| This week, in our Pause Bible reading plan, we find Jesus sitting on a hillside, having a heart-to-heart conversation with a crowd of people. But that crowd was not just a bunch of people listening to a great teacher. Each listener had a point of need that His “heart talk” could touch.
As I read Matthew 6, I experienced my own moment of Jesus speaking straight to my heart. Timely and reassuring words quieting the rumbles of fear, anxiety and worry seeking to dominate my thoughts. Words of comfort and peace… “your Father already knows what you need” (Matthew 6:32).
Each listener in that crowd likely had their personal challenge that was either worrisome, a distraction or a serious concern. They lived in a very different time, but they were not unlike ME…YOU. All of us experience the choke of fear and the press of worry.
Jesus talks to them about basic needs, like food, clothing and shelter (and in our present context, He might have added… toilet paper). His gentle, yet powerful, reminder of His care for His creation speaks reassurance and peace to anxious thoughts about “not having enough” or “what might or might not happen.”
But He doesn’t stop with comforting words and reassurance, He quickly moves to the bigger issue of worry. He starts by stating the obvious, but sometimes the obvious is what I tend to forget and need the most — “your heavenly Father already knows what you need.” But for those words to get out of my head and into my heart, there’s something I must choose to do… seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness.
The Amplified Bible says it this way, in Matthew 6:33.
“But first and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and all these things will be given to you also.”
Resetting my response, by inviting the Father to work His way of doing right and being right is something I must prioritize. Remembering to pray and ask the Father to come into the circumstance or challenge should be my FIRST response, not an afterthought.
When my pattern of response is to head down the worry road, I’m setting myself up for living distracted and overwhelmed. The Father loves to give us His peace and reassurance, but He wants us freed up from worry so that we see the needs of others. Worry blurs our vision with self-focus.
This quote is NOT from the Bible, but certainly makes the point when it comes to worry: Worrying is like a rocking chair, it gives you something to do, but gets you nowhere.
Are you ready to get out of that rocking chair and breath in the reassuring words of the Father? He already knows what you need. He’s got you covered!
Father, help us to step down off the porch of our lives with clear vision and wide-open eyes, to see and reach to those around us with your love, in the middle of uncertain times and unexpected circumstances.
Pastor Brenda Hicks |
