Living For Tomorrow

Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.  (Matthew 6:34 KJV)

There the verse sits, about the middle of the Sermon on the Mount. We really don’t want to think about it and the preceding verses.  You know, the ones where God will take care of us?

While non-believers find it difficult to understand why we do believe in God, those who trust their lives to Him often wonder why their brothers and sisters in Christ do not. Yet He said:

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? (Matthew 6:25 KJV)

Sounds great, doesn’t it?  Just let God take care of everything, sit back and let His will take its course.
Doesn’t work that way. Those who attempt to live that way have fallen for the “Take one verse and make a religion out of it” syndrome. God has more than one message in His word, and they fit together for a way of life designed to place Him in the center of every decision.

Truly, we are not to worry about tomorrow, but we are to be good stewards of what we have in this world.  We need not be concerned about storing up wealth on this earth, but we are not to squander it, either. And, we’re never to forget giving in God’s name, just as the widow did.

Each of those linked verses are a part of follow God’s will in our lives. The one thing we know tomorrow will bring is an opportunity to be of service to Him.

We know reading His word will bring us comfort and increase our faith in Him.  We know prayer will keep us close to Him, will allow us to heed the still small voice that could be missed in the whirlwinds of daily life.  We know that fellowship with like minded believers gathered together is part of His plan.

Those things we schedule for our anticipated tomorrows, fitting them into God’s will for our lives. Knowing, however, those schedules may not be met, as we do not know how much time we will have.

I was struck by two stories this week, two accidents where those involved could have, but did not, die. Fractions of seconds, millimeters of space and their stories would have been tragedies instead of relief and thanksgiving.  Other stories were.  We have nothing more than now, and the decisions we make now.

Most of our decisions do not have a long-term impact, but some will set our paths for years to come. Those decisions determine careers, marriage and children.  One will determine eternity.  That’s when giving thought for the morrow is of utmost importance. Deciding to provide fruit in service of our Lord is important for eternity.