Do Not Worry

Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than the birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? Since you cannot do this very thing, why do you worry about the rest. Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you – you of little faith. (Luke 12:22-28)

The greek word for worry is merimnao. It means to care, be anxious, troubled, and to take thought. How often do you find yourself worrying throughout your day? What do you find yourself worrying about? Is it about your family, work, or finances? I find myself sometimes worrying about my children and their safety. I pray for them but then I go another step and begin worrying about them. Sometimes they stay out late and I worry that they could get into an accident. Other times I worry about their future and what it will look like for them. All of the worrying in the world won’t change anything. It only ties us up in knots on the inside. It also impacts our walk with God. Are we really trusting him when we choose to worry?

Philippians 4:6 reminds us: “Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” Our prayer life and trust in God takes away our worry and anxiety. As we put our trust in what God can do in and through our circumstances, he fills us with his supernatural peace.

How is your level of peace today? Are you anxious about many things? Proverbs 14:30 tells us, “A heart of peace gives life to the body.” Take time to list out what you have been anxious about and take each one to the Lord. One thing that I do is I’ve started a list of prayer requests on one side of my journal and answered prayer on the other. I love being able to write in an answered prayer! I pray earnestly believing that God will work in the circumstances that I am facing and I’m greatly encouraged to see answers. May God fill you with His peace today as you seek to entrust all your cares to Him.