Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. – Philippians 4:6
Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. – 1 Peter 5:7
In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. – 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Carefree living may seem a distant fantasy in your life right now, yet these verses make no exceptions for troubling thoughts and feelings. Keep in mind that during biblical times people experienced every type of life crisis as well. And because of modern medicine and technology, we surely have a more comfortable existence today. The bottom line is being in turmoil in the face of crisis is not inevitable!
On some intellectual level, we may acknowledge the Lord’s ability to handle our troubles, yet we suppose that our particular situation is somehow an exception. Can the Lord really handle all of the struggles of advanced-stage cancers? Well, sure He can! Does agonizing over each step of our journeys accomplish anything? Definitely not!
Where we see extenuating reasons to fret, God sees opportunities to reveal Himself strong on our behalf. With His supernatural grace and help we can be free from anxiety and full of thanksgiving. He never intended us to handle life without His help.
So shift the burden of coping with your struggles onto Him. The issue is not “Is the Lord strong enough to handle my situation?” but, “Am I trusting enough to let Him take over?” These verses encourage us to bring “everything” to Him because “nothing” is too hard for Him to handle in us or for us – including cancer. Entrust everything – your finances, future, children and pain level to Him. We have an exceptional God who is Master of “all things,” so cast down each and every troubling exception that comes to mind.
The Lord doesn’t promise pain-free living. He does promise encouragement and comfort so that pain and struggles are manageable. So be thankful to Him – for He truly cares. He promises to carry us through anything! No exceptions!
Lord, we can’t handle our troubles on our own, so please grant us grace to cast our anxiety into Your capable hands.
