Don't waste time in useless worry
Jesus counsels us not to waste time in useless worry, but to trust that God the Father will provide. Many of us, when we reflect on the past, cannot believe how we came through such difficulties. The answer is simple: Divine Providence never failed to provide.
It is Jesus' teaching that we need to completely trust in Almighty God. Jesus draws parallels from nature. Birds survive without storehouses and anxious hoarding. Field-flowers burned as fuel in ovens are beautiful in appearance. Jesus reassures us that if God the Father takes such good care of the tiny bird and attends to the beauty of the passing flower, how much more will the Almighty take care of us, His human children, the crown of His creation?
Live in the present
On the practical level, undue anxiety may lead to nervous exhaustion, tension and health problems. Jesus counsels us to cultivate inner quiet and serenity.
Jesus bids us to trust more in our Provident God and that we live in the present. The past is gone and cannot be revisited. We may repent the past, but we cannot change what has happened. Tomorrow is not yet here, and, for some of us, an earthly tomorrow may no longer be - we may be called to the shores of heaven during the night. Today is what we have; let us deal with it, serene and secure within the Father's Love.
Jesus does not bid us to be imprudent. We need to take necessary care for our lives, for our families, for the future. Savings for a rainy day are important. Sufficient clothing for the climate is a necessity. Balanced food and water is a must. Adequate shelter is a requirement and a blessing.
Live lives full of peace and joy
Yet, in the midst of this, our pursuit of life-necessities should not be a frenzied search for material goods and a stockpiling of items. We should eschew unnecessary anxiety that creates inner turmoil. We should control our emotions and actions, and live lives full of peace and joy.
"Jesus is not advocating a shiftless, thriftless, reckless, thoughtless, improvident attitude to life; he is forbidding a care-worn, worried fear, which takes all the joy out of life." [1]
Jesus counsels us firstly to seek the things of God, and to work for His heavenly Kingdom. All the rest shall follow after. "Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat and what you will 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?" For the pagans run after all these things and your Heavenly Father knows that you need them. 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." [2]
[1] Barclay, William. Matthew. Page 255
[2] The Bible, Gospel of St Matthew, Chapter 6, verses 25-34
Birds with thanks to Free Clipart Library and Youtube The Chosen
No comments:
Post a Comment