Week Thirty-Seven, 2018
DO NOT WORRY ABOUT TOMORROW
By Senator John Grant, Florida (Retired)
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34
There are more than a hundred verses in the Bible that speak about worry. Perhaps it is because God knows mankind’s propensity to worry, especially about the future.
Matthew 6:34 is the thirty-fourth, and final, verse of the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew and is part of the Sermon on the Mount. This verse concludes the discussion of worry about material provisions.
The surrounding context is Jesus explaining that our Heavenly Father knows all of our needs and will provide for them. Jesus exhorts his followers to avoid anxiety about worldly things. Anxiety is a meteor shower of what-ifs.
This saying in Matthew 6:34 is essentially reminding us that today has enough problems of its own to deal with and not to worry about tomorrow’s. A contemporary equivalent might be: “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
This is not a suggestion, but a command. God divided time into days and nights so that you would have manageable portions of life to handle. His grace is sufficient for us, but its sufficiency is for only one day at a time.
When we worry about the future, we heap day upon day of troubles onto our flimsy frame. We stagger under this heavy load, which He never intended you to carry.
We can throw off this oppressive burden with one quick thrust of trust. Anxious thoughts meander about and crisscross in our brain, but trusting Him brings us directly into His Presence. As we thus affirm our faith, shackles of worry fall off instantly. We are to enjoy His presence continually by trusting Him at all times.
The Bible clearly teaches that Christians are not to worry. In Philippians 4:6, we are commanded, Do not be anxious [do not worry] about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. In this Scripture, we learn that we should bring all of our needs and concerns to God in prayer rather than worry about them. Jesus encourages us to avoid worrying about our physical needs like clothing and food. Jesus assures us that our heavenly Father will take care of all our needs (Matthew 6:25-34). Therefore, we have no need to worry about anything. Worrying should not be a part of a believer’s life.
Follow the word of God to be rid of worry. Prov.3 Verses 5 to 6. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways, acknowledge him, and He shall direct thy paths.
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SOMETIMES TRUE STORIES
What was Mr. Rogers’s secret?
“Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” is the surprise hit of the summer box office. In a season dominated by cartoon superheroes and villains, this documentary on the life of Fred Rogers is captivating millions. Variety says that it turns the Presbyterian minister “into a rock star for our time.”
What was Mr. Rogers’s secret?
In his 1995 book, You Are Special: Words of Wisdom for All Ages from a Beloved Neighbor, Fred Rogers observed: “When we love a person, we accept him or her exactly as is: the lovely with the unlovely, the strong along with the fearful, the true mixed in with the façade, and of course, the only way we can do it is by accepting ourselves that way.”
Do you agree?
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BILLY GRAHAM ON GROWTH:
- First, a Christian grows when he prays.
- Second, a Christian grows when he reads the Bible.
- Third, a Christian grows when he leads a disciplined life.
- Fourth, a Christian grows by being faithful in his church.
- Fifth, a Christian grows through service.
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THE WALK
A retired couple decided that they should walk two miles a day to stay in shape. They chose to walk a mile out on a lonely country road so they would have no choice, but to walk back.
At the one-mile mark on their first venture, the man asked his wife, “Do you think you can make it back all right, or are you too tired?”
“Oh, no,” she said. “I’m not tired. I can make it fine.” “Good,” he replied. “I’ll wait here. You go back, get the car and come get me.”
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QUOTES YOU CAN USE
It matters not how high you jump on Sunday but what really matters is how straight you walk on Monday.
You can tell a person what to do and they may attempt it for a season. But teach them why they are doing it and it will take a brick wall to stop them.
Love is what we are born with. Fear is what we learn.
As William Bennett expressed it, “the real crisis of our time is spiritual.”
As D. L. Moody put it, “The Bible was not given to make us smarter sinners.
Sadly today the doctrine of Christ is being diluted with human dogmas, personal opinions, and in recent years a “health and wealth gospel.” Preaching is not a light-hearted after-dinner speech. Neither is the pulpit a place for presenting political views, as occurs in too many cases. Nor is it time to entertain. Ken Weliever
Humility obviously means I do not think too highly of myself or too lowly of others. But humility also does not mean the opposite—that I think too lowly of myself or too highly of others. Jim Denison
The best way to prepare for the future is to trust God with the present.
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Selected portions of Thoughts on Life can also be read at TheLife.com.
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©2018 John Grant | Florida State Senator (Ret.) | 10025 Orange Grove Drive | Tampa, FL 33618