Cast all your anxiety on Him

Have you ever been anxious about something? I guess we all at some point in life get anxious about one thing or another. Food, clothing, shelter, love, money among many other things can drive one to be so anxious. Must we not care about our own needs? Yes we must! Should our cares drive us sick? No, they shouldn’t. Worrying about what we don’t have doesn’t really change the situation. Jesus asked His followers, “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” (‭‭Matthew 6:27). No! Worrying cuts short our lifespan and introduces unnecessary stress related illnesses that end up zapping all our energy and make us susceptible to medical problems.

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. (‭‭1 Peter 5:7)

God is aware of all of life’s needs and wants. He knows that these things can make you anxious and worried. Yet in several places in scripture, He reminds us not to worry about these things. Jesus in Matthew‬ ‭6:25‬ ‭tells us this: “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?” Being alive is worth more than all our worries. Afterall, the dead do not worry. So if you worry and stress about many things and as a result you die, you have lost everything including your very life. So if we do not have to worry and be anxious about life, what do we do? Peter says this, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (‭‭1 Peter 5:7). Peter’s solution is this, we should place all our worries, anxiety, cares, pains and brokenness on God. This is because God loves us so much and He cares about the things that worry us.

When we come to understand that none of our worries can fix us, it should make us more dependent on God for help. We should be intentional about what makes us worried and anxious. We should guard our minds and hearts in order not to entertain unnecessary stress. If you can’t get all that you need, go to the one who holds everything for help. If it is needed for you, He will surely make a way. If you don’t need it, He will give you peace and patience. God cares for you. Don’t be anxious!

He will provide all things

Many times, we have worried about the basic needs of life. Whenever we experience the lack of food, clothing, shelter among other basic necessities in life, we tend to worry about how to get these things. Homelessness and its attendant issues can sometimes be traced to the lack of basic necessities of life. What do you do when you wake up to find that there is nothing to eat, drink, wear and you stand the chance of being evicted from your house? These things as basic as they are can cause one to lose focus in life. It is important we do our best to provide our basic needs in life, but we shouldn’t miss the fact that sometimes life can present unexpected turns of events.

In His popular sermon on the mountain, Jesus addressed this issue of dealing with the basic necessities of life. He said in Matthew ̈6:25‬ that “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?” Jesus knew that the basic needs of life can cause worry and He therefore appealed to His listeners not to allow the lack of clothes, food and drink to cause them worry. Jesus’ reason is this:
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? “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers 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—you of little faith?” (‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:26‭-‬30‬).

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ‭‭(Matthew‬ ‭6:33‬)

Worrying doesn’t add anything to our lives, it rather takes away our time, energy and even our vigor. Our lack of things should not open us up for pain and shame. According to Jesus, we shouldn’t 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. ‭‭(Matthew‬ ‭6:31‭-‬32‬). Life is more precious than these things. There is a better approach according to Jesus and that is to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:33‬). Thus, if our lives are lived on the mantra of “God first” in everything, God shall provide for us the things we need in life. He will always bring helpers our way. He will provide us with the basic necessities of life and we shall not be at the mercy of worry. Sometimes, our real worry is not about the fact that we don’t have these basic needs.

Our real worry is about the desire to have what others have and be at par with them. Our real worry mostly centers on our wants, not our needs. It is not worth it crushing our brains because we want to wear purple dresses but we have blue dresses. These are things unbelievers struggle with in life. We should be content with what the Lord graciously provides for us each day.

Do not worry, look at the birds

“Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” (Matthew 6:27)
If worrying can prolong lifespans, humans would live for a very long time. Unfortunately, worrying excessively about everything can cause an early death. Worrying comes from fear of lack, fear of not being able to fulfill all your dreams, fear of missing out etc. In fact, fear is the mastermind of worry. If we replace fear with faith, we shall worry less. We live in unusual times and the average person is constantly exposed to news that causes one to be worried about something. After the world went on a relapse for almost 2 years because of the global pandemic, most of us expected life to be normal but it is not. Maybe the new normal is to navigate through life with all the things happening around us. As believers, these things should not be ‘new news’ because Jesus warned us to expect them (Matthew 24:3-31).

Life can be full of uncertainties but with God on our side, we can navigate through. Jesus’ sermon on the Mountain presents diverse issues of life. Jesus told the people that they should not worry. The message on “Do not worry is presented in Matthew 6: 25-31:

“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? “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labour 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—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’”

Jesus used two creatures to teach why we shouldn’t worry; birds and flowers. According to Jesus, birds do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet God feeds them. Flowers do not labour or spin and yet they are more beautifully clothed than the rich king Solomon. If our heavenly Father cares for birds and plants, will He not care for us? It is good to make plans for food, water and raiment but if all hope is lost, we should know that our Father in heaven will provide. God provides through people, organizations, charities, churches etc. Instead of worrying, Jesus admonishes us to do the following:
“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.” (Matthew 6:33‭-‬34).

All ‘these things’ refer to those things/desires/needs etc. that cause us to worry in life. Instead of worrying about everything, let’s seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness and trust God to bring the provision. I pray that God opens uncommon doors for us and turns our worries into celebrations. There is nothing too hard for the Lord. 

Is your heart troubled?

In December 2019 when we heard of a possible epidemic in China. Like many others, I only imagined what could have been the possible cause of this disease. We all went about our lives knowing that China is far away from us. Before the end of March 2020, the disease was declared a global pandemic by WHO. In less than four months, the whole world was in some sort of temporary shutdown because of the pandemic. Millions of people have died, several jobs were shut down, medical institutions were operating with low staff, logistics for control and safety were lacking in many developing countries. The daily reminder of the number of fatalities was scary. The implications of this virus are still felt today. How did the COVID-19 affect you? 

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. (John 14:1)

Like many people, my heart was troubled at the news of this pandemic. Navigating my final year of study with a pregnancy and a global pandemic was not pleasant at all. Many people lost hope and faith because of the effects of the pandemic. However, looking back, I believe a lot more people found their peace in God. In the midst of all these, we held on to faith and we believed in Him who holds the key to our peace. Before Jesus’ death and resurrection, He told His disciples these words: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me” (John 14:1). The occurrences of this world could give us troubled hearts. The daily reminder of pandemics, wars, and unresolved events in our lives could cause us to lose faith. But, do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God that the seasons of pain will be over.

As we wait for a better life, we need to be prepared for our breakthrough. If you are looking forward to securing a better job, you need to build your CV with the relevant qualifications. God has given us the opportunities to advance in life. Take hold of that and build yourself up. As you wait, consider ways you could affect society positively. Learn a skill, develop your passion, be more concerned about your spiritual growth. In our waiting period, we should engage in profitable activities. If your desire is to get a job, keep applying, honour interview invitations, prepare before the interview and pray for grace and favour. If a couple desires to have a child, they should be sexually active, seek medical advice and pray for God’s grace and favour. If you are concerned about a child, a family member or a friend who is going through a tough time, draw near to them, encourage them, make time for them and continue to pray for grace and favour. 

If we fail to control what goes into our hearts and do not take steps to consciously trust in the Lord, our hearts will be a dumping site for all fears, worries and pains. Is your heart still troubled?