Scripture:
“Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” Matthew 6:27 NLT
“So then forsake your worries!” Matthew 6:31 TPT
“Aren’t you much more valuable to your Father than they?” Matthew 6:26 NLT
Reflection:
How does your day begin? Everybody has their morning ritual like brushing your teeth and getting your morning coffee, but what I am really asking is this. How do the first few moments of your day begin? Some years ago, I had a friend who in the course of a conversation commented about the first few moments of his day that has stuck with me ever since. He wouldn’t remember our conversation, but for me, that conversation has affected my “every morning, ever since.” He said; “Before I let my feet hit the floor, I say – ‘Good Morning Lord, I’m excited to see what you have for me today!’’’
That little exercise of “Acknowledging the Lord and His guidance as soon as I open my eyes is such a good morning practice. It helps me remember that God is God and I don’t have to worry about anything that comes my way, because I know that God is already at work behind the scenes orchestrating the events of my day.d
In our world today, I think it is fairly easy to start the day worrying about all the stuff that we need to get done or what might go wrong in our day rather than remembering that God calls us to forsake our worries and cast our cares on him. Even though acknowledging our Creator should be a top priority for those of us who call Jesus Lord, the practice of doing it can be hard. Is it too easy to let a sleepy morning mind drift us into a place where we get caught up in the fruitless efforts of worrying about all the little things that can go wrong with our day? I once heard that statistically, less than 8% of things we worry about ever materialize, even in the smallest of measures, so why do we obsess over things that rarely ever occur? Ugh!
Jesus asked this very question to a group of people in a sermon he was sharing on a hillside overlooking the Sea of Galilee. This was a time of history when people could have some very difficult things to worry about. Their country was being ruled by a brutal army from a vast empire. Food was scarce. Feeding their families was difficult. Those ruling the land were from a different language, culture, and worldview than the people of Israel. The soldiers that inhabited their towns were abusive and dictatorial. The people on that hillside, in my estimation, had every right to worry. Yet, despite this, Jesus points to the birds of the air and reminds them that they never needed to be concerned because God always provided for them and saw when even one of them fell to the ground.
To conclude this sermon, Jesus then asks the crowd a rhetorical question. “Aren’t you much more valuable to your Father in Heaven than they?” (Matthew 6:26) If God provided everything the birds of the fields needed, then don’t you think that he will provide for us? Are we not much more valuable to God? Let that sink in for a moment. We are valuable. He will take care of us. Why do we spend so much time worrying about things out of our control? I love how this passage concludes because Jesus quits asking questions and then just hammers home some strong truth instructions by saying – “So then forsake your worries!” Matthew 6:31 TPT.
Forsake your worries – He’s got you! You are valuable to Him. It’s so much better to wake up in the morning and say, “Lord, I’m excited to see what you have for me today, thank you for loving me and directing my steps today. Only then should we slide out of our beds and let our feet hit the floor… worry-free!
Why not try it tomorrow morning?
David
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