Anxiety:(3308) (merimna from merizo = to divide or draw different directions - which is exactly what anxiety does to most of us!) refers to a care (the sole way it is translated in the KJV) or concern and so to care for someone or something. It is often used in a negative sense and thus is translated as "worry". From the origin, one can see that merimna describes the state of "being pulled apart.” Thus when circumstances are difficult, it is easy to let oneself be dominated by anxiety and worry. Merimna is used 6 times in the NT (Matt. 13:22; Mk. 4:19; Lk. 8:14; 21:34; 2Co. 11:28; 1 Pet. 5:7) and is translated KJV (6) - care, 6 and NAS (6) - anxiety, 1; concern, 1; worries, 3; worry, 1 There are 5 uses in the Septuagint - Esther 1:1; Job 11:18; Ps. 55:22; Prov. 17:12; Da. 11:26 George Morrison said, God does not make His children carefree (Ed note: freedom from anxiety producing situations) in order that they be careless. Richards has an excellent summary of merimnao (see word study) and merimna noting that... When used by the Greeks concerning the future...both came to connote anxious expectation. When used of the present, the words expressed an aching sense of grief. The meaning of any term, however, is defined by the way it is used. It is the way that Jesus and the writers of the Gospels and Epistles, guided by the Holy Spirit, used words that filled them with their biblical meaning...But while it is legitimate to have concerns that we will at times experience as demanding pressures, there is a limit to their legitimacy. The "worries of this life" may so dominate our attention that they make God's Word unfruitful in our lives (Mt 13:22; Mark 4:19). The pressures of legitimate concerns can cause us to so focus on worldly matters that we forget to relate our needs and our worries to the Lord...By linking legitimate concerns to God, believers are freed from anxiety and worry. This freedom allows us to concentrate on seeking God's kingdom and his righteousness, knowing that "all these things will be given to [us] as well." So Jesus concludes, "Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself." What the pagan Greeks experienced as anxious concern over a tomorrow they could not control, the believer who knows God as a loving Father can experience in calm confidence. Released from fears about tomorrow, we can concentrate on doing God's will today, as obedient subjects of a kingdom over which the Almighty rules. The Gospels recognize the tendency of legitimate human concerns to lead to a loss of perspective; we can forget God and adopt a pagan materialism that looks ahead anxiously and concentrates on running after the material things that seem to offer security. In order to avoid this tendency, believers must orient life to God and realize that life's meaning is to be found in living as subjects who are responsive to their loving, wise, and powerful King. Both anxiety and worry spring from natural and legitimate concerns that are part of life in this world. But legitimate concerns are handled wrongly when they do one or more of the following: (1) become dominating concerns in our life and lead to fear, (2) destroy our perspective on life and cause us to forget that God exists and cares, or (3) move us to drift into an attitude of constant worry and concern over a future that we cannot control. Jesus deals with anxiety by calling us to an awareness of God. God does exist, and he cares. He is aware of our needs and is committed to meet our needs. Remaining aware of God frees us from the tyranny of things. It enables us to focus our lives on our relationship with God and go on living a righteous and productive life. The Epistles add to our understanding by pointing out that areas of legitimate anxiety exist even for the strongest of believers. But the pressures of even legitimate concerns are not to dominate us or to make us habitually anxious, worried people. We escape by using anxiety creatively. This means that we must recognize the feelings of pressure and concern as a call to prayer. We should immediately turn to God to lay our needs and the needs of others before him. We then turn back to live our lives encompassed by his peace. Anxiety, rather than drawing us away from God, draws us to Him and thus fulfills His purpose for it in our lives.(Richards, L O: Expository Dictionary of Bible Words: Regency) (Bolding added) Louw & Nida comment that merimna describes "a feeling of apprehension or distress in view of possible danger or misfortune. The term merimna may refer to either unnecessary worry or legitimate concern. The equivalent of ‘worry’ may be expressed in some languages in an idiomatic manner, for example, ‘to be killed by one’s mind’ or ‘to be pained by thinking.’ (Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains Vol. 1, Page 312. New York: United Bible Societies) Barclay observes that in a secular Greek writing (a papyrus letter)... a wife writes to her absent husband: “I cannot sleep at night or by day, because of the worry (merimna) I have about your welfare.” A mother, on hearing of her son’s good health and prosperity writes back: “That is all my prayer and all my anxiety (merimna).” Anacreon, the poet, writes: “When I drink wine, my worries (merimna) go to sleep.” In Greek the word is the characteristic word for anxiety, and worry, and care. (Barclay, W: The Daily Study Bible Series. The Westminster Press or Logos) Vine gives a very illustrative definition of "merimna" (Click in depth study on related verb merimnao): stating that merimna (3308) is probably connected with merizo, (3307) “to draw in different directions, distract,” hence signifies “that which causes this [that is, this effect of being drawn in different directions], a care, especially an anxious care”. To worry is in essence to have a "divided mind" (See RBC booklet What Can I Do With My Worry?). Strong's Lexicon also states that merimna is from "merizo, (3307) through the idea of distraction." So clearly that which worries or causes anxiety is that which distracts us and tends to draw us in different directions (compare our common expression "I feel like everything is falling apart"). Meyer writes that... The word anxiety comes from the same root as anger, and suggests the idea of choking. Worry chokes the life of faith. It does not help us to overcome our difficulties, but unfits us for dealing with them. No weapon that is formed against us shall prosper; every tongue that shall rise against us shall be condemned; our bread shall be given, and our water sure. God will perfect that which concerneth us, and His goodness and mercy shall never cease. Roll thyself and thy burden on the Lord, and leave them there. Too many take them back again! (F B Meyer. Our Daily Walk) The picture even becomes more vivid when we look at a summary of English dictionary definitions of each word... Anxious: Characterized by extreme uneasiness of mind or brooding fear about some contingency (Webster, modern). Worried and tense because of possible misfortune, danger, etc. (Collins) Experiencing worry, nervousness, or unease. (Oxford) Concern or solicitude respecting some event, future or uncertain, which disturbs the mind, and keeps it in a state of painful uneasiness. it expresses more than uneasiness or disturbance, and even more than trouble or solicitude. it usually springs from fear or serious apprehension of evil, and involves a suspense respecting an event, and often, a perplexity of mind, to know how to shape our conduct. (Webster, 1828) A state of restlessness and agitation, often with general indisposition and a distressing sense of oppression at the epigastrium. (Webster, 1913) Worry: feel or cause to feel troubled over