God in the distance
Key Bible Passages: Matthew 6:31-33
31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
Have you ever been thinking about the future so much that it becomes paralysing; making you feel stuck where you are whilst you’re trying to fix what hasn’t actually happened yet? I know I have. It’s quite easy to take the step from planning for the future into the territory of worrying about the future. Sometimes it’s the smallest, seemingly insignificant things that add up take over your subconscious without you even realising. Other times it’s intense worry about important things that steals your peace.
The resounding message from this passage is simple: do not worry, God’s got this. We don’t need to worry about the future - the small things or the big things, because God already knows what we need and He will give it to us.
Verse 31 gives us a compassionate command: “don’t worry”. It’s a command not a suggestion which means it’s something we need to strive to obey. Yet it’s a compassionate command because God wants us to do it for our own good, He wants to alleviate our suffering. Worry is the opposite of peace and one of the ways we get to claim peace as Christians is by surrendering our futures and trusting God with them. After all, He already knows what we need.
The questions that Matthew mentions, ‘what shall we eat? what shall we drink? what shall we wear?’ all seem like very logical considerations to be having, but he says these things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers. If those things are dominating it means that the worries have control over their thoughts. If you don’t trust God they stop being logical considerations and start being dominating worries. What then should dominate our thoughts? God. If we let God be the most prominent thing in our thoughts then we have no need to worry.
Not worrying is often easier said than done, especially when it comes to the future. Combatting worry isn’t just about trusting God, it’s about actively seeking him. If we’re doing what Matthew says; seeking the kingdom of God above all else and living righteously, there is much less space for worry. The kingdom of God is present in everyone who believes. It’s a place where God rules and death is overcome. So instead of worrying about the future, the small things and the big things, we need to be seeking faith, peace and joy with childlike simplicity and trust. We can live righteously by having faith in what Jesus has done or us; looking into the future through the lens of his resurrection and our salvation.
Instead of seeking answers to the worries flying around our heads, let’s seek the kingdom of God and live righteously with Jesus at the centre, because God already knows what we need and He will give it to us. God is faithful, God is in our future.
Questions
To help with further reflection, thought or application.
1: What are the things in your future you worry about? Surrender them to God and He will help you replace them with peace.
2: Are you constantly thinking of all the things you have to get sorted? Living in the moment is easier when we trust God with our future. List some practical ways that you can seek the kingdom of God and fill your thoughts with Him.
Prayer
“Heavenly Father, Thank you that you are in our future, that you already know what we need and will give it to us. Please help us to surrender our worries to you and replace them with peace. Amen.”
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