Matthew 6:25-27
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 than food, and the body more 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? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
Philippians 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Devotion
Jesus now shifts from the topic of money and deals with an underlying reason for the mishandling of treasures. Throughout the rest of this chapter, Jesus speaks regarding anxiety or worry. Here, He is referring to a state of mind where we become overly concerned about our daily needs being met. Jesus’ focus here is primarily on the attitude rather than its practical outworking, for it is here that the conflict with faith arises. Jesus telling us, “do not worry”, does not rule out a responsible concern and provision for one’s own and other’s material needs. His concern, as in the preceding verses, is dealing with priorities. Given the prior emphasis, concern for material needs should not be able to take first place, which it too often occupies in a disciple’s interests. The objects of our worry: food, drink, and clothing, are to be seen as less important than the life and body which they supply.
Jesus then points out how God sees that even the birds are fed, and a disciple is more valuable to Him than a bird. What is prohibited here is worry, not work. According to Jesus, the ultimate antidote for anxiety is trusting in God’s faithfulness to provide your needs. According to verse twenty-seven, anxiety in any case achieves nothing. Not only does it not add even a little time to our lifespan, it probably shortens our lifespan because of the negative effects on our emotional and physical health.
Certainly, we need to pay the right amount of attention to our physical and material needs. But Jesus instructs us to stop worrying about things so that they dominate our lives and values. Instead, we need to focus on God’s faithfulness and remember how valuable we are to Him. In Philippians 2:5, we are instructed to let “your attitude be the same as that of Christ Jesus.” Sounds like sound instruction to me!
Questions to Ponder:
On a scale of 1-10, with one being that you don’t worry much about anything and 10 being that you worry about everything, how would you rate your worry capacity? How does it make you feel to know that you are valuable to God? How does it make you feel to know that God is aware of your every need? In your own words, write out the pros and cons of worry. Which list is longer?
Prayer Points
- Praise the Lord for being the Prince of Peace, our Comforter, Constant, and Provider.
- Confess any worry, anxiety, or concern. Talk to the Lord about the circumstance of those emotions. Hand that over to the Lord. Give Him your heavy yoke and take His yoke that it easy and light.
Suggested Prayer
Father in heaven, I praise You for being the Lifter of my head. Thank You for being my Constant, for being reliable, trustworthy, and my all-in-all. You are the One who knows me so well and loves me just as I am because you purchased me with the blood of Jesus Christ. Your banner over me is love. Thank You for being faithful, perfect, and true. I come to You right now and cast my cares upon You, oh God. Thank You that You want them. Thank You that You don’t want me to worry but rather, trust You by coming right to You and giving You my cares and concerns. Father, You also tell me to cast down anything that sets itself up against the knowledge of Christ Jesus. By Your Holy Spirit, help me to pay attention to what I’m thinking about, and remind me to cast down those thoughts. By Your Spirit of Truth, enable me to fix my thoughts on you—on things above. In the name of Jesus Christ, I ask. Amen.