These are some of my most favorite Bible verses. In fact, I love this passage so much that I asked the minister to say this at my wedding. It is long but it’s wonderful!
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 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 ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall He not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God
This passage has been instrumental in a major change in my relationship with God. Most people have some type of vice. Various people drink, some have affairs, others use drugs, but mine is my need to be in control. It’s really difficult for me to not be in total control of all aspects of my life, as well as, other situations that arise. I remember how I used to plan, calculate and budget every single cent. I would do this a month in advance, fretting over my finances the rest of the month. Although, this might be good for someone who spends too much money, it wasn’t good for me because I wasn’t letting God be in control of my life.
I think people with control issues are probably great people to have on committees, because they make sure all the details are taken care of. It’s not always a blessing to be that much in control of things. When I’m in total control of everything in my life, I’m not trusting God to take care of me because I’m too busy trying to plan everything. It’s kind of like I’m saying, “Wait in the wings, God. Let me see what I can do first and if I can’t figure it out, then I’ll turn to You for help.” Everything I read in the Bible states repeatedly that God wants me to turn to Him for everything. That’s why I’m writing this book. It’s to show people that God doesn’t say, “God helps him who helps himself.” God wants us to turn to Him in all things (paraphrased).
Control also played a part in my eating problem. I used to be around 70-80 pounds heavier. I always figured that I could lose the weight if I went on my “good diet” and stuck with it. I joined about every weight loss group around and several times, at that! I went on my “good diet” and found it wasn’t productive either. Then I sat down in my bedroom one day and said, “I give up, God. I’m always going to be heavy. God, if you want me to ever be thin, You’ll have to take care of it because I can’t,”…and you know what, He did!
From that moment on, the desire for sweets and great quantities of food were taken away from me. I didn’t do anything, in and of myself. God did it all! This all happened because I asked God to take care of it. I guess this was probably one of the first times I had really given up my control. The reason I said this prayer wasn’t because I was expecting God to take all my weight away. I was just giving up and was turning it all over to God because I didn’t want to worry about being heavy anymore. He used this miracle to turn my life around and to show me that He needs to be the One in control of my life, not me.
If God takes care of things in nature, He will surely take care of me and all my needs. I find that when I’m not spending so much time trying to be in control of situations and people, I have much more time to spend focusing on God and my family. That’s because I’m trusting God to take care of situations that arise. Now, this isn’t to say I don’t slip into that control mode, at times. It’s my vice. I think Satan knows that anytime I’m in my control mode, I’m using the “I’s” and “Me’s” to make things happen. In other words, I’m controlling situations, which means I’m not focusing on God. I’m glad God takes the time to keep reminding me that I need to turn to Him in all things.
Because this is an example of how I’ve applied this Bible passage to my life, it doesn’t necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the passage.
This is a connection I've made from this Bible passage. Please
share your connections.
