Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. Philippians 4:6

How many of you are shaking your head at today’s verse? Be anxious for nothing? Are you kidding me? We’re in the middle of a global crisis! The economy may crash! I may not have a job! I might get sick!

Believe me, I feel your pain. I might get sick, any of us might. The economy may crash, and there will go my IRA investment. The church runs on voluntary donations from its faithful—when people run short on money, one of the first places they stop giving is to the church. So, yes, I’ve even thought about my job security. We’re in uncharted territory, at least for a pandemic in our lives. Yes, we’ve had some other serious health scares, like AIDS, SARS, H1N1, and the like. But I never remember schools being closed, people unable to go to church, and life essentially coming to a halt. It’s never happened.

In the midst of all this, how can we be anxious for nothing?

In Matthew 6:34, Jesus says, “Do not be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself.” It is possible that tomorrow will be terrible. That is possible. However, tomorrow is also not a guarantee. Right at this moment, as I’m typing this message, I don’t know if tomorrow will be terrible or not. I only know that this moment that I’m in is okay. And this moment is all that I have.

In the midst of this craziness in the world, at this moment, I’m sitting by myself, in an office, typing. I just ate some food, I’ve got a bottle of water, the air conditioning is working. At THIS MOMENT, my life is going just fine. That doesn’t mean that tomorrow, my life will still be fine, it means that at this moment, my life is fine. There is no reason to be anxious at this moment.

If I pray the Lord’s Prayer, and I pray “Thy will be done,” I am entrusting the outcome of my life to God’s will. That doesn’t mean jump in front of a bus and see if God saves me. And it doesn’t mean sit on the couch and do nothing and see if God raises me up from the couch to do something productive. It means use the talent that God has given me, and allow His will to come out through my life.

If I get called to go visit someone who is sick, I will pray that the Lord will protect me. However, if I get sick, I will pray that the Lord will heal me. And if I get sick and I’m not going to be healed, I will pray that God will grant me everlasting life.

My will may not coincide with God’s will. In some cases, it is obvious that they don’t coincide. For instance, God says to love people. Gossiping about someone does not show love. So, if I am tempted to gossip, I can choose God’s will and abstain, or I can choose my will and participate. To follow God’s will means to submit to His will even when it is in conflict with our own will.

My desire to live a long time may not coincide with God’s will. I know that God’s will is for me to find my salvation, to inherit eternal life. How long my journey will be is known only to Him. I can freely choose to make that journey or not. However, if I’m on the path to salvation and God decides to gift that to me at age 48 or 68 or 98, I have to be open to His will. If I am not living a healthy life because I make bad choices, and His will was for me to live to 88 and I only make it to 48 because of my own choices, then I will have to answer for that.

When we make our requests known to God, we should do it with the caveat, “according to Your will,” and “unto my salvation.” In this present crisis, I pray that I will not get sick. But more than that, I pray that whatever happens to me is in line with God’s will for me (to be holy, to be loving) and that it is unto my salvation.

I can see ways that this crisis is already helping my salvation. It is making me pause to pray more. It is helping me to be more patient. It is helping me to work more efficiently. It is motivating me to spend more time at home with family. These are all good things. This situation we are in is not good for the most part. It is really bad and might get much worse. However, good can certainly come out of it, and the hope is that good will come out of it long after the crisis is over.

One of the hardest things to do in life is be present. We always seem to have one eye on the past, usually with either nostalgia or regret, and the other eye on the future, usually with either joy or anxiety. We can’t change the past and we are not guaranteed the future, so it is important that we live in the present. It is important that we appreciate and make the most of the present. And it is critical that we seek to do God’s will in the present. If we are too anxious about the future, we will miss the present moment and its opportunities.

Sufficient for today is its own needs—This Bible verse is an important mantra in my life. The needs of any given day are few. Today I have a need for safe travel, wisdom, efficiency, and patience. Those are the needs. Today in our world, we need grace, patience, and safety. Really what else do we need in this crisis? We need out leaders to make good decisions. We need our medical people to find a cure. But what do we need ourselves and from the people around us? Patience, wisdom, health and safety. And these are the needs that I will make known to God in prayer. And if God can meet these needs, and if I play my role in helping them to happen, there is truly nothing to be anxious about TODAY. Today is what we have—as we read in Psalm 118:24, “This is the DAY (not the week, month, year or lifetime) that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!”

Lord, thank You for the gift of today. Thank You that I woke up today. Thank You for the possibilities that my day will bring. Walk with me today, in each moment, in each task, in each encounter, in each challenge. Help me to trust in You to provide the needs of today. Help me not to focus on things over which I have no control, but to be present with each person I will encounter today and to make the most of each opportunity that will come my way. Amen.

Prayer of Protection from the Coronavirus
(Prayer by Grace Bishop Alexis (Trader) of Bethesda)
O God Almighty, Lord of heaven and earth, and of all creation visible and invisible, in Your ineffable goodness, look down upon Your people gathered in Your name. Be our helper and defender in this day of affliction. You know our weakness. You hear our cry in repentance and contrition of heart. O Lord who loves mankind deliver us from the impending threat of the corona virus. Send Your Angel to watch over us and protect us. Grant health and recovery to those suffering from this virus. Guide the hands of physicians, and preserve those who are healthy that we may continue to serve You in peace and glorify Your most honorable and majestic Name, of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, now and forever and to the ages of ages. Amen.

Seek to do God’s will (love one another, help one another, as we work our way to salvation) today!