"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." (NKJV)
When the Lord Jesus said those words, when He actually walked on the earth, people’s lives were very small. What I mean is that their sphere of knowledge was very limited. What they knew outside of their own village was restricted to what they heard from visiting travelers or the infrequent letters they might receive (if they were wealthy). That is a lifestyle very different from our own.
Today, one can wake up and with a few clicks of either a computer or the television remote, access the "news" from all around the world. We can see pictures of a bombing in Thailand, a peace negotiation in Iraq, the marriage of European royals, and the latest dirt on a reality TV family within a few short moments. Our ability to learn about the troubles and ails of the world is limited only by the amount of time that we want to take read or watch videos. Add to that, the almost unlimited amount of fictional television shows available, and our own woes can be increased literally millions of times.
We worry about the international treaties being decided by national leaders. We worry about the manufacturing decisions made by corporate presidents. We worry about the trends in finances, the trends in education, the trends in culture, and the trends in the lives of the Kardashians. We listen to the predictions of hundreds, if not thousands, of experts, preachers, and media personalities and worry about the future. For some, these predictions mean making life changes. For others, it means adding to the depression of already different lives.
To be honest, I’m beginning to wonder if we are overdosing on too much information. I beginning to wonder if we aren’t totally off-track as believers, focusing on things that, in the larger scheme of things, really aren’t important at all and failing to focus on those things which are important.
The Lord Jesus begins this passage with the phrase: "Therefore do not worry." The KJV translates it: "Therefore, take no thought." He ends this passage with this phrase: "Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." The very real sense is that we shouldn’t even concern ourselves with that which we haven’t been given responsibility for. For when we do—when we take on burdens that aren’t ours to take on—we become overwhelmed and incapable of dealing with that for which we are responsible.
As a former pastor, I can give an example. I’ve known many pastors of small churches who literally stewed themselves into grief over the small numbers of attendees of their churches. Thirty would show up on Sunday morning and the pastor would bemoan the fact that there weren’t sixty in attendance. And yet, what about the thirty that did come? Don’t they mean anything? Aren’t they important? Rather than focusing on the dear saints who were there, the pastor would worry and fret about those who had decided not to come.
We can’t control the lives or decisions of others; we can only control ourselves. We also can’t control the future; we can’t live there! We can only do what God has put our hands to do today! And if we live in the future, we lose sight of the preciousness of the blessings that God wants to pour out on this day, for this hour, for the people we will touch now, in this moment.
"Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’" These words from our Lord basically cover all the basic needs of life. But I think we fail to see the true meaning in these words. This isn’t just about whether or not we will have enough to eat or drink or wear. It’s not just about quantity; it’s also about quality! In other words, our Heavenly Father is fully able to take that which He has provided for that moment (for that day) and use it for the benefit of our bodies without our worrying about whether or not it is healthy, politically correct, or even of benefit.
The apostle Paul wrote something similar in 1 Corinthians 10:
"‘All things are lawful,’ but not all things are beneficial. ‘All things are lawful,’ but not all things build up. Do not seek your own advantage, but that of the other. Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience, for ‘the earth and its fullness are the Lord’s.’ If an unbeliever invites you to a meal and you are disposed to go, eat whatever is set before you without raising any question on the ground of conscience. But if someone says to you, ‘This has been offered in sacrifice,’ then do not eat it, out of consideration for the one who informed you, and for the sake of conscience—I mean the other’s conscience, not your own. For why should my liberty be subject to the judgment of someone else’s conscience? If I partake with thankfulness, why should I be denounced because of that for which I give thanks? So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God." (v. 23-31 NRSV).
Doing everything for the glory of God. The Lord Jesus, Matthew 6, said: "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness." Our focus is off! For every time that we worry about what will happen tomorrow, we forget about the blessings of today. For every situation that we worry about things we can’t control, we forget about our responsibility to minister to those around us in that moment. And for everything that we worry about when we cannot change it, we forget to pray. Where is God’s glory in that?
Maybe we need to unplug so that we can plug into those things that are really important. Maybe we need to let go of announcing every detail of our lives on social media and start a real conversation with Father God. Maybe we need to stop criticizing our world leaders and start praying for them. Maybe we need to stop worrying about tomorrow and start living as if today is the only day we have (because it is!)
© 2015 Robin L. O’Hare. All rights reserved. Permission granted for nonprofit and church groups to use this article in its entirety (including this notice). For other uses, please contact servinggodalone@yahoo.com.
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