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? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
Jesus. Matthew 6:26, 27. Hi, it’s Nathan, and this is Day 17 of 30 Days on the Mount of Blessing, PT 2.
Jesus continues to argue why his hearers didn’t need to be consumed with survival—we are highly valued by God. He takes care of the birds—so he’ll certainly take care of human beings. Lavishly. Faithfully. We can trust him fearlessly. In reality, we’re pretty hesitant to trust this text. We have a sense of certainty when there’s money in the bank. We feel secure when our stuff is well-insured. With a good education or steady employment, we relax our vigilance. But to trust these words of Scripture spoken so long ago? On paper, sure. In day to day life? Not really. And so the worry—though perhaps we don’t admit it—drives us. So Jesus challenges our thinking: have you gotten any taller by worrying about it? Well, no. So, why are you so certain that worrying about other things is actually wise—or productive? If you can’t get taller by worrying, then apparently there’s a lot that’s out of your control—but within God’s control. And it’s in that space of realization that Jesus wants his listeners—us—to live. Conscious of God’s lavish, provident care.
