Early each Sunday morning I meet with a group of guys and we spend time together working through the issues of growing in faith and living the Christian life. We have been working through the book of Colossians, and yesterday we came to chapter 3. I skipped the first part of the chapter and we spent our time working through verses 12-17 together. Because I know what is happening to many of them we talked about what might happen in their lives....the real possibility that they may lose their jobs.
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We had a serious and rather intense discussion. The weight of worry that these guys were carrying was visible on their faces as we began to discuss this topic. What will you do if you lose your job? How will you pay the bills? Will you lose your home? What will happen? The weight of these worries is real in their lives and in the lives of many in our country. There is real worry and fear looming in the hearts and lives of people I meet....it's a heavy weight, and many honestly feel crushed by it.
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I never know how times of study like this affect those in a group, but one of the wives stopped me later in the morning at church to tell me, "thank you, my husband really needed that." I don't know what he took away from our time together, but I'm glad this honest discussion of trusting God in difficult days made a difference for him. The real issue is simply this- is God big enough to care for us or are we on our own? Is life and death, hunger and homelessness, work or unemployment important to the God who loves us? We know it is, and we know he's big enough to care for us, but often we will be tempted to carry the weight of worry ourselves...as if it all depends on us to do it all. We simply cannot carry this weight for very long before we begin to be crushed under the load. I know some of these guys were feeling that load as we talked, so I know that some of you are suffering under the weight as well...the weight of worry about what might happen. May I remind you that God loves you and cares for you? May I remind you of a short passage in Peter's letter that gives you a solution and action plan when the load is too heavy? Here it is-
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1Peter 5:6-7- Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.
1Peter 5:6-7- Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.
2 comments:
There are tears in my eyes as I read this. This is exactly what I needed to read today. Yes, the cares and worries of the economy have almost crushed me in the past couple weeks. My husband is laid off (which usually happens this time of year for him) but I can't help but worry about "IF and/or when" he will be called back this time. My place of employment has already had one round of layoffs and it is a very real possibilty I may be let go in the next round. How ironic that you quoted my "life verse"...I Peter 5:7 "Casting all your cares on Him, for He careth for you." Why can't I remember this when I REALLY need to?
Thank you, Mike, for reminding me no matter what, God is still in control and is concerned about the welfare of His children.
God Bless and Merry Christmas!
Great post Mike. People need this kind of encouragement, especially in times like these. I needed it after a day like today when it felt like the world was trying to crush me and break my spirit.
Thanks,
Jeremiah
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