Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.Luke 12:22 (NIV)
My day had not gotten off to a very good start. I'd inadvertently set my alarm clock for 5 p.m. instead of 5 a.m. and overslept. Everything seemed to simply go down hill from that point.
Guilt about our upcoming move had compelled me to commit to make a fresh batch of brownies that morning for my daughter's school bake sale. Because I was running behind schedule, I rushed the baking time so I could make an appointment to sign closing papers for the sale of our house before heading to the office. Chewy around the edge of the pan and gooey in the middle--a perfect "two-sensation" pan of brownies I reasoned through my daughter's disappointment. Besides, it was either that or showing up with nothing.
As I sat in traffic, I shouldered the blame from a phone call with my long-distance husband the evening before that ended on an angry note. At the same time I fretted about how another move would affect our family, particularly our kids.
When the yellow caution light began to blink on my SUV's dashboard, I was all but ready to yank out the annoying device. "Hey! We're really low on gas here. Are you trying to get stranded?" it seemed to scream at me. Willing myself to ignore the warning, I vacillated...stop and fill up the fuel tank? Take my chances and continue on to the office for a meeting for which I was late and was to deliver a presentation? What a day. And, it wasn't yet nine o'clock!
In the New Testament book of Luke, Jesus teaches about worry (Luke 12:22-34). Five times within this short passage of Holy Scripture He encourages us to not worry needlessly. He desires that we give Him our concerns and that we trust Him to take care of them. By the power of the Holy Spirit, God empowers us with wisdom to recognize and avoid unrealistic expectations. He also enables us through faith in Jesus to accomplish what He sets before us without burning out from stress.
Stress is a fact of life. However, when we carry guilt from the past, borrow fear about the future and live in worry of today, we'll become overloaded. We may exhaust our personal resources and ignore those that come from our relationship with God. Through His Word, God works to strengthen our faith so that we trust Him to provide for our needs and handle our concerns.
Dear friend, it's particularly on those days when we spell stress "l-i-f-e" that we need to seek first God's kingdom and righteousness (Matthew 6:33). He promises to strengthen our faith, enabling us to trust Him at all times and in all situations (Psalm 56:3).
Blessings, dear friend.
Faithfully Following
Guilt about our upcoming move had compelled me to commit to make a fresh batch of brownies that morning for my daughter's school bake sale. Because I was running behind schedule, I rushed the baking time so I could make an appointment to sign closing papers for the sale of our house before heading to the office. Chewy around the edge of the pan and gooey in the middle--a perfect "two-sensation" pan of brownies I reasoned through my daughter's disappointment. Besides, it was either that or showing up with nothing.
As I sat in traffic, I shouldered the blame from a phone call with my long-distance husband the evening before that ended on an angry note. At the same time I fretted about how another move would affect our family, particularly our kids.
When the yellow caution light began to blink on my SUV's dashboard, I was all but ready to yank out the annoying device. "Hey! We're really low on gas here. Are you trying to get stranded?" it seemed to scream at me. Willing myself to ignore the warning, I vacillated...stop and fill up the fuel tank? Take my chances and continue on to the office for a meeting for which I was late and was to deliver a presentation? What a day. And, it wasn't yet nine o'clock!
In the New Testament book of Luke, Jesus teaches about worry (Luke 12:22-34). Five times within this short passage of Holy Scripture He encourages us to not worry needlessly. He desires that we give Him our concerns and that we trust Him to take care of them. By the power of the Holy Spirit, God empowers us with wisdom to recognize and avoid unrealistic expectations. He also enables us through faith in Jesus to accomplish what He sets before us without burning out from stress.
Stress is a fact of life. However, when we carry guilt from the past, borrow fear about the future and live in worry of today, we'll become overloaded. We may exhaust our personal resources and ignore those that come from our relationship with God. Through His Word, God works to strengthen our faith so that we trust Him to provide for our needs and handle our concerns.
Dear friend, it's particularly on those days when we spell stress "l-i-f-e" that we need to seek first God's kingdom and righteousness (Matthew 6:33). He promises to strengthen our faith, enabling us to trust Him at all times and in all situations (Psalm 56:3).
Blessings, dear friend.
Faithfully Following
I'm glad God gives us days when things are completely out of control, or else I would think I could control everything without Him. Thanks for the reminder. :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks for spending a few minutes at Nomad Wife, Hannah. I hope you will stop in for a visit again. Bonnie
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