How Do We Know God Cares?
The past year has challenged a lot of people’s beliefs as we try to deal with the current economic conditions. It is hard to realize that things like a secure future and stable job are no longer guaranteed.
Christians have another challenge which makes it even harder to deal with the current economic issues. Many of us are facing for maybe the first time that we have made mistakes that have brought us to where we are right now. And as Christians, we have worked so hard to appear strong that our exposed weaknesses are confronting what we have always believed.
I’ve been a Christian my whole life and I still struggle all the time with letting go and letting God. Instead of being conversations with God asking for his guidance and trusting his will, my prayers are very often me telling God how I think it should all play out and telling him to make it happen.
Does that sound like you, too? The hard part is that we haven’t been equipped to handle the tough challenges of today: rising housing prices and decreasing values, unemployment, and so much more. And so when bad stuff happens, the control we thought we had over the situation crumbles and we are left with the knowledge that we can’t handle it after all.
After everything we have done to mess up our lives, does God really care? Does he really want to help us despite all of our mistakes? Aren’t there people out there who deserve his time and help more?
Well, the good news is that the Bible tells us the answer to those questions are: yes, yes, and no. 1 Peter 5:7 instructs us to “give all your worry and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you.” And not only if we’ve done everything right up to this point, but probably even more so if we’ve made a few dumb mistakes along the line.
It’s not hard to believe that if our circumstances are caused by our own actions they are our problems to solve, not God’s. I personally struggle with this a lot and have wasted tons of time that God could have been using me for his purposes. But God isn’t concerned with “whose fault it is.” His top concern is to take the weight of our anxieties onto his own shoulders. In Matthew 11:, 29-30 he tells us “Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light.” All he asks from us is to trust Him.
That’s right. We no longer have to carry our fears and anxieties on our shoulders. God’s yoke is strong and he will sustain us through the tough times ” and hold us in celebration when they are good again. That is one gift that is too prized to reject.
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