Have you ever asked, “Why? Why am I concerned, yes, even a little worried, about what this new and strange year may bring to me?” Good question, and one that points out the fact that you are not alone when it comes to concern over the future. And why not?
A rather universal observation of human nature is the fact that we always tend to fear what we have not experienced, or do not understand. The past is behind you, but it contained enough to threaten your existence that you want to hold on to every bit of security that you can grasp. No, your response does not necessarily mean that you are greedy or selfish. How you feel is the result of reflex actions that were put there by God to ensure your survival.
There is an alternative to worry, which never changes the future but only robs today of its strength. That alternative is to bring your concern for the future to God and trust Him to meet your need tomorrow just as He has in the past. Now, hold steady for a minute. Some of you are not sure that God can be trusted with so big a task. You feel alone in a big world. You look up at the millions and billions of stars and astral bodies and think, “I’m just one person in a world of some 6 billion people, and surely I do not count for much.” You feel like a pretty small potato in a big world. You are really asking, “Can I really trust God to meet me?”
You can trust Him to meet today’s needs today and leave tomorrow’s needs in His strong hands…tomorrow will arrive soon enough.
Friend, I’d like to remind you of an uncertain world and what Jesus said to those who were worrying about its future. He sat down on the western slopes of Galilee, and there He taught the people. He knew that people were worried, just as you are worrying about what hasn’t happened but you fear just might happen to you this coming year. These are His words, and as you listen to them, put yourself in the position of one who actually heard them. Put your name to them.
Jesus said, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these” (Matthew 6:25-29). Then Jesus told them to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all the material needs of life would be met (Matthew 6:33). Friend, we need that kind of trust and faith today.
Jesus concluded His comments about worry, saying, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matthew 6:34). The future comes to us one day at a time. Has God met you this past year? Has He provided for your food? For your children? For your temporal needs? Then, trust Him for tomorrow, and take His hand today and walk with Him. You presume on God’s ability to come to your rescue when you are unsure that He can help you. You can trust Him to meet today’s needs today and leave tomorrow’s needs in His strong hands…tomorrow will arrive soon enough.
Resource reading: Matthew 6:25-34
