He’ll take care of the rest
"Yesterday is just a canceled check. Tomorrow is a promissory note. Today has all the cash you can handle. Spend it wisely."
Pastor Adrian Rogers spoke these words in one of his daily devotionals entitled, "What happens when you worry?". Basing this devotional on 1 Peter 5:7 which says, "casting all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you." This passage, in its simplicity, speaks volumes. There are so many things in this world that distract us; call them hiccups, speed bumps, obstacles, fences, or walls. They tend to take our focus don't they? Nope. I'm going to change that statement and say that it is we who change our focus. It is our decision to place our time and attention on those things. There are so many things which we take upon ourselves. We commit ourselves to this and that. Some of you are going to say at this very moment, "Why is that wrong? Doesn't that show I'm a committed person? Willing to do what needs to be done?" Why yes it does. If you know what you can handle, by all means, handle your business. I'm speaking to those that tend to get overwhelmed or stressed with what is on their plate before them, no matter how big the portion. Which leads me to say, should we then call them "obstacles"? What we allow to consume our life will determine how prepared we are for today. Commitment is easy...Committing to the right thing is the difficult task.
As a former Principal, I was constantly thinking about how my teachers were doing, because I put a lot on their plate. Like a parent who makes their children eat those yucky brussel sprouts. They have a lot before them; teaching, lesson planning, creating projects, tests, and other assignments, meetings, parent communication, and so much more! There are first year teachers. Those that are teaching subjects out of their comfort zone. Those that are department heads, advisors, and/or coaches. Oh, by the way, they are also spouses, parents, or grandparents who have responsibilities outside of the classroom; even a few who have another job! I didn't want my teachers to get overwhelmed or stressed. I cared for them too deeply for that to happen. So I had to constantly prioritize what is important and what isn't. Am I going to be more concerned about the data, numbers, and scores? Or am I going to focus on the eternal? That question alone causes so much of the worry and stress to melt away.
Don't get me wrong, life can be challenging. Life can throw curve balls at ya when you least expect them. Those are the times that try men's souls. Those are the times when we need to get on our knees and cry out to the Lord for help. When we cast our cares upon Him, we better be prepared to relinquish control. We release ourselves of those burdens. What may seem easy, is in fact one of the tougher challenges before us. We have too much pride. Too much ego to just let go. It's extremely difficult in the heat of the moment, in the midst of your focus, to just stop and cast all your cares upon Him. But we must! If we can accomplish this, then what is there in this life that we have to worry about? We have One that cares for us so deeply, it is beyond our understanding.
Allow me to leave you with a song by the late singer/song writer, Keith Green. He wrote a song entitled, "He'll take care of the rest". Listen to the words and let it encourage you today. God bless you!
“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." (Matthew 6:34)
