If God is near...

In my daily devotional, Heart of the Matter: Daily Reflections for Changing Hearts and Lives, I am often struck by the way the collective authors seek to get to the heart of the issue. This morning's reading was no different.

"If the Lord is near, if he is someone who knows what’s on your heart, who knows what weighs heavily on you and preoccupies you, then he is a hearer of his beloved children. Many psalms start out by pleading with God—Lord, listen to me, bend your ear, you must hear me, I need you to listen and act on my behalf. These are not calm psalms; they are intense and pointed. In Psalm 28, David tells God that if God doesn’t hear him, he will die. This is faith talking, and David talks this way because God is listening. God’s listening does not guarantee that what is making you anxious will go away—that your financial problems will be solved, that you will be cured of cancer, or that whatever else is worrying you will disappear. You may not be healed, people you love may die, and you may struggle with financial stress. But God comforts, strengthens, and gives hope in the midst of the most difficult circumstances. Jesus did not want to drink the cup of God’s wrath. But God strengthened him, and he was fully willing. There’s help from him for whatever worries you. So when you are anxious pour your heart out to God. He is listening." - David Powlinson

I find all too often that I am anxious. At the root of it all is my selfish desires and tendencies. I can see that and yet still find me fighting the anxiousness. I strive to cast my cares upon Christ, knowing that He cares for me (1 Peter 5:7), but struggle to do the much harder task of 1 Peter 5:6 of humbling myself. Of course I can hand off my cares. My cares are easy to hand off! I don't want them! But i will not find hope, peace, comfort, or joy in the handing off of them until I also find myself trusting in the God who has had them all along. His ways are higher than my ways and His plan for my life brings so much greater glory to Him and brings about more eternal good for my life than any choice I could ever make independently of Him. Since God is near, I am free to trust in Him. Since God is near, I am free to trust in Him. Since God is near, I am free to obey Him.