I Cannot Grow Through Worry

Today I came across a blog post and devotion I thought I'd share with you. It's entitled "When Worry Makes Me Wonder" by Renee Swope of Proverbs 31 Ministries. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! 

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One of my favorite scriptures on worry is in Matthew 6. It's practical. It applies to everyday life, and I turn to it frequently.

When one's husband works via the carpenter's union, it's difficult to know when the next job is coming along. Finances are there one day and gone the next. Paychecks go from full pay scale to half-rate unemployment checks. It's sometimes harrowing to know where the groceries are going to come from or if you'll have to sacrifice the electric to pay the rent.

Worry creeps in like a stealthy cat creeps up on its prey. One day I'll be walking in the sunshine, enjoying life and the next I'll be paralyzed in fear of not having enough to make it through to the next sunny day.

So I turn to God's word. 
"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?" Matthew 6:25

This helps me put things back into perspective. My life isn't about what I will have. It's not about the things I feel I need or deserve to have. That's not what gives me life. It's not what the focus of my life is all about. When I leave this earth, people aren't going to say of me, "Wow! She ate 3,450 pizzas!" Nor will they say, "Boy, she drank a lot of coffee."

"Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" (v. 26)

My daily bread comes from God, not the white loaf I buy at Wal-Mart for $0.99. When I partake of His supper, I will neither hunger nor thirst.

In Psalm 37:25 it says, "I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread." If God promises to feed me, why do I worry about where my next meal will come from?

"Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?" (v. 27)

Worry doesn't help; it hinders. It brings knots to the stomach, doubling me over rather than causing me to stand taller. Why am I bothering to allow worry into my life?

"So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin;
and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?" (v. 28-30)

Must be my faith level is low if I'm concerning myself with such temporal things. Faith is taking God at His word, trusting that He'll do as He says.

Honestly, I'd rather be arrayed in God's glory than any piece of clothing designed on this earth.

"Therefore, do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'
For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." (v. 31-34)

Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. My first act of obedience is to seek God's kingdom here on earth. What is His will for my life? What am I to do to bring glory and honor to my King? What has He called me to while I walk this earth?

God knows what we need in order to survive, to keep breathing, to keep our blood flowing through our veins. He created us, after all. And He created us with a purpose and a plan for our lives. Worry wasn't included in that, nor was fear. We need to look to Jehovah Jireh for our provision and concern ourselves with more heavenly matters.

As we heard prophecy after prophecy about a permanent position in a company, an increase in finances, and a promise we would not lack, we prayed and sought God's will for our life together. Eleven years after that first prophetic word over my husband's career, Vic landed a career with a concrete construction company. He has a salary, benefits, and a retirement plan. We haven't lacked a single day. God is faithful to His word. And we are blessed to be His children. We took God at His word, and we've never begged for bread.

Seek first the kingdom of God today, look for His righteousness to fill your life, and watch what God can do!


Photo Copyright 2010 Alycia W. Morales