and the wisdom to know the difference. The compelling words should be on our lips and in our hearts whenever we find ourselves moving toward unhealthy worry. If we will be sincere and persistent in our desire to let God help us accept what cannot be changed and know how to move forward in faith and hope, then indeed God will help us. Worrying about things that cannot change drains us of our joy and hope.
2. Trite as it sounds, try and live one day at a time. In our text we find Jesus saying, So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today. In essence, Jesus was saying...try and handle today's challenges; that's enough for anyone. With God's help any of us can handle what today might bring. But worrying about the past or what might happen in the future is more than any of us can bear. Today is challenging enough! When I worry about what happened in the past and worry about what might happen in the future, I've set myself up for emotional duress.
3. Realize God is here to help you whatever you face. This truth comes to us from another Bible passage. The Apostle Paul, as recorded in Philippians 4:6-7 wrote: Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. What Paul is saying here is that when we lean on God, when we carry the challenges and worries and problems of life before God, we can find a peace which transcends our problems and our challenges. It doesn't mean everything is going to work out exactly as we want, but it does mean that there is profound peace of spirit and strength for the soul which helps us face whatever it is we need to face.  

I wish for each of us less unhealthy and debilitating worry and more reliance on God's help to handle the past, the present, and the future.