Today

I was just brushing my teeth and now I should really be in bed, but God reminded me of something while I was avoiding gingivitis. This was my odd train of thought: brushing teeth . . . I know I have a cavity . . . I need to go to the dentist . . . we don't have insurance . . . we don't have jobs . . . what are we going to do if the money runs out . . . Lord, please don't let all the money run out . . . what if we run out of toilet paper . . . what are the alternatives to toilet paper?! . . . I wonder what kinds of food we're allowed to get with food stamps. And the thoughts just dip into the murky waters of worry . . . deeper and deeper. 


I've been in these waters before. Everyone has. We've all faced trials, and worry comes naturally; obscenely naturally for me. But worry, I've learned, is a waste of time. It took me a long time to learn this, and I still have to be reminded often. 


Worry is me telling my Maker that I don't trust Him; I don't believe that He's really got this. Not really. I know He loves me. But when I worry, I'm saying to him, "I'm gonna freak out right now and give myself a migraine and another knot in my shoulder because I'm choosing to believe that everything is not under control." 


When Jesus taught his disciples to pray in Matthew 6, part of the prayer included "daily bread". I was reminded (because I heard this in a Francis Chan talk) that the line in that prayer is about today. Jesus didn't tell them to pray, "Give us this month, our monthly bread." And He didn't tell them to pray for "daily bread" and then spend the rest of the day worrying about the next day. All he ever told them was to pray for today.  And later in Matthew 6, there are specific instructions not to worry about tomorrow. 


Today. Just today. And tomorrow morning, I'm just going to focus on "today" again. And God will be faithful, because He always is. And I will write again and share with you about God's provision and His faithfulness to our family, and you will see, and I will see. 


"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread."  Matt. 6:9-11