Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are you not much better than they?
(Matthew 6:25-26)
It never rains worms.
Birds have a God-given instinct that tells them where to find food, and they go for it. They work for it. Birds do not worry where they are going to find the food, they just fly until they find it, and God provides it. If birds have no reason to worry, then what are you worrying for? Are you not much better than a bird? Jesus asks in Matthew 6.
We are created in the image of Christ, designed to be joint heir with Jesus throughout eternity. No bird has a place prepared for him in heaven in the Father's house. Yet, if God sustains the life of a bird, how much more will He take care of us?
It never rains money.
We must seek the Lord and live obedient to His will (6:33), and God will provide. When we ignore God's priorities and promises, we forfeit a carefree heart.*
If God's promises are true—and they are!—then I never have cause for worry.
The journal continues…
Beans. Bananas. And, dollar Bread.
That was my list for Walmart today as we scrape to get by until payday. We are well provided for by our God, but He has chosen to allow this to be an area of struggle for us—for us to have to trust Him for our daily need. While this is almost unheard of in today's world of credit cards, it has been an exciting journey for us to see God faithfully provide and remain true to His promises. And, to see the power of prayer.
So, as I come to Galatians today, without even a dollar in my bank account, Paul reminds me that I am extremely wealthy—spiritually rich. And, this is not an allegory as in chapter 4—this is literal. As a believer, I now share in the riches of God's grace (Ephesians 1:7), the riches of His glory (Ephesians 1:18, Philippians 4:19), the riches of His wisdom (Romans 11:33, James 1:5-6), and the unsearchable riches of Christ (Ephesians 3:8). I am 'complete in Him' (Colossians 2:10). I have everything I need to live the Christian life (2 Peter 1:3).
The believers at Galatia in choosing legalism had no profit (5:2), were in great debt to the law (5:3), and had none of the benefits of Christ (5:4). They had lost their freedom and their wealth.
'To live by grace means to depend on God's abundant supply of every need.'**
I am learning this in the physical sense as we trust God from paycheck to paycheck, but in the spiritual sense as I seek to grow in my Christian walk, how often am I looking to myself rather than to 'God's abundant supply'? Philippians and Galatians are taking me down the same path to Christlikeness—to finding true joy and love for my family: Depending on Christ to sanctify me the same way I depended on Him to save me—'through Christ,' 'with Christ,' 'by Christ,' 'in Christ.'
How can I make this really practical so that it is more than just a nice thought in my head? I sense Paul is getting ready to tell me. I imagine he is anxious. Now that the doctrine of law and grace has been put on trial, he is ready to get the believers at Galatia living right. And, just in time before this Thanksgiving dare comes to a close!
My Dare:
When it comes to God's provision, it seems He often gives just enough for today to keep us trusting for tomorrow. So, when it comes to my daily living, to not worry about tomorrow or the next big activity on the calendar—to plan and to pray—but to LIVE TODAY dependent on Christ and thankful to God for all of today's blessing. This is His will for me (I Thessalonians 5:18, Micah 6:8).
Do you ever wish your life was like a movie set, where you could do a few takes of each key moment and then pick the best one? Far too often, I find myself thinking back to what I should or should not have said and how the day could have been much more pleasant had I paused (and prayed!) before reacting to whatever life threw at me. The truth is our reactions reveal our hearts. Join me tomorrow as we focus our hearts, motives and parenting on what really matters.
* John MacArthur, Overcoming Financial Worry Part 1, www.gty.org
** Warren Wiersbe, Be Free
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