A few weeks ago the company I work for announced some changes. About 700 employees work in our local office, and by the end of the month 50-70 of them would lose their jobs.
We learned about the cuts around 9:00 AM, but my team did not find out how it would directly affect us personally until 1:00pm.
Over the next four hours, several of my co-workers were understandably nervous and worried about their future. I also had random surges of doubt, but for the most part I handled it pretty well. I was asked why I didn’t seem worried, and the initial answer I gave was something like this:
“I’ve done my best over the past year, and now there is nothing I can do to change their decision. Worrying won’t change a thing, and I actually believe that God will take care of me.”
Upon deeper reflection, however, I have recognized three key reasons I wasn’t too worried. I believe these three things are universal for all Jesus followers, and I hope they’ll help you when you face trouble.
1) I know and believe the promises of God’s Word:
Scripture is full of God’s promises, and they are all for the good of those who love Him. He even promises to use the pain in our life for good! When it came right down to it, I genuiunely believe the promises and commands about worry found in Matthew 6:25-36 and Romans 8:13-39 (and many of the Psalms as well!)
Here are a couple snippets, but I strongly urge you to click the above links and read them in full:
“But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
I think we often forget how true the Bible really is. When we actually believe the Word, however, when it truly fills our lives, we won’t have a reason to worry. We can trust that God is in control, and ultimately He will provide and meet our needs – not necessarily our temporal wants, but our eternal needs.
Why do I confidently believe the Bible? It is not blind faith, I am far too logical for that. There are several reasons I believe the Bible, but perhaps the biggest one, however, is that I read it often. The more I read it, the more it makes sense, the more inspiring I find it, and the more I become convinced that I am reading the Word of God. A great preventative measure to worry, then, is to read the Bible often.
2) I remember God’s provision in my life
I can honestly say God has always provided for us over the years. Make no mistake, it hasn’t always been easy or done in the way I planned. Eight days before our wedding, for instance, I learned that I had lost my new job before I even started. For the first four months of being married, I had zero income.
It wasn’t easy for me, I felt rather guilty and inadequate as a “provider” for my family. But through the event, I learned to persevere and trust the Lord. And in the end, I found a job that I loved and was significantly closer to home.
There was never a day where we went hungry or wondered how we would pay our crazy high summer power bills. There was frustration and even tears, but God provided through various ways and we grew closer to Him and each other through that experience.
We saw Him provide in an incredible ways again when we moved to New Zealand. We were stunned by the generosity of His people and amazed at how quickly we found jobs. None of this was because of our own doing, but clearly the work of God.
So when my company announced restructuring and job losses, I knew that even if I lost my job, God would still provide for us.
3) I know the right soundtrack:
I haven’t heard this song in a couple years, but all morning “Your Love Never Fails” played in my head. Music is special, it stays with us for years and the words of good music penetrate our hearts like nothing else.
For this reason, it is important that at least some of the music we listen to is rich in the Biblical promises of God. I don’t mean we should just listen to Christian music, in fact some “Christian” music is actually rather weak theologically, but we do need to fill our hearts with excellent music.
Because when times get tough, the songs that we sing can bring us an incredible amount of comfort. As fun as Gangnam Style can be, a stirring rendition of “It is Well With My Soul” will do far better things for our heart than anything by Psy.
Closing Thoughts:
By the end of the day, I learned my job was safe. It was a relief, but even if I had lost my job I believe things would have been OK. God is still in control, and nothing surprises Him. He loves us, He provides for us, and He is our Father.
When you actually believe that, worry becomes much less natural.
Where have you seen God provide in your life? How do you handle worry?
