9th. September. 2020. Daily Devotion.
Matthew 6:25-27
25 ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
Fretting is Futile
No one has to remind you of the high cost of anxiety. (But I will anyway.) Worry divides the mind. The New Testament Greek word for worry (merimnao) is a compound of two Greek words, merizo (“to divide”) and nous (“the mind”). Anxiety splits our energy between today’s priorities and tomorrow’s problems. Part of our mind is on the now; the rest is on the not yet. The result is half-minded living.
That’s not the only result. Worrying is not a disease, but it causes diseases. It has been connected to high blood pressure, heart trouble, blindness, migraine headaches, thyroid malfunctions, and a host of stomach disorders.
Anxiety is an expensive habit. Of course, it might be worth the cost if it worked. But it doesn’t. Our frets are futile. Worry has never brightened a day, solved a problem, or cured a disease.
~ From Traveling Light.
A Morning Daily Devotional
Dear God, as I begin this day,
Let me turn my thoughts to you
And ask Your help in guiding me
In everything I say and do.
Give me the patience that I need
To keep my peace of mind
And with life’s cares, I hope, dear God,
Some Happiness to find.
Let me live but for Today
Not worrying what’s ahead,
For I have trust that you will see
That I get my “daily bread.”
A Prayer to Heal Stress
Heavenly Father, please grant me peace of mind and calm my troubled heart. My soul is like a turbulent sea. I can’t seem to find my balance, so I stumble and worry constantly.
Give me the strength and clarity of mind to find my purpose
and walk the path you’ve laid out for me. I trust your Love God and know that you will heal this stress.
Just as the sun rises each day against the dark of night. Please bring me clarity with the light of God.
Amen.
To Speak in Sympathy
Lord God, I pray that you will give me the strength to speak up for the woebegone and those isolated in any way, even when no other person will; let me refrain from the unkind silence created in a hard heart, the unkind silence that clouds the bright sunshine of human sympathy and truth. Give me strength to be the first to speak the tender word of healing and friendship; make your Spirit powerful in my heart, that I may not remain silent when Christian love requires that something be said. And give me a sense of purpose, that I might actively forge the bonds of love among my brothers and sisters in Christ; this I ask in His name,
Amen.
