TO BORROW TROUBLE IS TO WORRY TWICE -- Devotional for May 10, from "Good Seeds"

Therefore do not be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matthew 6:34)

Today a friend of mine shared with me his theory about worry: don’t do it! He remembered what his mom used to say: “Why borrow trouble from tomorrow.” They’re right of course, for isn’t this what our Lord taught? To worry about what bad things might happen tomorrow is to suffer twice for something you need only suffer for once, when it happens – or not at all, for who can know the future? Only God – and He’s not telling! In today’s verse Jesus makes two observations about the troubles we anticipate: 1) “Tomorrow will take care of itself.” We can’t know now how things will work out for us tomorrow. We can certainly envision our coming trials – and that’s our problem: our imagination works extremely well, giving us plenty to worry about – but we just can’t know what resources, what help, what deliverance will come our way at the moment those things are needed, which isn’t now. 2) “Each day has its full quota of trouble.” In Jeremiah 29:11 we read this amazing statement: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord…” (Jeremiah 29:11). Those plans may include a fair amount of pain and suffering, but God has His reasons, and for those who are His, it will always turn out for their good, and His glory (see Romans 8;28). In the meantime, God promises “He will not allow us to be tried beyond what we are able to bear, but will with the trouble provide a way of escape” (I Corinthians 10:13). God promises to give us, for the particular moment, and for the particular trial, whatever resources we will need to deal with it. What He does NOT promise is the power to face now what doesn’t even yet exist (and may never materialize). Remember this: Worry is not a weapon against the enemy – worry IS the enemy! Worry about future pain won’t prevent it, but it very well can ferment it! Vain imaginations go into the vat; time plus worry complete the fermentation process, producing the wine of spiritual and emotional defeat. Mark Twain, in his folksy way, hit the nail on the head when he quipped, “In my life I have known many troubles – most of them never happened!” So don’t borrow trouble. Why suffer twice? Be like the infant taken to the doctor for his vaccinations: he coos and giggles all the way there. Not knowing what’s in store, he can enjoy the moment and not fret the future. Oh when the needle pricks, he’ll cry hard enough – it’s okay to cry when it hurts. But it’s not okay, and highly unnecessary, to cry ahead of time.