Reading
“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?” – Matthew 6:25-27 (NIV)
Reflection
Down through my years of ministry, I’ve observed that the Holy Spirit can be amazingly helpful when it comes to our need to be free from worry. I’ve witnessed people travel the difficult journey of grief, illness, heartbreak, depression, or financial stress and come out on the other side with a sense of underlying joy that serves them well throughout their years. One key ingredient to such resilience is that they are people who made (and daily make) a conscious choice to focus on peace instead of worry. Worry has a way of wrecking our peace, but peace has a way of bringing us joy.
Even in the small frustrations we encounter in life, asking for help from the Holy Spirit can often bring us peace. Receiving such peace on a regular basis has a way of making life seem more manageable. One thing my mother taught me when I was a teenager is that when I had misplaced something—and was getting frustrated and worried because I couldn’t seem to find it—I could pause, lift my problem to the Lord, and ask for the Holy Spirit to guide my search. She was right. When I settled myself in the Lord, a new and different way of searching led right to what I couldn’t seem to find just minutes earlier. Instead of continuing to look in the same places over and over, I was almost drawn to where the thing was. This was especially true when I was looking for something quite important to me. I believe that what’s important to our peace is important to God. My mother also taught me to give thanks to the Lord when what was lost has been found, so I’ve made that part of my spiritual practice, too.
I share that example from my life only to illustrate the larger truth I’ve come to know: Unless we keep pausing and choosing peace over worry, it’s hard to find what we’re “looking” for, which is a fulfilling and joyful life. I’ve never met a person who worries much and has much peace. The two just don’t go together. It’s hard to let the light of Jesus shine in you if your mind is constantly on bad things that happened (or might happen) in your life.
Sometimes we go through some horrible things. Even so, God loves us. Because God loves us, God will help us find a way back toward peace. However, we can’t receive that peace unless we give something up. We can’t grasp hold of the gift of peace that comes from God unless we let go of our grip on worry.
God grants us peace when we ask, but our learning curve on letting go of worry can be a steep one! It takes daily practice! Here’s the great news: We might be slow learners, but God has infinite patience. We can, through repetition, learn how to let go of our worry. The key is in realizing that it really has nothing to do with us and our skills. It’s about handing things over to God daily as we gradually lose our desire for control.
Is there something in your life that you spend way too much time worrying about? Perhaps it’s fear that your supervisor doesn’t think you’re doing a good job at work. Or maybe it’s the worry that your health may not remain intact. It might even be that you’re worried you’ll never be loved or appreciated for who you are. Here’s the thing: If God is faithful to you in the small things in life, why would God fail you in the big things?
Sadness, illness, and loss do happen in our lives, and sometimes the pain of it takes a long time to heal. However, the goodness of God is bigger than even the worst pain we can imagine. So, whether it’s something big we’re worried about, or if it’s something less traumatic, Jesus invites us to embark on the journey of learning how to give it up to God.
Perhaps you can take the first step today in giving up your worry. Here’s a practice you might consider: Find a quiet place and set an alarm on your phone or device, so that in five minutes it will go to a soothing tone or music. In the meantime, for those five minutes, close your eyes and think about the goodness of God and how much bigger it is than even your biggest worry. Picture God granting you peace, in exchange for your worry. At the end of those five minutes, give thanks to the Lord and decide to live the rest of today trusting that God loves you and will grant you peace.
Prayer
Almighty and Loving God, we often forget that we aren’t in control. Remind us that we aren’t in control and help us to give up our worry. Free us from what holds us back, so that we can grasp hold of the peace you have in store for us. Give us this day the daily bread of your peace, so that we might live each day nourished by your love. Amen.