actual or potential difficulties. Expressing anxiety. (Concise Oxford). To choke or strangle - to harass by tearing, biting, or snapping especially at the throat. Mental distress or agitation resulting from concern usually for something impending or anticipated. Worry suggests fretting over matters that may or may not be real cause for anxiety (Webster) To be or cause to be anxious or uneasy, esp. about something uncertain or potentially dangerous. To disturb the peace of mind of (Collins) Worry has a fascinating etymology summarized below Worrying may shorten one's life, but not as quickly as it once did. The ancestor of our word, Old English wyrgan, meant “to strangle.” (Ed note: Isn't this what worry does to our joy?) Its Middle English descendant, worien, kept this sense and developed the new sense “to grasp by the throat with the teeth and lacerate” or “to kill or injure by biting and shaking.” This is the way wolves or dogs might attack sheep, for example. In the 16th century worry began to be used in the sense “to harass, as by rough treatment or attack,” or “to assault verbally,” and in the 17th century the word took on the sense “to bother, distress, or persecute.” It was a small step from this sense to the main modern senses “to cause to feel anxious or distressed” and “to feel troubled or uneasy,” first recorded in the 19th century. (American Heritage Dictionary) Besides anxiety (be anxious) another word that is synonymous with worry is the verb fret (derived from Old English word fretan meaning to devour or consume), which literally means to eat or gnaw into and figuratively pictures causing one to suffer emotional strain, be distressed, or feel vexation. Again the etymology or origin of the word fret so perfectly describes the detrimental, destructive effect of the emotional state of worry and anxiety. Are you worried about your tendency to worry? Let me encourage you to turn your attention to God, especially to an unhurried devotional study of His character revealed in His names or more specifically in His attributes (See "The Attributes of God"). You will be amazed at how the Spirit will renew our mind when we shift our focus off of the perplexity of the problems and onto the perfection of the Problem Solver, and once again appreciate that He is everywhere, knows everything, is all powerful, and is able and willing to carry our burdens (Ps 55:22, Heb 2:18-note). Elisha Hoffman the writer of the hymn I MUST TELL JESUS tells the story that preceded his penning of the words... There was a woman to whom God had permitted many visitations of sorrow and affliction. Coming to her home one day, I found her much discouraged. She unburdened her heart, concluding with the question, “Brother Hoffman, what shall I do?” I quoted from the word, then added, “You cannot do better than to take all of your sorrows to Jesus. You must tell Jesus.” For a moment she seemed lost in meditation. Then her eyes lighted as she exclaimed, “Yes, I must tell Jesus.” As I left her home I had a vision of that joy-illuminated face…and I heard all along my pathway the echo, “I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.” I MUST TELL JESUS I must tell Jesus all of my trials; I cannot bear these burdens alone; In my distress He kindly will help me; He ever loves and cares for His own. Refrain I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus! I cannot bear my burdens alone; I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus! Jesus can help me, Jesus alone. I must tell Jesus all of my troubles; He is a kind, compassionate friend; If I but ask Him, He will deliver, Make of my troubles quickly an end. Refrain Tempted and tried, I need a great Savior; One Who can help my burdens to bear; I must tell Jesus, I must tell Jesus; He all my cares and sorrows will share. Refrain O how the world to evil allures me! O how my heart is tempted to sin! I must tell Jesus, and He will help me Over the world the victory to win. Refrain Elisha's Hoffman's story and hymn beg the question... Have you told Jesus? Spurgeon offers this interesting perspective to those who are hesitant to cast their cares on Him writing that... There is nothing Christ dislikes more than for His people to make show of Him and not to use Him. He loves to be worked. He is a great laborer. He always was for His Father, and now He loves to be a great laborer for His brethren. The more burdens you put on His shoulders, the better He will love you. Cast your burden on Him. ><>><>><> Our Daily Bread has the following devotional on "worry"... Worry is merely unbelief parading in disguise! The Scriptures repeatedly warn us against this grievous sin. Ian Maclaren ex-claims, "What does your anxiety do? It does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, but it does empty today of its strength. It does not make you escape the evil; it makes you unfit to cope with it when it comes. God gives us the power to bear all the sorrow of His making, but He does not guarantee to give us strength to bear the burdens of our own making such as worry induces." An experienced physician decided to analyze the "worriers" who were his patients. He found that 40 percent of them were apprehensive over things that never happened. About 30 per-cent concerned themselves with past matters now beyond their control. Another 12 percent anxiously feared the loss of their health, although their only illness was in their imagination. And the rest worried about their families, friends, and neighbors, but in most cases he discovered no basis for their fears. A bassoon player once came to the great conductor Toscanini with furrowed brow and complained that his instrument would not sound the high E flat. Toscanini smiled and replied, "Don't worry. There is no E flat in your music tonight." The musician had been needlessly apprehensive. Many of our worries are like that — unfounded and unnecessary. Worry is both unprofitable and ungodly. God's grace will be sufficient for each day's need. Take comfort in this thought, and tread the pathway of life with faith, not fear! (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved) I walked life's path with "Worry," Disturbed and quite unblessed, Until I trusted Jesus; Now "Faith" has given rest. — G.W. Satan seeks to crush our spirit by getting us to bear tomorrow's burdens with only today's grace! ><>><>><> D. L. Moody once quipped that... A great many people seem to embalm their troubles. I always feel like running away when I see them coming. They bring out their old mummy, and tell you in a sad voice: You don't know the troubles I have! My friends, if you go to the Lord with your troubles, He will take them away. Would you not rather be with the Lord and get rid of your troubles, than be with your troubles and without God? Let trouble come if it will drive us nearer to God. It is a great thing to have a place of resort in the time of trouble. How people get on without the God of the Bible is a mystery to me. If I didn't have such a refuge, a place to go and pour out my heart to God in such times, I don't know what I would do. It seems as if I would go out of my mind. But to think, when the heart is burdened, we can go and pour it into His ear, and then have the answer come back, "I will be with him," there is comfort in that! I thank God for the old Book. I thank God for this old promise. It is as sweet and fresh today as it has ever been. Thank God, none of those promises are out of date, or grown stale. They are as fresh and vigorous and young and sweet as ever. ><>><>><> Take courage: if God doesn't choose to remove an obstacle, He will help you plow around it! Even though you can't control your circumstances, you can control your attitude. The perfect cure for worry is trust in God. Anxiety is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all others thoughts are drained. - Arthur Somers Roche The great saint George Mueller once said that The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety. Robert Burdette wrote that There are two days in the week about which I never worry. Two carefree days kept sacredly free from fear and apprehension. One of these days is yesterday—and the other day I do not worry about is tomorrow. Anxiety is the interest paid on trouble before it is due. Or stated another way it is the interest paid by those who "borrow" trouble! A S Roche said that Worry is a thin stream of fear trickling through the mind. If encouraged, it cuts a channel into which all other thoughts are drained. Oswald Chambers wrote that... Fretfulness springs from a determination to get my own way. Spurgeon said that... Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows but only empties today of its strength. George Sweeting tells the story of Bishop William Quayle who, while he laid awake at night, because of fruitless worrying, heard God say to him, "Quayle, you go to bed; I'll sit up the rest of the night." Whimsically put, that experience symbolizes a matter of major importance in the cure of worry Sweeting, G. Great Quotes & Illustrations. Anxiety is the natural result when our hopes are centered in anything short of God and his will for us. Someone has written that an average person’s anxiety is focused on • 40% -- things that will never happen • 30% -- things about the past that can’t be changed • 12% -- things about criticism by others, mostly untrue • 10% -- about health, which gets worse with stress • 8% -- about real problems that will be faced Thomas Jefferson noted How much have cost us the evils that never happened! Dr E Stanley Jones wrote I am inwardly fashioned for faith, not for fear. Fear is not my native land; faith is. I am so made that worry and anxiety are sand in the machinery of life; faith is the oil. I live better by faith and confidence than by fear, doubt and anxiety. In anxiety and worry, my being is gasping for breath—these are not my native air. But in faith and confidence, I breathe freely—these are my native air. A John Hopkins University doctor says, “We do not know why it is that worriers die sooner than the non-worriers, but that is a fact.” But I, who am simple of mind, think I know; We are inwardly constructed in nerve and tissue, brain cell and soul, for faith and not for fear. God made us that way. To live by worry is to live against reality. Day by Day (Play hymn) Day by day, and with each passing moment, Strength I find, to meet my trials here; Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment, I’ve no cause for worry or for fear. He Whose heart is kind beyond all measure Gives unto each day what He deems best— Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure, Mingling toil with peace and rest. Casting all your anxiety upon Him... When Anne Graham Lotz faced a sudden crisis with her son’s unexpected cancer surgery, she opened a little book called Daily Light and found there just the verses she needed: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. . . . We know that all things work together for good. . . . With us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles. The Lord your God is in your midst, the Mighty One, will save.’ Anne later wrote, “God has spoken to me more often through the verses in Daily Light than through any other book, except my Bible.” When CIM missionary Arthur Matthews was trapped in Communist China, uncertain of life or death, he was summoned before authorities who were pressuring him to earn his freedom by agreeing to spy for the Communists. That morning he kissed his wife and little one goodbye, and left for the police station, not knowing if he would ever return. In his pocket, he put a copy of Daily Light. Vance Havner, the quaint North Carolina evangelist and writer, faced the greatest heartbreak of his life when his beloved Sara contracted a fatal disease. He turned to his Daily Light, and the reading for the day said: “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.” When Sara died, Havner remembered that Lazarus had died, too. “I felt that God would be glorified in her passing,” Havner later wrote, “and He was.” When missionaries Russell and Darlene Deibler were trapped in the South Pacific during the Japanese invasion in 1942, they faced the darkest days of their lives. Russell was shortly hauled away to a concentration camp, never to return. That evening, Darlene found comfort in her Daily Light. The reading for the evening of March 13 said: “O my God, my soul is cast down within me. . . . Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee. . . . Cast thy burden upon the Lord.” “For me in my need,” she later wrote, “the Lord had directed in the arrangement of the verses.” (Morgan, R. J. Nelson's Annual Preacher's Sourcebook : 2002 Edition Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers) The antidote for anxiety and fear Trusting In and Casting Upon God Anxiety and fear is the fruit of the root of unbelief and unwillingness to accept God’s sovereignty over all of the aspects of one’s life. Faith (which comes by hearing...the Word of Christ) can break the stranglehold of anxiety and fear. Do you really trust God's sovereignty enough to cast your anxiety upon Him? The perfect cure for worry or anxiety is a child-like trust in our heavenly Father. Today, "cast" your cares upon God, declaring with the psalmist "I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust'" (Ps. 91:2). Stated another was, anxiety is a burden which faith casts off the man onto his God. Wiersbe writes that... We have little control over the circumstances of life. We can't control the weather or the economy, and we can't control what other people say about or do to us. There is only one area where we have control--we can rule the kingdom inside. The heart of every problem is the problem in the heart. Once we get to that throne room inside us and let God take over, we don't have to worry about others. (Comments on Psalm 10:12) (Bolding added) Spurgeon wrote... I heard of a man who was walking along the high road with a pack on his back. He was growing weary and was therefore glad when a gentleman came along in a carriage and asked him to take a seat with him. The gentleman noticed that he kept his pack strapped to his shoulders, and so he said, "Why do you not put your pack down?" "Why, sir," said the traveler, "I did not venture to impose. It was very kind of you to take me up, and I could not expect you to carry my pack as well." "Why," said his friend, "do you not see that whether your pack is on your back or off your back, I have to carry it?" My hearer, it is so with your trouble. Whether you worry or do not worry, it is the Lord who must care for you. WORRY (Anxiety) WHAT IS IT? Worry... ...gives a small thing a big shadow ...is the interest we pay on tomorrow's troubles. ...over tomorrow pulls shadows over today's sunshine. ...is like a rocking chair; it will give you something to do, but it won't get you anywhere. ...is an indication that we think God cannot look after us. (O. Chambers) ...is putting question marks where God has put periods. (J R Rice) ...is the interest we pay on tomorrow’s troubles. (E S Jones) is an intrusion into God's providence. (J Haggai) ...is a guest admitted which quickly turns to be master. ... never robs tomorrow of its sorrow, it only saps today of its strength (A J Cronin) ... is the interest paid by those who borrow trouble (G W Lyon) ...is practical atheism and an affront to God (R. H. Mounce) In Morning and Evening, Spurgeon wrote... It is a happy way of soothing sorrow when we can feel—“He careth for me.” Christian! do not dishonour religion by always wearing a brow of care; come, cast your burden upon your Lord. You are staggering beneath a weight which your Father would not feel. What seems to you a crushing burden, would be to him but as the small dust of the balance. Nothing is so sweet as to “Lie passive in God’s hands, And know no will but His.” O child of suffering, be thou patient; God has not passed thee over in his providence. He who is the feeder of sparrows, will also furnish you with what you need. Sit not down in despair; hope on, hope ever. Take up the arms of faith against a sea of trouble, and your opposition shall yet end your distresses. There is One who careth for you. His eye is fixed on you, his heart beats with pity for your woe, and his hand omnipotent shall yet bring you the needed help. The darkest cloud shall scatter itself in showers of mercy. The blackest gloom shall give place to the morning. He, if thou art one of his family, will bind up thy wounds, and heal thy broken heart. Doubt not his grace because of thy tribulation, but believe that he loveth thee as much in seasons of trouble as in times of happiness. What a serene and quiet life might you lead if you would leave providing to the God of providence! With a little oil in the cruse, and a handful of meal in the barrel, Elijah outlived the famine, and you will do the same. If God cares for you, why need you care too? Can you trust him for your soul, and not for your body? He has never refused to bear your burdens, he has never fainted under their weight. Come, then, soul! have done with fretful care, and leave all thy concerns in the hand of a gracious God. A humorous story about the professional worrier emphasizes the point of Peter's exhortation to cast our burden upon God... “I have a mountain of credit card debt,” one man told another. “I’ve lost my job, my car is being repossessed, and our house is in foreclosure, but I’m not worried about it.” “Not worried about it!” exclaimed his friend. “No. I’ve hired a professional worrier. He does all my worrying for me, and that way I don’t have to think about it.” “That’s fantastic. How much does your professional worrier charge for his services?” “Fifty thousand dollars a year,” replied the first man. “Fifty thousand dollars a year? Where are you going to get that kind of money?” “I don’t know,” came the reply. “That’s his worry.” In a sense, the Lord’s servants do have a professional worrier to do all our worrying for them. As 1 Peter 5:7 says, “You can throw the whole weight of your anxieties upon him, for you are his personal concern” (Phillips). (Morgan, R. J. Nelson's Complete Book of Stories, Illustrations, and Quotes. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers) And here's another story regarding Pastor Jones, who must have wanted to "pull his hair out"... We scarcely know when life will worry us half to death. Consider Pastor A. J. Jones in South Africa. Wanting to sell a television set, he ran a classified ad in a Pretoria paper. As first printed, the ad said: The Rev. A. J. Jones has a color TV set for sale. Telephone 555–1313 after 7 P.M. and ask for Mrs. Donnelley who lives with him, cheap. The next day, the paper printed this correction: We regret any embarrassment caused to Rev. Jones by a typographical error in yesterday’s editions. It should have read, “The Rev. A. J. Jones has color TV set for sale, cheap. Telephone 555–1313 and ask for Mrs. Donnelley who lives with him after 7 P.M. The next day, the paper said: The Rev. A. J. Jones informs us he has received several annoying telephone calls because of an incorrect advertisement in yesterday’s paper. It should have read, “The Rev. A. J. Jones has color TV set for sale. Cheap. Telephone 555–1313 and ask for Mrs. Donnelley who loves with him.” One day later: Please take notice that I, the Rev. Jones, have no TV set for sale. I have smashed it. I have not been carrying on with Mrs. Donnelley. She was until yesterday my housekeeper. There was, however, one more ad the next day: WANTED a housekeeper. Telephone Rev. A. J. Jones, 555–1313. Usual housekeeping duties, good pay, love in. (Morgan, R. J. Nelson's Complete Book of Stories, Illustrations, and Quotes. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers) Anxiety has its use, stimulating us to seek with keener longing for that security where peace is complete and unassailable. - Augustine As discussed above, we must not hand our burdens to Him piecemeal, keeping those cares that we think we can handle ourselves. If we keep the "little" cares for ourselves, for they have a tendency to grow into "big" concerns! Each time a new burden arises, we must by faith remind the Lord (and ourselves) that we have already turned it over to Him. Don't be frustrated or overwhelmed, for this discipline of trusting God with our anxieties needs patient practice. As you practice "anxiety casting", God's Spirit will perform a wonderful work within you as He transforms you from glory to glory, including... (1) Giving us the courage to face our cares honestly and not run away ("Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you. Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." Is 41:10). (2) Giving us the wisdom to understand the situation ("...if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, Who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea driven and tossed by the wind." Ja 1:5-6). (3) Giving us the strength to do what we must do ("Not that I speak from want; for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:11, 12, 13 - notes Phil 4:11-13). (4) Giving us the faith to trust Him to do the rest ("Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He will do it." Ps.37:5). "Anxiety" (Click Jehovah Shalom [and scroll down for "Seven Thieves that Can Steal Your Peace] or Phil 4:6, 7-Notes for additional discussion) is the Greek word merimna (from merizo which means to divide or draw in different directions and so to distract) which pictures that which causes one's mind to be "split" or drawn in different directions which results in "anxiety". And so we begin to think things like "Will this turn out to be a bad thing or a good thing?" In the past anxiety was explained as a "dividing care", distracting the heart from the true object of life. It is the uneasiness and worry about the future which Peter exhorts us to cast upon El Shaddai, the Almighty, All Sufficient One. Grant Richison exhorts us to "Remember whenever God says or does anything, there is a reason behind it. God possesses indescribable intelligence. He has never had to learn anything since He has always known everything. Is your god smaller than that? The God of the Bible is not only omniscient (knows everything), but He is also omnipotent (all-powerful) and omnipresent (everywhere present). There is a big difference between human resources and divine resources. God is never surprised, astounded or shocked. God is never in a bind. God is never on the horns of a dilemma. When He says you are to cast, there is a reason. God never asks anything of us that is unreasonable. God's commandments are his enablements." (1Peter 5:7) Allowing one's mind to go "in different directions" at the same time, will result in a loss of focus and concentration and may leave you virtually "incapacitated", not knowing which way to turn. Such a state also will distract one from our primary focus, which should be Christ Jesus our Lord. Webster says that anxiety is a painful or apprehensive uneasiness of mind usually over an impending or anticipated ill, a fearful concern or interest or an abnormal and overwhelming sense of apprehension and fear often marked by physiological signs (as sweating, tension, and increased pulse). Webster goes on to add that anxiety is characterized by doubt concerning the reality and nature of the threat or by self-doubt about one’s capacity to cope. Richison adds that "Anxiety is a fearful anguish coupled with uncertainty. It is our anticipation of misfortune as if God and His resources for us do not exist. Anxiety distracts us from the resources of God. We enter into a state of turmoil, we cannot recognize the providence of God in our lives...