“Don’t Worry, I’m trustworthy.”

“Don’t Worry, I’m trustworthy.”   “Don’t Worry, I’m trustworthy.”  Jesus, Matthew 6.25-34

You know I am a thinker, (my mind is constantly working), and of course I am emotional as well.  Sometimes as I read and contemplate something, I realize that it has the potential to elevate my thinking and generally make me feel more at peace.  These next words of Jesus have that affect on me and they serve as a powerful reminder.  I can picture Jesus saying these things, talking about birds and lilies and grass—things with which his listeners could all identify, as well as you and me. 

“Therefore [because of what I just told you about storing up your treasure in heaven rather than on earth] I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

“So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”  Matthew 6.25-34

How these words of Jesus show his heart toward those he loves!  Worry is something Jesus does not intend for his followers; in fact, Paul goes so far as to command that we are not anxious or worried.  “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”¹  You see, when we trust our lives to God, we have no reason to worry about today and we certainly must not worry about what might take place tomorrow--particularly if we heed the previous passage, about storing up treasure in Heaven, entrusting our livelihoods and well-being to God. 

And as for the morrow, Paul also reminds us that God promises sufficient grace for whatever the day brings.²

In the 70s, we often sang, “Seek ye first the king-dom of God, and his righteousne-ess…and all these things shall be added unto you.³ Al-le-lu, alleluia.”  We call ‘these things’ Priorities—the way we order our lives by our hearts and minds—how would you list yours?  _____________, _____________, _______________, _______________, ________________ . . .        I heard someone say yesterday that the first thing he thinks about when he gets up in the morning is giving his day to God, and then he continues to check in with God all day, keeping God first.

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.⁴  When we courageously put God first in our lives, then our families, etc., we see that he is trustworthy, and as the old song says, He’ll take care of the rest.⁵