Matthew 6:31-34

"Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear? For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today."

Key word here is'striving': it appears that we have a basic choice; to strive for God's stuff or strive for other stuff. It's of a piece with the impossibility of serving two masters and of what we treasure in our heart from earlier in the passage. Perhaps we should notice that 'these things' are okay to be in our lives -after all they will be given 'as well' and God knows that we need them. The question is whether we are prepared to let them be a sideline to God-striving.



It's notoriously difficult, though, deciding what we need and so what it legitimate to expect from God or rather -in our affluent western case- what it is legitimate for us to keep hold of. Some people genuinely do need a car -but often because they live where they do, what is the response then? Move? Campaign for better public transport ... ? I don't know, but I think that it is important we ask and try to answer the question and questions like it. The thing is not to harden our answers into systems and bases for judging others. Such things should always be provisional; circumstances change and God is often in it.



There are times when the 'today is enough' attitude are appropriate and there are times when it could be culpable negligence: I think that I probably ought to be concerned enough about retirement to make sure that we save for it. I think I should be concerned enough about my kids' university education not to make plans which tie up large amounts of money in the years when they will in all likelihood be there. Yet at the same time we need not to get freaky about such things; make realisitc and sensible decisions and don't obsess. My retirement fund could go belly up and the money system of the world could cease to allow my savings to mean much; I hope not but ... if they do 'strive first for God's kingdom ... Father knows that you need ...'



Hard balance to get but necessary.

Crosswalk.com - Matthew 6:25-34: