"What, Me Worry?"

This was the famous phrase of Alred E. Neuman in Mad magazine. Various people have talked about what the phrase has meant over the years. One could say it represents a naive outlook on the world. That anyone who lives by this phrase doesn't understand reality. I disagree.

Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. - Mark 4:18-19, NIV

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? - Matthew 6:25-27, NIV

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus told believers not to worry. His points was a simple one: God will take care of His children. In the parable of the Sower, Jesus explains what can happen to a Christian who succumbs to worry: the Christian is rendered ineffective. Jesus didn't just indicate worries. He also pointed out the deceitfulness of wealth. But since I'm focusing on worries, I'll stick with that.

These passages aren't an excuse for us to do what we want and not worry about it. That's not what Jesus is saying. What He is saying is that God will take care of our needs. Do Christians starve every day? Yes, they do. So we have to realize he's not talking physical, he's talking spiritual. Does he often take care of our physical needs? Yes, and more times than not, more abundantly than we can imagine. But that's not God's main focus and it shouldn't be ours. This life, while important to us, isn't the end. Heaven is. And the concerns of this life and this world should not get in the way of our love and service to God Himself. We shouldn't be in the stranglehold of worry because we know, as the cliche goes, the best is yet to come.

As you go into this weekend, put your worries aside. Focus on God and His very nature. Be encouraged, for He sent His Son not to condemn the world, but to save it (John 3:17). Be encouraged, for though He could have chosen another path, He still went to the Cross. Be encouraged, for His every action has demonstrated a plan of redemption that was in place before we were created. Be encouraged, for our Lord does take care of our needs and so much more. Be encouraged, and don't worry!