In these desperate times...

Matthew 6:31-34

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

I recently received One Year with Jesus in e-book format. It's a great little daily devotional that I have been thoroughly enjoying.

Referring to the Matthew 6 passage in the callout, the author states: “Planning for tomorrow is time well spent; worrying about tomorrow is time wasted.” But sometimes those things are a bit hard to separate.

I think the point of all this is that we need to look to God for our foundational source of all comfort. As we deal with the uncertainty of the economy and the future of our nation, we need to look primarily to God as Provider. We should not rely on our jobs to provide for us. We should not rely on the government to provide for us. We should not even rely on ourselves to provide for us—at least not until we have recognized that God will provide for those who seek first His kingdom.

One Year with Jesus

To give God first place in your life means to turn to God first for help, to fill your thoughts with his desires, to take his character for your pattern, and to serve and obey him in everything. What is really important to you? People, objects, goals, and other desires all compete for priority. Any of these can quickly bump God out of first place if you don’t actively choose to give him first place in every area of your life.

So rather than worrying about our own future or the future of our nation, we should look to the needs of the Kingdom and leave our personal needs in the hands of our loving God, Jehovah Jireh—God, the Provider.

Looks like I have a lot of work to do.