Passage of the Day: Matthew 6: 34 (see in bold/underlined) … 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
My Journal for Today: When one reads the focus verse for today, it almost reads as if Jesus is asking us to refrain from planning for our future. However, this is not the case. According to Dr. MacArthur from his devotional book, Strength for Today, Martin Lloyd Jones wrote, “Although it is very right to think about the future, it is very wrong to be controlled by it.” And therein lies the rub.
The key word when Jesus says, “… do not worry about tomorrow,” is, of course, the word WORRY. Oh, how Satan desires us to go into worry mode, which discourages or paralyzes us, and causes us to believe the incredible lie that God is not in control … that Jesus, our Lord, is not our sovereign God. I once heard our Pastor jokingly say that there was a Greek term referring to that lie; and it is “BALONEY!” ;) I’ve never been able to find that term in the Greek dictionary; but I think you get what I’m trying to say.
You’ve actually heard this theme several times this month if you’ve been following these August devotionals of mine; but hopefully redundancy teaches. It does for me. Jesus, in his magnanimous hillside sermon, was/is giving us, His disciples, very practical advice on the avoidance of worrying about the future. He is not saying that we can’t or shouldn’t look into the future; but our primary focus should be on faith for today and reliance on God for the future. If we plan for the future, thinking of God first (i.e., the message of both Prov. 3: 5, 6 and Matt. 6: 33), God will likely be smiling. However, when we look to the future, worrying out of selfishness or fear, that is to disbelieve that God has us covered with His love, mercy, and grace; and Satan smiles. For us to worry about our future is to fall into Satan’s trap of believing that God is not in control of our well-being. And to that, I want you to say that pseudo “Greek” term above. Say it with me, loudly …BALONEY!!! Now, my friend and fellow Christian, smile, knowing that God is in control; and knowing that He loves us and will provide for our every need.
If we worry about tomorrow, it will cause us to lose our joy for today. And choosing to lose our joy, (and joy is always a choice, not a feeling) due to self-driven anxiety, is sinful. God has a victory for any believer today; and any fear that comes from anxieties about tomorrow is a lie from hell trying to let our own deceit-ridden heart steal God’s victory from us. Jesus has never and will never change (see Hebrews 13: 8). Just as He is today, He’ll be there tomorrow to show us the way (again see Prov. 3: 5 – 6, a verse which you should have memorized) But even more importantly, He’s with us today in any circumstance in which we find ourselves (see Deut. 31: 6, 8 and Rom. 8: 28, 31).
Yes, plan for tomorrow; but never worry about it; because tomorrow is God’s.
My Prayer Today: All I need is You today, Lord … and for all my tomorrows. Amen
My Journal for Today: When one reads the focus verse for today, it almost reads as if Jesus is asking us to refrain from planning for our future. However, this is not the case. According to Dr. MacArthur from his devotional book, Strength for Today, Martin Lloyd Jones wrote, “Although it is very right to think about the future, it is very wrong to be controlled by it.” And therein lies the rub.
The key word when Jesus says, “… do not worry about tomorrow,” is, of course, the word WORRY. Oh, how Satan desires us to go into worry mode, which discourages or paralyzes us, and causes us to believe the incredible lie that God is not in control … that Jesus, our Lord, is not our sovereign God. I once heard our Pastor jokingly say that there was a Greek term referring to that lie; and it is “BALONEY!” ;) I’ve never been able to find that term in the Greek dictionary; but I think you get what I’m trying to say.
You’ve actually heard this theme several times this month if you’ve been following these August devotionals of mine; but hopefully redundancy teaches. It does for me. Jesus, in his magnanimous hillside sermon, was/is giving us, His disciples, very practical advice on the avoidance of worrying about the future. He is not saying that we can’t or shouldn’t look into the future; but our primary focus should be on faith for today and reliance on God for the future. If we plan for the future, thinking of God first (i.e., the message of both Prov. 3: 5, 6 and Matt. 6: 33), God will likely be smiling. However, when we look to the future, worrying out of selfishness or fear, that is to disbelieve that God has us covered with His love, mercy, and grace; and Satan smiles. For us to worry about our future is to fall into Satan’s trap of believing that God is not in control of our well-being. And to that, I want you to say that pseudo “Greek” term above. Say it with me, loudly …BALONEY!!! Now, my friend and fellow Christian, smile, knowing that God is in control; and knowing that He loves us and will provide for our every need.
If we worry about tomorrow, it will cause us to lose our joy for today. And choosing to lose our joy, (and joy is always a choice, not a feeling) due to self-driven anxiety, is sinful. God has a victory for any believer today; and any fear that comes from anxieties about tomorrow is a lie from hell trying to let our own deceit-ridden heart steal God’s victory from us. Jesus has never and will never change (see Hebrews 13: 8). Just as He is today, He’ll be there tomorrow to show us the way (again see Prov. 3: 5 – 6, a verse which you should have memorized) But even more importantly, He’s with us today in any circumstance in which we find ourselves (see Deut. 31: 6, 8 and Rom. 8: 28, 31).
Yes, plan for tomorrow; but never worry about it; because tomorrow is God’s.
My Prayer Today: All I need is You today, Lord … and for all my tomorrows. Amen
No comments:
Post a Comment