Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today- December 15, 2013
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7
God cares about you. He cares about your job; He cares about your fears; He cares about your spouse; He cares about your children; He cares about your parents; He cares about your worries; He cares about your finances; He cares about your car and your house; He also cares about your character, and He cares about you caring about Him and caring for others. He is a caring God. You cannot out-care God. His capacity to care is infinite and his competence to care is matchless. You can care because He cares. There is no care of yours that God does not care about. If it is important to you, then God cares about it. Yes, you will experience misdirected cares, but God’s desire is to come alongside you and realign your cares with what He cares about the most. He cares enough to bear your anxieties and to replace them with His peace and assurance.
When you give God your worries, you in turn, receive His calming presence. God’s system of care is countercultural. God transforms your cares into what He cares about; so cast your cares on Christ. Equally spiritual people may cast their cares on God in polar opposite ways. One may find release in a quiet written prayer, while another may feel cared for by God through raucous worship. Let another’s processing of anxiety be a guide, not a guilty comparison.
You know God cares immensely. So how do you cast your cares on Him? By faith, you let Him care. He cares and can be trusted. Therefore, allow Him to do what He does best. You allow Him to care for you. This takes humility on your part. You are acknowledging a desperate need for God. Your declaration of dependence is two-fold. You admit you are anxious, and can’t handle your worry alone. Secondly, you submit to the fact that only God can handle this level of concern. Hence, your submission to God allows His care to consume your anxieties. Your care-giving to God is recurring. Over time, He helps bring your feeble faith and misguided mind into focus on Him. What started out as a burden, He transforms into a blessing. Your pain becomes productive.
You become free to care for others, because He has freely cared for you. Your perspective takes on a heavenly flavor. Do not wait until matters get worse before you off load on the Lord. Go to God first, because He cares the most. Let bad news travel fast, because He already knows. An all-caring God cultivates a carefree attitude. The more you allow Him to care about your worries, the less you have to care. Then you can focus your care on people and eternal issues. Let God be consumed with your cares so you are not. Then you can lead others to your all-caring Christ. Care for them as Jesus does. Your care will lead to His care. This is the beauty of the circle of care. You do it right, and they will want your God. You care for others, and they will want the God that cares for you. Keep your caring Christ-centered. You care because He cares. You can care because you have let Him care for you. Keep the circle of care rotating.
Do not grow weary of caring; He doesn’t. He cares for you. Therefore, give Him your cares and experience His care. Christ is your number one caregiver. Jesus said it well: “…do not worry about your life…”(Matthew 6:25).
Taken from the December 15th reading in the 365-day devotional book, “Seeking Daily the Heart of God” volume 1… http://bit.ly/Tv6y9a
Post/Tweet today: You are free to care for others, as you let the Lord care for you. #Godcares
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© 2013 by Boyd Bailey. All rights reserved.
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Boyd, my refrigerator is not large enough for all the golden nuggets in this message!! Especially helpful to me was, “…God’s desire is to come alongside you and realign your cares with what He cares about the most……God’s system of care is countercultural……Equally spiritual people may cast their cares on God in polar opposite ways……allow Him to do what He does best…..This takes humility on your part……..What started out as a burden, He transforms into a blessing. Your pain becomes productive……..An all-caring God cultivates a carefree attitude………Let God be consumed with your cares so you are not…….You can care because you have let Him care for you.Keep the circle of care rotating………
Thank you very much!!
Diane you are welcome, what a comfort to know how He loves us! Merry Christmas, Boyd