This week's focus in our series Hope: When Life Hurts Most is worry.  Jesus made it clear that spending our time worrying is a foolish expenditure.  Just as we either spend or invest our money, so we either spend or invest our time.  When we spend either the result is loss.  When we invest either in God's plans and purposes the result is gain--eternal gain!  Let's look at this week's focus Scripture:   ²⁵“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? ²⁶Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? ²⁷Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? ²⁸“And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, ²⁹yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. ³⁰And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? ³¹“So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ ³²These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. ³³Seek the Kingdom of God^£ above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. ³⁴“So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.  Matthew 6:25-34 NLT

As we go through the week, we'll take the passage and break it down, verse by verse.  For today, look at the overall gist of Jesus' message:  Don't worry because GOD has you covered!  God knows ALL our needs before we do, and when we put Him first in our lives, He obligates Himself to cover them.  Conversely, when we put ourselves in charge of our lives, we DO need to worry, because when we don't seek first God's Kingdom and His righteousness, we're saying, "I have this." So, it's either a life free of worry, with tremendous hope for today and our ultimate tomorrow, or it's a life filled with worry for how we're going to make it, how we're going to provide for ourselves, how we're going to be safe, how we're going to....

I don't know about you, but I'm going to stop worrying, and lean hard into God, into Jesus' promise that when I seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, He will provide everything else I need.  God's provision eliminates worry. 

Let's pray:  Heavenly Father, Fill us with Your Holy Spirit that we may invest our time and our lives in You!  Empower us to seek You first that all we are and all we have may bring You glory, and may be sufficient for each need of our lives.  This we pray in Jesus' name.  Amen.

(Ihope you'll join us for worship at 8:45 or 10:15 a.m. at the South Butler Primary School on Knoch Road in Saxonburg!  It's a great way to seek God first TODAY!)