Fast Day 19: Seeking

Jesus shares a beautiful illustration of how God cares for the birds of the air and the flowers of the field in His creative world design!

This is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life – whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food and clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, because your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to Him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, He will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? Don’t worry about these things that dominate the thoughts of unbelievers. Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness above all else, and He will give you everything you need. Don’t worry about tomorrow’s worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today. Matthew 6: 25-34

I used to have two Easter Egger hens, Violet and Jenny, and every morning when I would go out to the coop to see if they had laid some blue or green eggs, I was struck by their demeanor. They trusted that I would be there to freshen up their water, handfeed them delicious sunflower and pumpkin seeds, scatter some corn scratch and dried mealyworms, and leave them with an even more special treat. They loved applesauce, spinach, and watermelon! They couldn’t get any of this for themselves, they must just wait. They would hear the house door open and then gather around the coop door, looking for a glimpse of me, clucking and smacking their beaks in anticipation. They had faith I would give them everything they needed for that day!

Unlike my hens, anxiety ties up our hearts, our minds and our souls! We restrict our forward motion with constant thoughts about food and clothing and the worries of everyday life. Our faith becomes sorely stretched but we find it hard to break out of this cycle of worry. The hamster wheel of our life keeps turning and turning and going nowhere.

The key is to seek first the kingdom of God. All our needs are taken care of in the physical kingdom of the earth, which is seen. Especially when we fast something physical! As we pursue His spiritual kingdom, which is unseen, and a right relationship with Him, our priorities will right themselves. That’s why connecting fasting and prayer in our commitment is so important! We allow an empty hole to go unfilled with the things of this earth and go in search or in quest of who He is and fill that hole with something spiritual. Along the way we discover Him more fully with our questions and requests. This is our path to freedom from worry.

How often do we need to seek Him? Uh, how many times a day are you tempted to focus on the things of this earth? Seek Him day by day, day in and day out, for days on end, and until you live out your days (Is 58:2)!

What worry do you want freedom from?

How might you show Him your trust?

You could write about the worry. Print Matthew 6:33 across it. Tear it up. Throw it away. Entrust it to Him. Smack your beak with anticipation!

King Jesus, I’m tired of hanging around outside the gates of Your kingdom. I want the access which is mine as Your child. I know You will take care of me. I have a lot of questions! I am knocking and seeking. Amen.