(he adds that) Unbelief is an exalting of self against God. We depend on self rather than God. But why worry if we are His concern? God is infinitely more concerned about our welfare than we are. A child, who asks his parents every day, "Can I be sure that you will take care of me?" ruins his own well-being and breaks his parents' hearts. The trusting child goes about his play undisturbed and assured of his mother's love." (1Peter 5:7) Nothing is hid from His all-seeing eye, Never a teardrop nor even a sigh; Anxious and troubled you never need be-- Trust Him completely and doubtings will flee. --Nienhuis Someone has well said anxiety and worry are both like a rocking chair—they will give you something to do, but they won't get you anywhere. Anxiety is a burden that God never meant for us to bear. Most of what we are anxious about never comes to pass. And so in a sense worrying and anxiety is like paying interest on troubles that may never come due! But even when trouble knocks, God is there to show us a new course. When fear knocks at your door, let faith open it. We can avoid the folly of anxiety by trusting Him today for all our tomorrows. Torrey's Topic - "Overmuch Care" (Anxiety) About earthly things, forbidden - Matthew 6:25; Luke 12:22,29; John 6:27 God’s providential goodness should keep us from -Matthew 6:26,28,30; Luke 22:35 God’s promises should keep us from -Hebrews 13:5 Trust in God should free us from -Jeremiah 17:7,8; Daniel 3:16 Should be cast on God -Psalms 37:5; 55:22; Proverbs 16:3; 1 Peter 5:7 An obstruction to the Gospel -Matthew 13:22; Luke 8:14; 14:18-20 Be without -1 Corinthians 7:32; Philippians 4:6 Unbecoming in saints -2 Timothy 2:4 Uselessness of -Matthew 6:27; Luke 12:25,26 Vanity of -Psalms 39:6; Ecclesiastes 4:8 Warning against -Luke 21:34 Sent as a punishment to the wicked -Ezekiel 4:16; 12:19 Exemplified - Martha -Luke 10:41 Persons who offered to follow Christ -Luke 9:57 THREE KEYS TO PEACE 1. Fret not--because God loves you (1Jn. 4:16). 2. Faint not--because God holds you (Ps 139:10). 3. Fear not--because God keeps you (Ps 121:5). BECAUSE HE CARES FOR YOU: hoti auto melei (3SPAI) peri humon: (Ps 34:15; 142:4,5; Mt 6:26,33; Mk 4:38; Lk 12:30, 31, 32; Jn 10:13) "Because it is a care to Him for you", "Because you are His concern." J B Phillips has a comforting paraphrase "You can throw the whole weight of your anxieties upon Him, for you are His personal concern." Meditate on what Peter is saying...literally he writes that "it matters to Him concerning you"! Why cast them upon Him? Upon what basis do we do so? In this beautiful phrase, Peter states that it is simply because God cares for us. We must first understand God's caring character before we can carry out carefree casting of our anxieties. Do you know Him this way? Do you really belief that the infinite, majestic, almighty God of the universe really cares for you in such a personal way? If you don't believe this truth, then you will in fact have difficulty casting your cares upon Him. A good way to renew your mind regarding God's character is to study God's Name, A Strong Tower or The Attributes of God. Cares (melo) means to be interested in, to show watchful care and affection or to show concern for. The verb melo is in the present tense which indicates that God cares for us continually, so much so that one might say that God is our caretaker! This same verb (melo) is used by Mark, where we find a group of anxious disciples on a stormy sea and (Jesus) Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion and they awoke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care (melo) that we are perishing? And being aroused, He rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Hush, be still." And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. And He said to them, "Why are you so timid? How is it that you have no faith?" (Mk 4:38-40) Jesus showed them how much He cared for them with a beautiful declaration "Hush, be still." Perhaps those are words you too need to hear today, beloved. And so we see that a stormy sea had been allowed by a sovereign God to teach the disciples a lesson in simple child-like faith. And the same God uses the variegated storms in our life to similar advantage. As a believer you have come to know Jesus as your "Sin-bearer" but have you also come to know Him as your "Burden-bearer"? The Amplified version says He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully God invites us to burden Him with what burdens us. A T Robertson says cast your cares upon Him because it "is a care to Him"! God does care and Luke records that He cares so much that not a hair of your head will perish. (Lk 21:18) All your anxiety, all your care, Bring to the mercy seat, leave it there; Never a burden He cannot bear, Never a friend like Jesus. —Joy The psalmist says that "the eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous and His ears are open to their cry." (Ps 34:15) Dearly beloved, if your heart is weighed down today, the Lord is ready to bear every burden you give Him. When anxiety walks in, strength runs out, but strength returns when we let God in. We must remember that God does not design the stressful situations in our life to break us but to make us. Ultimately, His desire is that we move from trusting in ourselves, our abilities or resources, to a lifestyle of resting in Him and His all sufficient resources. This is abiding in the Vine (John 15:5). As the psalmist declares Blessed be the Lord, Who daily bears our burden, the God Who is our salvation. Selah ("pause and ponder")."(NAS) (NLT has a picturesque paraphrase -- "each day He carries us in His arms.") (Ps 68:19) Spurgeon comments: Blessed be the Lord. At the mention of the presence of God among men the singers utter an earnest acclamation suggested by reverential love, and return blessings to him who so plentifully blesses his people. Who daily loadeth us with benefits. Our version contains a great and precious truth, though probably not the doctrine intended here. God's benefits are not few nor light, they are loads; neither are they intermittent, but they come "daily;" nor are they confined to one or two favourites, for all Israel can say, he loadeth us with benefits. Delitzsch reads it, "He daily bears our burden;" and Alexander, "Whoever lays a load upon us, the Mighty God is our salvation." If He Himself burdens us with sorrow, He gives strength sufficient to sustain it; and if others endeavour to oppress us, there is no cause for fear, for the Lord will come to the rescue of His people. Happy nation, to be subdued by a King whose yoke is easy, and who secures His people from all fear of foreign burdens which their foes might try to force upon them. Even the God of our salvation. A name most full of glory to Him, and consolation to us. No matter how strong the enemy, we shall be delivered out of his hands; for God Himself, as King, undertakes to save His people from all harm. What a glorious stanza this is! It is dark only because of its excessive light. A world of meaning is condensed into a few words. His yoke is easy, and His burden is light, therefore blessed be the Saviour's name for evermore. All hail! thou thrice blessed Prince of Peace! All Thy saved ones adore Thee, and call thee blessed. Selah. Well may the strings need tuning, they have borne an unparalleled strain in this mighty song. Higher and yet higher, ye men of music, lift up the strain. Dance before the ark, ye maidens of Israel; bring forth the timbrel, and sing unto the Lord Who hath triumphed gloriously. ><>><>><> Octavius Winslow writes the following devotional entitled THE LORD MY CARE-TAKER... "The Lord is my portion, says my soul." "He cares for you."