Speaking the Truth in Love

Don’t Be Anxious about Your Life

We live in a land of exceptional prosperity. Our material riches should give us peace of mind. After all, even if we don’t have a job, a financial safety net will catch us—unemployment benefits, disability income, Social Security, food stamps, subsidized housing.

Yes, we should have peace of mind, but we don’t. The more we have, the more to worry about. This means that the Lord’s teaching about anxiety is as relevant as ever.

Jesus says, “Do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing” (Luke 12:22-23). But how can we possibly honor this teaching? Bills seem to be more regular than paychecks. Prices for utilities, insurance, medical treatment, groceries, and clothes are constantly increasing, but our wages stay the same year after year.

Maybe our vision is a little nearsighted. Christ invites us to “consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. […] Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these” (Luke 12:24, 27). Birds don’t plant seed in the spring, harvest a crop in the fall, and store the grain in the barn for winter use. And yet, they have food to eat all year. Why? Wildflowers don’t make fabric, sew clothes, and dress themselves. And yet, they are clothed in the delicate robes of royalty. Why?

The answer is obvious. God feeds the birds and clothes the wildflowers. So, what was that you were worrying about again? Your life is far more precious to the heavenly Father than any bird or wildflower!

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