September 2 | Our Needs

Birds and flowers. That’s what Jesus uses to illustrate his second warning. His second warning is simple and yet challenging. He tells the crowd that they don’t need to worry. He reassures them that if God feeds the birds and makes the flowers beautiful, they can trust God to take care of their needs. He tells them something they already know—that worrying doesn’t add time to their life. Jesus reminds them that their God, the God who wants to be their heavenly Father, knows what they need and will take care of them.

We may think Jesus was naïve when we hear “do not worry” from Jesus. Not worrying sounds like a good idea in a perfect world, but we don’t live in that world. We live in a world with job loss, kids who make bad decisions, parents who are aging, relationships that fall apart, businesses struggling to stay afloat and a global pandemic. Jesus doesn’t tell us those things aren’t happening or don’t matter. He isn’t saying don’t pay attention to them or act like they aren’t there. He knows life is messy. He came down and lived it.

Jesus wants us to trust God in the midst of the messiness of life. He wants us to see God as that place of security and stability. Trust should push out worry in our hearts. As we approach the problems of life, we navigate them as wisely as we can while trusting God with them.