--1 Pet. 5:7 This may be with you, my soul, a day of anxious care. The sun shines brightly, all nature is clad in beauty, and every object smiles. But with you it is a cloudy and dark day, and your heart is sad--a care presses you, anxiety shades you. And now you are casting about if perhaps you may respond to it--yet with much unbelief, despondency, and fear as to the result. But, be still! The Lord, who is your Portion, is enough for each cloudy day, and is enough for this. Come, sit down and meditate a while upon this truth, and see if this pressure may not prove a real uplifting, this anxiety a sweet repose, and this cloud reflect a silver light, by stirring you up to prayer, and leading you to learn more experimentally and blessedly what Jesus is in His all-sufficiency for all our needs (Philippians 4:13-note). Thus, "Out of the eater will come forth meat, and out of the strong will come forth sweetness." (Judges 14:14 -note) If the Lord cares for us, then without any figure of speech He is our Care-taker. Though all worlds, all beings, all events, all creatures, are hanging upon His arm, and yet we have not a care, infinitesimal though it be as an atom, or light as a cobweb, but the Lord cares for it. Can anything more truly and impressively illustrate the greatness of Jesus than this--that, as great is He, nothing in the history of His saints is too small or trivial for His notice and regard. Alas! we deal too imperfectly with God in the little sins and the trifling acts of disobedience in the daily duties of life. It is one of the believer's highest attainments in grace to live to God in small things. We think, for the most part, that because God is so great, He can bend His infinite mind only to objects and things that are great. Whereas, we forget that, He who is so great that the heaven of heavens cannot contain Him, has condescended to say I dwell with him also who is of a contrite and humble spirit. (Isaiah 57:15) But He cares for us. My soul, has not Jesus proved it? Did He not care for you when He embarked in the work of your salvation? Did He not care for you when you were dead in trespasses and in sins? (Ephesians 2:1- note) And when the Holy Spirit convinced you of sin, and broke your heart, and led you in holy contrition to the cross, did not Jesus manifest His care for you then by raising you up from His feet, enfolding you in His arms, and applying His atoning blood to your conscience, saying to your tempest-tossed spirit, 'Peace, be still,' and there was peace? The Lord cares for you still. He cares for your needs, for your trials, for your temptations, for your sorrows. Still more, He cares for your holy, happy walk--for the doubts and fears and tremblings which sometimes assail you--for the darkness which often enshrouds you--for the loneliness and solitude of the way by which He is leading you home to Himself. Only cast your care upon Him, whatever it may be, with a child's simple, unquestioning, unhesitating faith, and be anxious only how you may most love, trust, and glorify Him. Make His service your delight, His honor your study, His truth your care, and sweet peace will spring up in your soul, shedding its soothing influence throughout your whole being. "Don't be anxious about anything--but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known unto God. And the peace of God (this is the Christian's true heart's ease), which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Phil 4:6; 4:7- see notes Phil 4:6; 4:7) But if you go to Him with your care, and return with it still corroding, shading, and crushing you, it is not because the Lord refuses to take it upon Himself, but because you refuse to transfer it to Him. You go, and you come away with it still entwined around your heart, and wonder that you find no relief. But, leave with Him your care, be it the care of your soul or the care of the body, hang it upon His arm, lay it upon His heart, and sweet will be the repose your Father in heaven will give. "HE CARES FOR YOU." ><>><>><> F B Meyer (from his book Tried by Fire) has the following chapter based on 1 Peter 5:7... CARE, AND WHAT TO DO WITH IT "Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you." (1 Peter 5:7.) EVERY word of this precious verse is golden. And the fact of its standing here as a Divine command is a proof, not only of what is possible for us to do, but of what God is prepared to enable us to do. His commands are enablings; his words are power-words; his light is life. If only you are willing to live this glad, free, uncareful life, and dare to step out on the waves of his carefulness, you will find that, with the resolve to obey, there will come from Him the wondrous power that makes obedience possible. And it is in the highest degree necessary to obey this precept. So only can we be peaceful and strong. We cannot stand the strain of both work and worry. Two things come between our souls and unshadowed fellowship with God, sin and care. And we must be as resolute to cast our care on the Lord as to confess our sins to Him, if we would walk in the light as He is in the light. One yelping dog may break our slumber on the stillest night. One grain of dust in the eye will render it incapable of enjoying the fairest prospect. One care may break our peace and hide the face of God, and bring a funeral pall over our souls. We must cast all our care on Him, if we would know the blessedness of unshadowed fellowship. But, besides the blessedness we lose in giving way to care, we must remember that such behaviour sorely grieves and dishonours God. It grieves Him, as love must grieve when suspected of insincerity. And it also sorely dishonours Him. We judge a parent by the report given of him in the words and behaviour of his children. If they seem half-starved and miserable, or look wistfully to us for a dole of help, or complain bitterly of the hardships of their lot, we conclude--however wealthy he may be as to his income, or munificent as to his gifts--that he is hard and cruel: and we withdraw from him as far as possible. So, if the world judges of God by the looks and words of many of his professed children, is it wonderful that it is less attracted than repelled? Either there is no God, or He is powerless to help, or He does not really love, or He is careless of the needs of his children--such must be the reflections of many, as they look on the weary, careworn, anxious faces of God's professed people, and remark in them the same long deeply-ploughed furrows as the years have made for themselves. We are either libels or Bibles; either harbour-lights or warning signals; either attractions or detractors; and which we shall be depends very much on what we do with CARE. Of course there must ever be the discipline and chastisement of life. Our Father deals with us as with sons: and what son is he whom the Father chasteneth not? And these strokes of his rod, these cups mingled by his hand, must be bitter to the flesh. But all this is very different from "care." There may be pain--but no doubt of the Father's love, no worry about the issues, no foreboding as to the long future, which to the eye of faith shines like the horizon-rim of the sea on which the sun is shining in its utmost splendour, while dark clouds brood overhead. Care, according to the Greek word, is that which divides and distracts the soul, which diverts us from present duty to weary calculations of how to meet conditions which may never arrive. Fret; worry; anxiety; the habit of anticipating evil; crossing bridges before we reach them; the permission of foreboding fears about the future; all that attitude of mind which broods over the mistakes of the past and dwells on the shadows which coming events may cast, rather than on the love and will of God--this is Care. 1. OUR TREATMENT OF CARE. Casting all your care upon Him.