So do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
So we see in these verses four thoroughly Biblical truths that help us to manage anxiety. Firstly, that anxiety is a decision, and one that we can avoid making if we replace the lies and 'fake news' in our head with the truth. Secondly, that anxiety is an obsession, which we can counteract by re-assessing the importance of the source of our anxiety. Thirdly, that anxiety is a misdirection, designed to take us away from what's most important and will help us resolve our situation. We resolve this by re-prioritising. Fourthly, that anxiety is a distraction, which we resolve by focusing on each day's work one at a time and leaving the rest in God's hands.
When I was sixteen, I was left in charge of my younger brother and sisters while my parents went out. As I was settling down to sleep, I heard a noise in the stairwell. I checked the time and realised it wasn't my parents - they weren't due back yet. So I moved quickly and quietly to the inner door, unlocked it and threw it open. Standing in front of me were two of the local thugs. I screwed up my face to intimidate them and snarled, "What are you doing here?"
Just one problem: I was around five foot three and skinny as a rake. However, somehow it worked!
"Eh, we're here to see your dad." One of them stammered, completely unconvincingly.
"He's not here." I snapped.
"Okay, then." he said. Then they both left. Just like that.
I'm convinced that I disturbed an attempted burglary that night. They had no doubt noticed that both my parents were gone and thought they could steal from us. However, they were cowards and didn't want to stick around once their plan had been discovered.
One of the most important discoveries I've made in my life is that if you stand up to anxiety then it goes away. Apart from a very small number of people who have issues with their brain chemistry, we don't have to feel anxious. Most of us don't need medication. We don't need to self-medicate with alcohol, tobacco or drugs. These are no use. The anxiety returns with a vengeance as soon as they wear off. Avoid them like the plague. What we need to know instead is that we have God on our side and can defeat the anxiety demon.
Some of us have been accustomed to anxiety. We see it as a regular house guest. But that's wrong. We need to see it as a dangerous lodger, determined to steal all our resources and kill us in our sleep if it can. We need to see it for what it is and show it the door. The best news from this passage is that we can do just that. We don't have to be victims of our own anxiety. We can be free. And when Christ sets us free, then we are free indeed.
But the decision is up to us.
Very appropriate given your current situation Paul.