POSTPONED, BUT LOOMING: GOD'S CARE -- Devotional for April 19, from "Good Seeds"

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication let your requests be known unto God.” (Philippians 4:6)

A good friend wrote with an update regarding her husband’s job status. In a former letter she spoke of pending layoffs, that they were on pins and needles wondering if he would be next. The update: “Well, the good news is, he didn’t get laid off; but the bad news is, nobody did – because the layoffs have been postponed, but still are looming.” Then she closed by saying, “We’re getting lots of practice being ‘anxious for nothing.’” There’s an interesting play on words here. It almost sounds like she’s saying, “We’re worrying for no good reason; it was all for nothing that we were anxious.” But we know she was quoting the Bible verse, “Be anxious for nothing,” which means those who trust in God need not let anything which could normally be considered a legitimate reason for worry, to worry them, for God is in control. I was expressing my worry to a friend the other day, about our welfare in our old age. Then I caught myself: “Oh, I don’t mean worried, I’m just concerned, for I don’t want to be a freeloader on others. I want to do the right kind of planning ahead of time so that my wife and I can be cared for when we can no longer work to provide for our own care. And I’m not sure I’ve covered all my bases in that regard, so now I’m a little worried….er, ah, concerned, about it.” My friend made no value judgment about the quality of my preparations for the future. That would surely have stung. Instead, he drew my attention to a promise of God, which served (as most Bible truth does) to both clobber me and comfort me at one and the same time. Here is the context of that promise: “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he falls, he shall not ultimately fail, because the Lord is the One who holds his hand.” And here’s the text: “I have been young, and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his little ones begging bread” (Psalm 37:23-25). Pow! That hit me right where it hurts – and helps! Hope this helps my friends, too, as they keep practicing being “anxious for nothing”!