Weekly Thing
Matthew 6:25-34
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. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Hello everyone!
How are you? I hope that things are well, or as well as can be, and that you’re able to stay focused on the Lord during the crazy holidays. And speaking of which, it’s 2007 now… Happy New Year! It’s kind of crazy to think of all the things that happened in 2006, both in my life personally and in the world at large, both good and bad. Now we get to look forward to see what 2007 will bring, but you know, in a lot of ways it’s not any different than looking forward to see what’s going to happen at the end of this week, or the end of the day.
Earlier this week when I was thinking about what I could write about in the Weekly, I was thinking I could go on about the Lord’s compassion. I’ve been reading through Isaiah, and it amazes me how much God desires to have compassion on a people who practically spit in His face through their sins. I’ve been thinking a lot about Sabbath, as you read last week. But, instead of those things, my attention is turned to something else. In two weeks, I’m moving to Philadelphia. In one week I will be 23. In a month I will prayerfully ministering and interacting with art students in the city. I’ve got things planned one to three months in advance. There are things to look forward to, and there are things that are going to cause me to stress out. I’m on the brink of being a missionary set in the city to come alongside young artists - still in their schooling - to either show them Christ or help them walk with Christ. I’ve never lived in a city, either, so there’s a lot to think about as I amalgamate and become accustomed to where things are and how to get there. There is plenty to be thinking about as I make the transition into this new stage of my life.
There is also quite the temptation of worry prowling at my door. Perhaps you know of the feeling, or that you are already in the throws of worry.
However, I don’t have to worry. You don’t have to worry. When it comes right down to it, worrying is a chosen reaction to the circumstances around us that make us uncomfortable. That’s right: to be worried is to choose to be worried. The reason why we don’t have to worry about what’s going to happen tomorrow or two weeks from now, or at any point throughout 2007, is because we have a God who is in control of all things. We have a God that we can trust through the uncomfortable situations that we go through in life whether it’s something like moving or something like financial hardship or health. If God is our Father, honestly and truthfully, then He is also the solid rock on which we can stand and not be blown over by waves of circumstance. Something I’ve been trying to digest for a long time is the idea of taking one day at a time. That is to say, being focused on what will happen today and not worrying about what is going to happen tomorrow or the next day. Not that we can’t make plans, but we also have to realize that some of our plans may change because God has something else in mind (and not being freaked out by that).
God has allotted for us a certain amount of time every day and it’s that time that we’re meant to focus on. Thinking about all the time ahead of us in the days to come can be very overwhelming; somehow I don’t think God would have us be overwhelmed by something that hasn’t happened yet. Actually I don’t think He would have us be overwhelmed at all, but to find our stance in God’s protection and providence.
So in 2007 or any year, don’t worry about what’s going to happen… no matter how big or small that worry may be. God has given us each day that comes, and through each day we ought to focus our trust in Him.
I pray that the Lord would help each of us to find our confidence in Him, teaching us and growing us more and more into the likeness of Christ. I also pray that the Spirit gives us the strength we need to choose to trust in the Lord rather than to worry about the circumstances in our life… that we would submit those circumstances to God and allow Him to handle it, knowing fully that He will take care of what’s going on. I also ask that He would teach us to have grace with one another when we do worry, and help us to encourage and lift one another up as brothers and sisters in Christ.
In love and in Him,
Your sister,
Yvonne
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. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Hello everyone!
How are you? I hope that things are well, or as well as can be, and that you’re able to stay focused on the Lord during the crazy holidays. And speaking of which, it’s 2007 now… Happy New Year! It’s kind of crazy to think of all the things that happened in 2006, both in my life personally and in the world at large, both good and bad. Now we get to look forward to see what 2007 will bring, but you know, in a lot of ways it’s not any different than looking forward to see what’s going to happen at the end of this week, or the end of the day.
Earlier this week when I was thinking about what I could write about in the Weekly, I was thinking I could go on about the Lord’s compassion. I’ve been reading through Isaiah, and it amazes me how much God desires to have compassion on a people who practically spit in His face through their sins. I’ve been thinking a lot about Sabbath, as you read last week. But, instead of those things, my attention is turned to something else. In two weeks, I’m moving to Philadelphia. In one week I will be 23. In a month I will prayerfully ministering and interacting with art students in the city. I’ve got things planned one to three months in advance. There are things to look forward to, and there are things that are going to cause me to stress out. I’m on the brink of being a missionary set in the city to come alongside young artists - still in their schooling - to either show them Christ or help them walk with Christ. I’ve never lived in a city, either, so there’s a lot to think about as I amalgamate and become accustomed to where things are and how to get there. There is plenty to be thinking about as I make the transition into this new stage of my life.
There is also quite the temptation of worry prowling at my door. Perhaps you know of the feeling, or that you are already in the throws of worry.
However, I don’t have to worry. You don’t have to worry. When it comes right down to it, worrying is a chosen reaction to the circumstances around us that make us uncomfortable. That’s right: to be worried is to choose to be worried. The reason why we don’t have to worry about what’s going to happen tomorrow or two weeks from now, or at any point throughout 2007, is because we have a God who is in control of all things. We have a God that we can trust through the uncomfortable situations that we go through in life whether it’s something like moving or something like financial hardship or health. If God is our Father, honestly and truthfully, then He is also the solid rock on which we can stand and not be blown over by waves of circumstance. Something I’ve been trying to digest for a long time is the idea of taking one day at a time. That is to say, being focused on what will happen today and not worrying about what is going to happen tomorrow or the next day. Not that we can’t make plans, but we also have to realize that some of our plans may change because God has something else in mind (and not being freaked out by that).
God has allotted for us a certain amount of time every day and it’s that time that we’re meant to focus on. Thinking about all the time ahead of us in the days to come can be very overwhelming; somehow I don’t think God would have us be overwhelmed by something that hasn’t happened yet. Actually I don’t think He would have us be overwhelmed at all, but to find our stance in God’s protection and providence.
So in 2007 or any year, don’t worry about what’s going to happen… no matter how big or small that worry may be. God has given us each day that comes, and through each day we ought to focus our trust in Him.
I pray that the Lord would help each of us to find our confidence in Him, teaching us and growing us more and more into the likeness of Christ. I also pray that the Spirit gives us the strength we need to choose to trust in the Lord rather than to worry about the circumstances in our life… that we would submit those circumstances to God and allow Him to handle it, knowing fully that He will take care of what’s going on. I also ask that He would teach us to have grace with one another when we do worry, and help us to encourage and lift one another up as brothers and sisters in Christ.
In love and in Him,
Your sister,
Yvonne