It's tough not to Worry

²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look 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? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^[b]?

 ²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If 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, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

I have memorized Matthew 6:28-30 with the hopes that I would stop worrying.  It didn’t help … I still worry.

My obsession with the end of Matthew 6 started when I was a freshman in college.  I was trying to come up with a screen name for AOL instant messenger.  I am horrible when it comes to coming up with names and titles and such.  So I was talking to the people who happened to be in my dorm room when someone brought up one of their favorite Bible verses … yeah, you guessed it: Matthew 6:28.  You could be NOworries628.  and that became my screen name.

So, I had to memorize the end of Matthew 6 to explain my name to all the random people I would soon to chatting to on AIM.  And of course explain how these verses changed my life, and I know longer worry because I have the knowledge stored in these wonderful words.

While they are truly wonderful and amazing words sent from a Father who loves us; they have not changed my life.  And while my screen name for a few things remains NOworries628, it’s more of a reminder of God’s reminder to not worry as much, or it’s an oxymoron to my personality … I’ll let you decide on that one.

I have had (still have) always will have a lot in my life to worry about, and this collection of verses does help out in my life.  Sure, having this knowledge hasn’t cured me from worrying, but it has reminded me that I am not in control.  One of my favorite lines is 6:27 – “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”

Although I also think that these words are often taken out of context and used to explain some crazy behavior.  Like that person who never pays attention to anything because “God will take care of me”, or people who don’t pay bills because “God will provide the money.”  Have they ever thought that perhaps God did provide, but you just missed it while you were busy explaining to all your friends about how ‘you don’t know how, but someday God will fix my money problems’.  Perhaps you’re friend mentioned an insignificant job opportunity that maybe didn’t seem good enough … well that could have been God providing for you.

God doesn’t always provide in the ways that we want.  I want to make more money.  God has not given me a new job like I would have liked; you know, just plopped down an open position in front of me so I could be accepted and start work with my new salary the next day.  But he did provide me with a friend who I talked to, who let me know about an opening in her company.  He did provide me with the confidence I needed to (hopefully) ace my interviews.

And now, even though it’s hard to see sometimes, He has provided me with the peace and patience to wait.

“Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself.” 6:34

So today I will pray for patience, and I just might add that it would be cool if I could know what will happen with this interview, but I will also add for peace and for the understanding to see and acceptance to handle what He does provide for me.