--The Greek verb indicates not that we must keep doing it, but do it once for all. Who does not know what it is to awake in the morning with a sense of heaviness and depression, and, before one is well aroused, to be conscious of a voice whispering a long tale of burdens to be carried, and difficulties to be met, as the hours pass on! "Ah," says the voice, "a miserable day will this be." "How so?" we inquire, fearfully. "Remember, there is that creditor to meet, that skein to disentangle, that irritation to soothe, those violent tempers to confront. It is no use praying, better linger longer where you are, and drag through the day as you may. You are like a victim in the tumbril going to be guillotined." And too often we have yielded to the suggestion. If we have prayed, it has been in a kind of hopeless way, asking God to help, but not daring to think He would. There has been no assurance, no confidence, no calm within, no tranquility without. Alas for some! They always spend their lives thus. One long, weary monotone of anxiety--struggling against winds and waves, instead of walking over the crests of the billows; treading a difficult, stony pass, instead of being borne along in one of the twenty thousand chariots of God. How infinitely better to cast our care upon the strong, broad shoulders of Christ! Treat cares as you treat sins. Hand them over to Jesus one by one as they occur. Commit them to Him. Roll them upon Him. Make them his. By an act of faith look to Him, saying, "This, Lord, and this, and this, I cannot bear. Thou hast taken my sins; take my cares: I lay them upon Thee, and trust Thee to do for me all, and more than all, I need. I will trust, and not be afraid." As George Herbert says so quaintly in his sonnet, put care into Christ's bag. There is no surer path to rest than to pass on to Jesus all the anxieties of life, believing that He takes what we give at the moment of our giving it; that it instantly becomes a matter of honour with Him to do his best for us: and surely it is a sacrilege to take back any gift which we have put into his hands. "Blessed be the Lord, who daily beareth our burden" (Ps 68:19, R.V.). There are two or three preliminaries before this committal of care is possible. We must have cast our sins before we can cast our cares; in other words, we must be children in the Father's home. Then also we must be living in God's plan, sure that we are where He would have us be, camped under his brooding pillar-cloud. And, in addition, we must have yielded up our lives to Him, for Him to have his way in them. Nor must we neglect to feed our faith with promise. Without her natural food she pines. But when these conditions are fulfilled, it is not difficult to "Kneel, and cast our load, E'en while we pray, upon our God, Then rise with lightened cheer." The cup may still have to be drunk, the discipline borne, the work done; but the weary ache of care will have yielded to the anodyne of a child's trust in One who cannot fail. 2. DIFFERENT KINDS OF CARE. There is care about our growth in grace.--It is very unreasonable; and yet how common! We fret because we fear that we are not getting on fast enough, and run to and fro in our anxiety to pick up something from other people. As well might a lad in an infant class fret because he may not enter the higher classes of the school. But surely his one business is to acquire the lessons set before him by the teacher. When those are learnt, it will be for the teacher to give him other and harder ones, and to advance him to positions where quicker progress may be made. And it is for us to learn each day the lessons which the Lord Jesus sets us, and to leave to Him the responsibility of leading us forward in the knowledge and love of God. Cast the care of your growth and attainments on the great Leader of souls, and be content to sit at his feet, learning the lessons He assigns. There is care about our Christian work.--How to maintain our congregations? How to hold our own amid the competition of neighbouring workers? How to maintain the efficiency and vigour of our machinery? How to adjust differences between our fellow or subordinate workers? How to find material enough to supply the incessant demand for sermons and addresses? How to shepherd a large flock of souls? What elements of care are hidden in each of these! And in what numberless cases the look of weary anxiety betrays the heartache within! But one is inclined to ask sometimes, Whose work is it? If it is yours, resting on your shoulders only, there may be some reasonableness in the carrying of care. But if, as is surely the case, the work is your Master's, the burden should be his also. The prime worker is not you, but Christ. He is working through you. You are but his servant. All that you are responsible for is to do what He bids to the uttermost of your power; and He must bear all the cost and responsibility beside. If things are not going smoothly, go and tell Him, and cast all the anxiety of it back on Him, leaving it to Him to extricate or reinforce you. There is care about the ebb and flow of feeling.--Our feelings are very changeable. They are affected by changes in the weather and temperature, by the state of our digestion and liver, by over-weariness, by want of sleep, by a thousand nameless causes. No stringed instrument is more affected by minute changes than we are; and we are apt to worry when the tide of emotion is running fast out, defying our efforts to retain it. But, if we are not conscious of any sin or negligence to which this subsidence of emotion may be attributed, we may cast the care of such an experience on our Saviour. He knows our frame; and, as we pass down the dark staircase, let us hold fast to the hand-rail of his will, willing still to do his will, though in the dark. "I am as much thine, and devoted to Thee, in the depths of my being now, as when my heart was happiest in thy love." There is care about household and commercial matters.