Worry Not

Do you know a character like Martha? Always busy about serving, yet tends to be short tempered and frazzled. Or like Hannah, a person who compares her lot to others. Some folks relate to Joshua and trust that God is faithful even as our thoughts echoe what once was. Holy Spirit we ask You to illuminate what has been hidden deep inside our heart. Reveal to us anything that causes our mind to carry burdens it was never designed to carry. Shine a light in the deep places where shame was buried. Give us clarity and help us dissolve delusion or confusion. Pierce us with truth to silence lies, and restore what worrisome thinking tried to fracture. The story of Martha and Mary has a benefit for all to ponder. When Jesus entered their home, Mary sat at his feet, absorbing every word with a quiet spirit, while Martha became overwhelmed, not by sin, not by rebellion, not by disbelief, but by a pressure to be perfect, to handle everything, to not fail, to not fall short. Martha’s excessive worry was not about doubting Jesus, it was about holding too tightly to all of what she believed were her soul’s responsibility. This describes many people who live in spiritual exhaustion as the joy of the Lord fades away. For those who love God, just like Martha did. Who welcome Him as Savior and King, but somewhere along the way, the weight of expectation suffocated the joy of His presence. Martha lost His peace as she troubled herself about many things. Her thoughts raced ahead of Jesus. Her mind sped ahead and she was undone by her own inferior understanding. Her mind spun in circles trying to manage what she believed was her duty. We may relate to her overwhelm, and thrill at how Jesus responded. He did not rebuke her, He gently redirected her focus. With great compassion Jesus told Martha, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is necessary.”

We are to remember what is necessary. It is NOT performance, it is presence! It is NOT control, it is surrender. It is NOT efficiency, it is intimacy. Jesus did NOT tell Martha she was wrong for serving. He was telling her she was sinking under the weight of a burden she was never meant to carry alone. Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to lift our burdens. Our worry does not mean we lack faith. Worry is a signal that we may have been trying hard to please man or God. At times we try to anticipate future battles because past wounds taught us to fear what we cannot control. When our thoughts run faster than our spirit, thank God — for in Him we are called to rest. God is perhaps slowing us down to lift our eyes from the pressures in this world. He waits for us to turn our attention back toward His Omni presence. What heals the mind is not thinking harder. It is sitting at His feet. We choose to surrender the noise, release the pressure, and remember that God is God, and we are not required to carry what only He sustains.

Consider the pressure felt by Joshua. When Moses died, Joshua faced the impossible task of leading an entire nation into the promised land. His mind must have been flooded with questions, uncertainty, fear of failure, and the overwhelming weight of responsibility. And yet God did not give Joshua a new strategy for the troubles in this world. He gave him a promise that addressed the root of his fear. God said, I will be with you. I will not fail you. I will not abandon you. Notice that God did not tell Joshua to rely on his own strength. He told him to rely on God’s presence. God did not tell him to trust in his own ability. He told him to trust in God’s sovereignty. Joshua’s peace did not come from managing the unknown. It came from knowing Who was walking with him.

Ephesians 2:6-10 “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through FAITH —and this is NOT from yourselves, it is the GIFT of God— NOT by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created (in) Christ Jesus to DO GOOD WORKS, which GOD PREPARED in advance for us to do.”