3 Tips to Persevere with God
Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7)
Worry is a constant companion for some people. Worry is a state of anxiety and uncertainty over real or potential problems. It can suck a lot of energy.
Anxiety and worry are part of the human condition. Since we do not know everything that is going to happen in the future, we tend to worry and feel anxious.
But as Christians, we are able to look for comfort and consolation in the Lord. "Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7) We have a God who cares for us. He does not supplant our responsibility nonetheless. We cannot say that we trust in the Lord and then stop going to work. God likes to work with us in his providence.
When we are worried about something, we might ask, "why is God allowing this?" Why does God let us suffer?
First off, it is important to remember that God never wills our suffering directly. He respects our freedom and the freedom of those around us. Thanks to original sin, we live in an imperfect world. People often look to God when there is a natural disaster. But every natural disaster follows the laws of physics. It is not God looking to hurt us, but nature playing itself out.
Second, God can bring enormous good from suffering. When he invites us to cast our suffering upon him, it is because he is willing to walk with us through our own times of trial and tribulation. We can learn so much from suffering. I find suffering to be a profoundly human experience. So, when I meet somebody who has suffered, I am often struck by the deep humanity of the person. It is often only through suffering that we come into contact with the human experience.
Third, in Jesus Christ, God chose to suffer. So, even if it is never comfortable and implies a certain apparent triumph of evil, suffering cannot be all bad. Rather, there must be something powerful in suffering if God himself chose to do precisely this.
Question for the day: Do I cast my worries on God?
Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7)