--Servants, with their frequent changes; employers, with unreasonable demands; customers and clerks; creditors and debtors; children, with the ailments of childhood, and the waywardness of youth. To mention any one of these is to touch a bitter spring of care. There are some whose businesses are specially liable to cause anxious, worrying thoughts. Many Christians always think that they must come to beggary; they refuse to enjoy the good things within their reach, because of certain dreaded possibilities. Alas! for that phantom workhouse which bounds the pathway of so many lives, but which is never reached! But each of these sources of worry may become a means of grace, a bond between Jesus and the soul, if placed at his feet, and definitely entrusted to his care. Do not be satisfied with rolling yourself on God, roll your burden also. He who can carry the one can carry the other. When a tiny boy, trying to help his father move his books, fell on the staircase beneath the weight of a heavy volume, his father ran to his aid and caught up in his arms boy and burden both, and carried them in his arms to his room. And will God deal worse with us? He cannot fail or forsake. He can smite rocks, and open seas, and unlock the treasuries of the air, and ransack the stores of the earth. Birds will bring meat, and fish coins, if He bid them. He takes up the isles as a very little thing--how easily, then, your heaviest load: while there is nothing so trivial but that you may make it a matter of prayer and faith. So Leighton sweetly says:--- "When thou art either to do or suffer anything, when thou art about any purpose of business, go, tell God of it, and acquaint Him with it--yea, burden Him with it--and thou hast done for matter of caring. No more care, but sweet, quiet diligence in thy duty, and dependence on Him for the carriage of thy matters. Roll over on God, make one bundle of all; roll thy cares, and thyself with them, as one burden, all on thy God" (Psa. 36:5) 3. THE REASONABLENESS OF THIS METHOD OF LIFE. "For He careth for you." Of course, if we persist in acting only for ourselves, we must do the best we can for ourselves; but if we can hand over all matters to God, we shall find that He will do infinitely better for us than we had dared to hope. Such is God's love to us that He always goes far beyond our farthest anticipations. "Exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think." If the father is providing for to-morrow's needs, why should his little boy leave his play, and lean pensively against the wall, wondering what had better be done? If the pilot has come on board, why should the captain also pace the deck with weary foot? If some wise, strong friend, thoroughly competent, has undertaken to adjust some difficult piece of perplexity for me, and if I have perfect confidence in him, and he assures me that he is well able to accomplish it, why should I fret longer? The thing is as good as done, since he has taken it in hand. Doubtless there seems a marvellous chasm between Him and you. But it is bridged by the silver arch of Divine care. God cares for you so much that He came Himself in the person of his Son to redeem you; there was never a time He did not love you, brood over you, and care for you. He cares for you so much as to listen to your least sigh or cry amid the beat of heavenly music and the acclamations of the blessed. The mighty heart of Deity itself is full of a fathomless carefulness for all that concerns you. No mother cares over her sick child as He over you. Each movement and need and desire is read long before expressed or even felt. Let us trust Him. Tongue cannot tell the completeness, the delicacy, the tender thoughtfulness of the care that will gather and shelter us, as the nervous, careful hen gathers her brood under her wing. "I would have you without carefulness." (F. B. Meyer. Tried By Fire) ><>><>><> Octavius Winslow in his book Help Heavenward (Online Index) has a chapter based on the truth in 1 Peter 5:7... Human Care Transferred to God Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you— 1 Peter 5:7 Were we to take the world’s estimate of the real value and happiness of a life of faith in God as the true one, how gloomy, joyless, and forlorn a life would it appear! The world imagines that there is nothing substantial, bright, or social in the religion of Christ—no reality, sunshine, or companionship! But how mistaken! We cite, as disproving this view, the precept we propose in this chapter to illustrate and enforce, which enjoins the transfer of human care to God. Where, in the world’s wilderness, grows the flower of heart’s ease as it blooms and blossoms here? “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” How full of soothing and repose are these words! What cares have they lightened,—what anxieties have they removed,—what burdens have they unclasped,—and what springs of joy and comfort and hope have they unsealed in many a sad and oppressed heart! But do you not, beloved reader, need to be put in constant remembrance of this divine secret of rest amidst toil, of repose amidst disquietude, of soothing amidst corroding cares, and of confidence and hope in the midst of change and depression? Bewildered and oppressed by the multitude of anxious thoughts within you, is there not a danger of being so absorbed by the care as to overlook the Caretaker? to forget the heart’s ease in the overwhelming of the heart’s anxiety? Verily we think so. Hagar, pining with thirst, and blinded by grief, saw not the well of water flowing at her side. The disciples in the storm, filled with alarm, and absorbed by fear, recognized not the Lord Jesus walking to them upon the waves which threatened the foundering of their vessel. Thus often is it with us—thus may it be now with you. We look at the want, and not at Him who supplies it; at the storm, and not at Him who controls it; at the care, and not at Him who assumes it. Is not the voice of the Lord mightier than the voice of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea? Is not the Caretaker greater than the care itself? Yet how we limit the Holy One, and magnify and multiply our cares, anxieties, and sorrows! But for the immutability of our redeeming God, whose unseen hand guides, and whose power, almost insensible to ourselves, sustains us, our care would consume us. How often we are upheld, we scarcely know by whom; kept in peace, we scarcely know how; preserved in safety, we scarcely know why. But “the secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him;” and, sooner or later, we learn that Jesus has done it all, and has done it for His own glory. Fain would I, beloved reader, proffer you a little help heavenward by inciting you to this transfer of anxious thought and chafing care to God. Lightened a little of your burden, with a more trustful heart and gladsome spirit you will speed your way homeward to that heaven of perfect repose, upon whose threshold you will leave the last anxious thought, and lay down the last earthly care, your weary, panting soul pillowed in eternal repose. The world through which we pass heavenward—and oh, forget not, Christian pilgrim, it is a passage soon passed—is a world laden and crushed with care. Earthly care confronts us at every step, and in all whom we meet. The knitted brow, the restless eye, the compressed lip, the fevered expression, the bated breath, are as true an index of the mind oppressed with anxious thought, the heart shaded with human sorrow, as the dial is of the sun’s altitude. It is true the great device of the world is to conceal its care from others. But its transient gleam of artificial joy—the forced smile, the excited laugh, the unnatural levity, which imparts an air of happiness and freedom from eating care—but betray to the keen, penetrating eye of the spiritual observer that inward restlessness of the spirit, that lowering anxiety of mind, which can ill be concealed. “If every man’s internal care Were written on his brow, How many would our pity share Who move our envy now!” But it is of the care peculiar to the Lord’s people that we particularly speak. And here we must be cautious to distinguish between the carefulness that is proper in a child of God and the carefulness which is the result of a distrust of God—the offspring of unbelief. We are to be careful, undoubtedly, to maintain good works, or our faith is vain; to take care of our own house, or we shall be found worse than the infidel; we are to care for the interests and prosperity of Christ’s Church, or we ignore our individual membership; we are to be careful to walk holily and circumspectly, as followers of the Lamb, or we dishonour Ch