Thoughts on Genesis 1, 1 to 2, 3 and Matthew 6, 25-end
“Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink or about your body, what you will wear”
I love reading the beginning of Genesis. Whether you look at it literally or metaphorically, it tells us that God made absolutely everything, and that He saw that it was good. The world wasn't designed to give us bother, to make us suffer, to cause worry. And we often look at such a passage in the light of being thankful for all that God has done and is doing in our lives.
But here I want to take a bit of a sideways look at the second passage, based on that verse right near the end…do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Unsurprisingly for a former Mental Health nurse I want to say something about worry and anxiety.
We all worry to some extent. Playing things over in our minds is perfectly normal, and being fearful of the possible consequences of potentially dangerous things certainly has its advantages. Anxiety is a normal, healthy reaction to times of stress and worry. It causes our bodily functions to speed up, which in certain circumstances can be a good thing, for example, if we need to escape quickly from a dangerous situation or protect ourselves from a threat. It is an amazing part of how God made us.
However, it becomes a problem if it starts to interfere with our day to day living, if we experience anxiety when we do not need to engage in ‘fight or flight’ or if it leads us to make bad life choices. So it is helpful to learn how to control and minimise anxiety, and it is easily done without needing to resort to professional help or medication.
Remember, as it is a normal reaction, it isn’t possible or desirable to get rid of it altogether, but it is possible to learn to manage it.
One of the things we need to explore when we worry is what it is we actually believe about what is going on.
What you believe about a situation and its possible consequences plays a large part in maintaining or increasing your level of worrying. For example, someone who is nervous of lifts is likely to become very distressed if the lift stops between floors, believing that it is about to plummet to the bottom of the lift shaft, killing or maiming all occupants. Someone thinking more clearly would be aware that stopping between floors is unlikely to be caused by a problem with the cable mechanism or any of the safety devices and more likely to be related to the power supply. Inconvenient, but not dangerous. One factor we need to be aware of particularly is that of listening to ‘worry thoughts’. We all have these thoughts from time to time, but they are unhelpful and can cause things to spiral out of control. These are thoughts like “oh no, I’m going to die” or “it’s going to be a catastrophe”.
So worry has its roots in what we believe.
And so does faith. Studies have shown that people of faith are much better at dealing with difficult situations than those without. That’s not to say that you don’t have a proper faith if you still find yourself anxious, but it is certainly worth exploring the connection between the two.
Our faith is in the awesome God who made everything, who provides all for us, who sent his Son to spare us even the consequences of our mistakes and selfishness, who has adopted us as his own dearly beloved children, and who has good plans for each and every one of us.
So even in the midst of difficulties we can be sure that God is with us and will continue to be with us.
So here’s the question, and I think it’s the same question Jesus was tackling in this part of his sermon…do you really believe that?
Do you really believe in one God, the Father the almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen?
This is the challenge to all of us. I’m not suggesting that we go as far as the weird snake handlers in the USA or that terribly sad story of the couple who denied their children medical treatment in favour of praying for healing and two of their children have died for lack of really basic care, but can we challenge ourselves a little more each day to have more faith in God to provide. To provide solutions to our struggles, to provide people who can help us so we don’t have to struggle alone? To provide us with bags of saline solution when our babies get dehydrated?
Can we trust that God is in even the little details of our lives?
Can we believe that he has good plans for us, plans to prosper us and not to harm us?
I’m not meaning to be over simplistic here. I’m not suggesting that we celebrate when we receive that red bill or the bailiffs knock on the door or while we stand in line at the foodbank or settle down for the night in a night shelter or get bad news about our health or see someone we love in pain. These things won’t be a part of God’s plan. He loves us and wants good things for us. This stuff isn’t easy.
Parents find themselves negotiating this stuff as they work out which knocks to protect their children from and which to let them deal with themselves as they grow towards adulthood. The West-Country soul singer (not concepts often juxtaposed) Joss Stone opens one of her songs with the line "I got a right to be wrong…my mistakes will make me strong". There is some truth in this given that we live in the time when the kingdom of God has yet to be seen in all fulness, but this isn't the way that God wants it to be.
It isn't how the world was made right at the beginning, and it isn't how it will be. But here and now we still face adversity and difficulty. There is a line to be drawn somewhere until we get to that final day. We shouldn’t just accept suffering and struggle as being an acceptable part of life, but if we can have faith in those times then he will provide us with a way through.
We strive for a time when we see God’s kingdom values here on earth, and we know that that time is coming.
"Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness," says Jesus, and then "Do not worry about tomorrow".
"Don’t be like the rest of society," he is saying. "Don’t put your agenda before God’s agenda".
Have faith. Then you don’t need to worry And then tomorrow will look after itself.
Lord God, help us not to worry, but to have increased confidence in your love for us so that we can be at peace. Amen.
