Those are Jesus’s direct words, recorded in Matthew chapter 6. Not, Do not be anxious about your health. or Do not be anxious about passing a test. or Do not be anxious about the choices your children make. He said, “Do not be anxious about your life.” That’s all-encompassing! He goes on to say that we shouldn’t even worry about what we will eat and drink or if we will have clothes to wear. The very basics to simply remaining alive, and Jesus tells us not to worry about it!
Thankfully, I’ve never had to experience not having food, water, or clothing…I’ve never even had to think about not having any of those things. Most of us haven’t. I believe Jesus was talking directly to the disciples in these verses. They probably actually had a worldly reason to be anxious about having food, water, clothing…even their own safety by that point in their ministry. Jesus didn’t tell them, “It’s okay to be worried about the basics of survival. Things are getting scary!” No, He told them not to be anxious. We can read through these verses and chapters where Jesus continually tried to get the disciples to stop focusing on the worldly things (food, clothing, who was the favorite, etc) and think, “Good grief, how could they be so stupid?! Why couldn’t they see who Jesus really was?! Why did He have to tell them over and over again!?” But we do the exact same thing, don’t we? We may not be anxious about having food to eat or clothes to wear, but we worry about just about everything else…passing the test, finding the right spouse, our relationships, our health, etc. Sometimes those things are scary. Sometimes those things have significant impacts on our daily lives. Certainly a cancer diagnosis can affect our day to day living; an injury can derail your daily life; failing a test can change the future you have planned; a strained relationship can cause stress.
Jesus wasn’t insinuating that the only thing in life we will have to worry about is the basics of survival. He used the literal necessary parts of remaining alive to make a point we need to be careful not to miss: if God makes sure the birds have food and clothes creation in such beauty, how much more will He provide more than sufficiently for His beloved children?
Look at verses 26 and 28-30:
Look at the birds of the air:
they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns,
and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are you not of more value than they?
And why are you anxious about clothing?
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow:
they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you,
even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
But if God so clothes the grass of the field,
which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven,
will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Why do we doubt that God will provide for us? Why do we worry about anything when we have those verses very bluntly explaining how much God loves us?
Jesus was doing more than trying to get the disciples to understand how deeply God loved them and how He would provide for every need. He was also trying to get them to focus not on worldly things, but on the eternal. Verse 33 says:
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all these things will be added to you.
Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Not after you game plan how to fix your latest problem on your own. Not after you spend days/weeks/months/years stewing, fretting, and worrying about your health/job/family/fill-in-the-blank. Not after you seek all other options and answers. First. FIRST. Our immediate response to any fear, stress, or worry should be, “God, how can I put You first in this situation? What do you want to teach me through this trial? How can I use my hardship for Your glory?”
Since July of 2024, life has been full of hardships and challenges for our family. Unexpected. Chaotic. Scary. Hard. We had legitimate concern for where we would live at one point (God provided). We had legitimate concern with my health (God is providing). We have legitimate concerns about one child’s health and future (God is providing). Verse 34 says:
Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow,
for tomorrow will be anxious for itself.
Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
If God provides for the birds and the fields, He will surely provide for His own children who are His image-bearers. Typing out those words is certainly a whole lot easier than living them out. When Aaron and I were sitting across from the oncologist and she said, “We are likely looking at malignancy.” that is cause for anxiety…if you have a worldly perspective. Those words were quite a shock to Aaron and me, no doubt. But what did Jesus tell His disciples? Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. No fear. No worry. Just seek God first.
How can I keep God first as I work to remain cancer-free? Daily saturate myself in His Word. When I rise, seek Him. When I let Satan’s lies sneak in and start to worry about the future, seek Him. When I don’t think I can go another day with alllllllll the things on my plate, seek Him.
How can I glorify God alone in this? Any perceived strength on my part is wholly Him. I am weak. I take my worry and fear and anger to the cross and lay it down, then sometimes before I even turn around I’ve picked it back up again. Over and over, sometimes moment by moment, I must slay my flesh and seek God first. When I cry out, “Why me?! Why our family?!” the Holy Spirit nudges me and I realize why not me and my family?? Glory to God for allowing us to suffer and be refined and sanctified through hardships!
What does God want to teach me through this trial? There’s always plenty to learn. Plenty! Is He showing me that I have not fully surrendered my will to His? Is He showing me that I am not fully dependent on Him and His provision? He is always seeking to draw us closer to Him and sometimes the vehicle for that is suffering and trials.