Matthew 6:33 “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

This verse is one of the most familiar in the whole Bible. I have reason to quote it at least every week, and sometimes it seems like every day. However, familiarity must not be allowed to breed contempt, as it is so prone to do. Different people are prone to anxiety to different degrees, but it does seem to be one of the most common character traits. To be honest, there’s plenty in the world to make us anxious! We aren’t to be careless in the sense of failing to pay attention, but we are to be carefree, in the sense of rejecting anxiety and choosing to trust God. The devil is very much out to steal, kill, and destroy any good in our lives, (John 10:10) but God wants not only to give us abundant life, He wants to grow our character. You could say that faith is necessary for salvation, (Ephesians 2:8-10) but trust is necessary to enjoy it. It is at times amazing how little we trust God. You would think it would go without saying that the Creator of the Universe, who is love personified, would take good care of His children, but we look around us and get scared, because we realize we aren’t in control. That’s probably the real issue. We do have free will and therefore personal responsibility, but at the same time we aren’t in control. We want it to be the other way around, with no responsibility but full control! That impulse is the origin of our fascination with magic, because magic is all about bending the world to your will. That is the path of rebellion against God, and the end of that path is inexpressible destruction and horror. God doesn’t desire that for anyone, so He calls us to repent of our unbelief and rebellion and trust Him enough to obey Him.

This is of course my message, even as I am growing in walking it out more thoroughly myself. I wish I could say that I was never anxious, or that I never tried to be in control! I am continually reminded of what the Lord told me personally: to rest, relax, and rejoice. That is easy to say, but humanly speaking not easy to do. I have to choose trust rather than anxiety, obedience rather than control, and it’s not always easy. You would think I’d have it down pat by now! As a pastor this is one of the fundamental issues I deal with in others all the time. Recognizing my own weakness should help me be gentle with them, but I slip up there sometimes, too. I need to remember that God is more interested in my doing well than I am, and rejoice to let Him be Lord.

Father, thank You for Your overwhelming grace. Help me both trust it myself and extend it to others. Help me keep my repentance up to date, not letting anything come between us, so that I may keep walking closer and closer to You, as long as You have me walking this earth. Thank You. Praise God!