Casting all your care upon him; for he cares for you.
1 Peter 5: 7
I am a drop out. I registered to a seven weeks/Sunday afternoon "Jesus in your life" course at my church. It was announced as a spiritual journey to find Jesus present in your life. It turned out to be a gentle social intro for newcomers to thinking about their faith. Interestingly as gentle as for someone who never read the Bible?.... and way too much social activity for my taste (chat some 15 minutes + food more than half hour), and too less reflection (we had half hour small group discussions, were 9 at the table, but based on the speakers' talk -- where the Bible?). I am a drop out, but promised that for the time of seven Sundays I will reflect on some Bible readings.
I have the Bible app on my phone and first I wanted to just follow a plan, but I guess I am not too good following others :-)
So here it goes, I will just find interesting readings and think about.
This first reading 1 Peter 5: 7 struck me because several days ago I talked with a friend who lost her job after 13 years of working at the same place, and I was surprised (in fact I was astonished!), knowing that starting tomorrow she does not have a job, but she did not start even thinking, not say about searching, for a job. In her words "God will take care of me."
How quick I was to write her that I pray for her and she needs to remember that "God will give us, but we need to gather in the sack." How little faith I have! I need to do, fix, and care for things, forgetting that some are really not in my power. I focus so much on TO DO that I forget about TO BE.
I know that I could never be willingly a beggar, never live without doing something (given I am able to), and earning TO HAVE. To live from one day to the next is not for me -- I am about planning one year ahead.
Despite that I was tried and tested, so little did I learn. But should we really abandon ourselves completely to God's care? Is that in fact what we are asked in this passage? Are we asked to abandon trying and trust that other someone or God will care for us? Or is this only a message to cast out anxiety (which we know is futile), not helpful at all, since being anxious and worrying too much will not help anyhow a dire situation. But a calm and cool mind that drops the burden and takes a new position, adopts a new point of view, and trustfully believes that bad things can have a good turn out; and that today might be a bad one, but that does not mean tomorrow will be just as a crappy day. Cast all your cares, give them up or in to God. Trust that the Force of love and care that is in the world will be coming to help.
Is this 1 Peter 5: 7 the same as Matthew 6: 26 "Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?"
The birds fly all day long and spend countless hours and energy to find food for themselves and their chicks.
They don't make crops, but they search for them. Most of them make a good home (some are quite amazing and artistic in building their dwellings). The message here is not to just sit in the Sun and don't work!
But later I am told in Matthew 6: 34 "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."
This seems to be a message to live for today, live in the present, do not be afraid for what tomorrow brings, for if you make a good today, then tomorrow shall be fine also.
And if tomorrow is not a good one, then don't worry for what the day after will be, try hard to fix Today!
Be better concerned about TO BE in the here and now. Calm and cool, hopeful and happy.
Trusting that you are never alone, and even if no one cares, God does!
I think my translation sounds like this:
"Cast all your anxieties upon Him; for He is concerned about you."
