Nothing to worry about
Matthew 6:25 – Chapter 7
If ever there were a time for Jesus to be consumed with worry, it was the Last Supper. He knew what was coming: the betrayal and arrest; trials; torture; crucifixion; death. Even the good news of the resurrection that would follow it had its own uncertainties: would the disciples stay together? Would they understand? Had they learned enough to turn three years of teaching into world-changing ministry?
These words about worry were spoken long before the Last Supper. They weren’t part of that last gathering. But their truth and impact were visible there.
There’s no doubt that much of what Jesus said at the Last Supper was somber—but it was colored by sadness, not by worry.
He was mournful, but not fretful.
Jesus served by washing his disciples’ feet. He spoke words of reassurance and challenge. He prayed. He shared bread and wine.
And, somehow, he trusted.
He lived out the words of 6:33: “Seek first his kingdom.”
We are worriers.
We worry about what will happen, what might happen, and even things we know are exceptionally unlikely to happen. Why? What does it accomplish?
Maybe there are occasions when worry helps us prepare for a real eventuality, but those are the exception. Usually it’s just an excuse to borrow pain from an imagined future, even though every day has enough trouble of its own. Worry cannot, as Jesus said, add a single hour to our life (though it can waste a lot of the hours we do have!).
Jesus points us to nature—to flowers, to birds, to grass. All plants and animals work to take what they need today. A few prepare for the future, but each trusts that what they have is what they are meant to have. It’s a relaxing way to live.

Thursday meditation

Proverbs 25:18-20
Like a club or a sword or a sharp arrow is one who gives false testimony against a neighbor.
Like a broken tooth or a lame foot is reliance on the unfaithful in a time of trouble.
Like one who takes away a garment on a cold day, or like vinegar poured on a wound, is one who sings songs to a heavy heart.

Prayer focus
God, give us this day our daily bread, and let us not fret and worry about tomorrow’s.

-Rev. Mark Fleming