Grappling With Divinity

I often wonder how much worrying is enough. In fact, it could be said that I worry about how much I should or should not worry. I worry that if I don’t worry then no one will worry and the things that need to get done, the things about which I am worried, will not get done.

On an intellectual level, I know that worrying doesn’t actually make things better. It’s wasted energy and that energy would be better spent on something I actually have control over. What’s more, I also know that worrying and faith don’t mix. In fact, it could be said that worrying is the opposite of faith because worrying is rooted in the belief that God is not in control, that he doesn’t know my needs, and that he will not provide for me.

In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus explicitly tells us not to worry about our life, about food or drink, our bodies, or what we will wear because, like the birds in the air and the flowers in the fields, our Heavenly Father will take care of our needs. “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life (27)?” he asks rhetorically.

I know that I am supposed to find comfort in these verses and sometimes I do, but other times I feel like it’s an unrealistic expectation, especially in our modern era where there is so much going on and so much to worry about. Additionally, I worry about not living up to Jesus’s standard (which I know I can’t, especially on my own). This worry leads to more worry and I’m stuck in a vicious cycle of self-centered fear.

That said, in rereading Matthew 6:25-34, something popped out at me, something I seem to have missed in all of my other readings. Jesus is not simply telling us not to worry. He is not saying that we can have faith without works (see James 2:14-19), that we can simply sit back, put our feet up, trust God, and God will provide what we need, even though this is how I always read it before.

Jesus tells us that something is required of us, something more than faith alone. He tells us to “Seek first [God’s] kingdom and [God’s] righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matt 6:33).” This is not a passive act. Jesus is not suggesting that we can just decide to stop worrying and that food, drink, and clothes will be magically delivered to us. Rather, Jesus is giving us the roadmap for a worry-free life, but like all maps, we must do something if we want to get somewhere.

If, and only if, we seek God’s kingdom and his righteousness first and above all else, which we can be sure means loving God with all our heart, soul and mind, and loving our neighbors as ourselves (Matt 22:37-39), then we can stop worrying about food, drink, clothes, and tomorrow. Conversely, if we don’t do this, we probably have a great deal to worry about.

“Each day has enough trouble of its own (Matt 6:34),” Jesus tells us. But when we seek God’s kingdom and his righteousness, our Heavenly Father will give us the tools with which to handle that trouble. If we try to do it on our own, however, we may quickly find ourselves overwhelmed by both worry and trouble.

~Robert Van Valkenburgh