This week’s reading: Matthew 6:25-34
Hi Friends,
Worrying takes up so much time and energy from our lives. This is you and me trying to control every aspect of life, as if we could! Let’s hear the amazing words of Jesus in our reading this week, but let’s take them to heart too. The reading is from the Gospel of Matthew chapter 6, verses 25 through 34. Let’s listen to the answer to all our problems:
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Mt 6:33 NIV
Control. There is a deep desire in each of us to control every situation, and worse, every person in our lives. But this was never meant to be something we were to do. The Fruit of the Spirit in Gal 5:23 tells us what God originally designed us to control, and that is ourselves! We are granted the gift of self-control, not situation or others control. This requires a deep sense of trust in God. Our fallen nature would say things like, “Yeah but if I control myself, I might be taken advantage of by others!” Or we’ll say, “If I don’t try to control the situation, I might get hurt!” We go through all sorts of negative scenarios when we try to live our lives by this false control. But how about if we really start to trust God instead? Perhaps our thoughts now would be more like, “Ok, if I stop trying to control so-and-so, I am simply going to trust You with them, Lord. And even if they do try to take advantage of me? Then I am going to trust You with the outcome too.” Or we would say, “When I stop trying to control the situation, I can start to rest in You, Lord, with peace and joy in the meantime. I trust You with that outcome too.” See the difference? We learn to control ourselves when we surrender the person and/or situation to God. Then we reap the benefits of remaining peaceful and joyful as we continue to make the right choices. Letting go of this desire for control is a blessing to us, as well as those around us. After all, who wants to be controlled by someone else, right? No, the key is self-control and as we lean on the Holy Spirit, His Fruit will grow within us, and we will experience all the blessings of this Fruit, more and more.
Eyes on this world. One of the reasons we desire to control others and every situation is because we are still focusing our attention on this world, instead of on God and His Kingdom. We worry about what we are going to eat, what we will wear, where we will live, who we will marry, if we will have kids, and then what those kids are doing… and I can go on and on, right? But I love how Jesus puts this all into perspective for us in this week’s reading. He simply points us to the birds of the air and the lilies of the field. If God takes care of these animals and flowers who are not made in His Image, won’t He take care of His children too? Again, this is a matter of trust. The birds always have food to eat. The lilies are dressed in beautiful colors. And we humans? We humans must learn to turn to God, wholeheartedly, and pray for our needs. Then we humans must learn to be content with whatever it is God grants us. He will urge us to grow. He will urge us to work with Him more. And He will urge us to reach our potential here in this world. Whatever this looks like for each of us, when we lift our eyes to Him, instead of fixing them on this world, we will become more and more satisfied with whatever it is God knows is best for us. Yes, this takes growth. But if we continue to keep our eyes on this world, on what we have, or don’t have, will we grow? Will we get to the point where we will simply be cheerful whatever our situation? Or will we continue to worry?
Can worry add a single hour to our lives? Certainly not! But it can take many away. When we worry, we are wasting time and energy on questionable things that we could possibly have used for constructive things instead. Worry is a death choice because it takes away from the goodness of our lives. Choosing to let go of control and trusting God to lead us, is a life choice that adds to the quality of our lives, and the lives of those around us. As we choose to trust Him more and more, God will either resolve any problems or mature us in the midst of them. Take my story for instance. In God’s Holy wisdom, He chose not to fully heal my Baby Girl this side of Heaven. For way too many years during her trial, that was the focus of my prayers. “Please heal her, Lord!” my heart would cry out. And while this is a good prayer, a needed prayer, it was only as He matured me through every crisis, through every scary moment, through every obstacle she faced, that I began to see the bigger picture. The more I let go and trusted God with her and the situations she endured, the more peace and joy I was able to experience, right there in the midst of her ordeal. The freedom I began having, to not have to know every answer but to simply be with her and love her, was amazing. I was not able to add any years to her life, but I do hope I added life to her years. See the difference?
God’s Kingdom and His Righteousness. As we grow in Christ, we will begin to live for God first, then God will fill our lives with whatever it is He knows we need too. What does living for His Kingdom look like? It’s increasingly using our time, talents and treasures to point ourselves and others to Jesus. This certainly includes praying, reading the Bible, participating at church…but it also means thinking about what we are thinking about, watching what we are watching, and making sure we are “feeding ourselves” godly things, instead of stuffing our hearts with the fallen things of this world. We are what we eat, after all. So if we continue to seek earthly things instead of godly ones, we will be more and more like we used to be, lost and blind. (Think the song “Amazing Grace” here.) Because when we seek God first, we are found and can see. We can see that, this New Life in Christ, is the fulfilling life we were always meant to have, enjoy and share. Seeking to be an active member of God’s Kingdom by seeking to act according to His righteousness, is what the Christian life is all about…or it should be. The key is not trying to be perfect, but to keep trusting God Who will help us persevere. We are children of God who are still growing, learning, maturing, and yes, still sinning. But the more we seek God first, the less we will act like our old sinful self. Grow in Christ, my Friends. I cannot speak about this enough! As we grow, we will naturally seek God’s Kingdom and Righteousness first, then we will sense God’s provision, protection and Presence. Putting first things first. Every time I get this order correct, my life gets more abundant. Want that too? Then won’t you join me?
Until we meet again, keep lifting your eyes to God, He’s closer than you think.
<>< Peace, Diane
