Read: Matthew 6:25-34
Do not worry about your life. (v. 25 NIV)
Let’s face it, we worry. Most of us worry about big things and little things. We worry about what we should wear, and what we should eat for dinner. We worry about results from medical tests, and what others think of us. We worry about basic needs such as food, water, and employment. When we worry, it consumes our minds. The Greek root of the word worry implies the way it divides the mind.
In our passage today, found in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is instructing his followers not to worry. He redirects our divided minds by pointing away from our life circumstances and towards the birds and flowers. The birds do not worry about what they will eat. The flowers do not worry about their splendor. Instead, God provides for all their needs. Jesus says that if God cares for them, “will he not much more clothe you?” (v. 30). The point: worrying about our needs divides our minds. Instead, Jesus invites us to seek his kingdom first (v. 33). As a result, all our needs for the day will be supplied.
The Hebrew word shalom means “peace.” It also means “wholeness.” The peace Jesus offers us calms our divided mind and restores us to wholeness. He is enough. He will provide for all our needs. Isaiah said, “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you” (Isa. 26:3 NIV). May Jesus’s presence and his shalom ease your worries today.
As you pray, ask Jesus for his shalom.
Nancy Boote, an ordained minister in the Reformed Church in America, lives in Holland, Michigan, with her husband. She serves in a variety of leadership positions within the denomination. Besides being a wife, mother, and grandmother, Nancy enjoys taking prayer walks, hiking in nature, mentoring, and has a heart for justice matters.
