Up, In and Out
Pause:
Before you start reading this devotional, take a moment to stop what you’re doing, slow down and focus on Jesus.
Pray and ask him to open your eyes to see as you read the scriptures, and to open your ears to hear as you wait on the leading of the Spirit.
Read:
Matthew 6v25-34: “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 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? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?[g] 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 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? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
Going Deeper:
This passage is both very relevant, and very challenging for each of us, during this unique moment that we are living through.
It’s relevant because all of us need to be reminded of these things regularly in normal life, let alone during a global pandemic, where over a million people around the world have been infected by the Corona Virus, and over 1/3 of the world’s population are in some form of lockdown.
It’s challenging, because it calls us to look upward to God our Father as our provider, and to find our security in Him, rather than money, our jobs, our health or the other things that bring a sense of control and stability to our lives.
Jesus also challenges our priorities, by calling us to look outward to the hurting World we live in and to remember the mission Jesus has called us to be a part of.
How easy is it when we go through a hard, stressful, uncertain time to not look up to God, or out to other people, and the mission that He has called us to be part of? And to instead, just look in, to our own needs, wants, hurts, anxieties and fears. And protect and comfort ourselves.
What should strike us here, is that this passage doesn’t flippantly ignore or cast aside our fears or feelings. In our world today, many people are unsure about the future; their jobs, their income, their health, or what the weeks ahead hold for us. Those are real feelings, that cannot be ignored.
But, the best thing we can do at this time, is to look up to Jesus, and bring those fears and feelings to Him as lament. To bring our questions, hurts and even our anger to Him, and to invite Him into what we are going through, rather than going through this on our own, without Him. Self-sufficiently.
And here, Jesus lifts our heads and reminds us of God, and what He is like. And reassures us that we do not need to worry over these fears, because of Him. He is the reason we can be secure and stable, even when our questions and concerns go unanswered, because He will be with us no matter what we face, and He is able to provide, comfort and care for us.
Lastly, this passage reminds us of the bigger story that we live in, and what God has been at work doing since the beginning.
I often find myself absorbed and stuck in my story. The Story of Grant. My life, my hopes and dreams, my ambitions, my family (And that is during times when the world seems somewhat normal.)
But here Jesus is pointing us out to the ends of the Earth. He’s reminding us of the eternal story that we find ourselves in, and that Billions of people have been part of before we were even born.
And He reminds us, that even when we have reason to fear or be anxious. Not to withdraw from God’s big story. To continue to seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness. To pray for it. To live for it. To work for it. To do whatever you can, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to advance it. And to live to see the light of the hope of the Gospel, in the face of Jesus, spread into the darkness of the brokenness, evil, sinfulness, and injustice of our world.
Matthew 6 reminds us, at this time to look up and look out and:
- Live selflessly
- Worship and praise God throughout the day
- Share the Gospel
- Pray for others
- Be beacons of hope, joy, love and peace
- Ask the Spirit to lead us
- Continue to disciple others
- Continue to live generously
- Continue to encourage others
- And continue to live as missionaries and ministers during a Global Pandemic
And God promises that as we live like this – seeking first His kingdom – that He will be with us, and He will meet our needs. Always.
Pray:
Respond to God in prayer by speaking to Him about what stood out to your from this passage this morning.
Listen:
What is the Holy Spirit saying to you this morning?
Apply:
What are you going to do in response to what God is saying to you from the text and by the Spirit?