Stop Borrowing Trouble
"Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."
Matthew 6:34
This is such a powerful verse!
But if we really want to understand what we are being taught here, the wisdom begins back in verse 25 and carries all the way through verse 34. And just look at the examples from nature that Jesus gives us along the way.
First, we are told to look at the birds:
"They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them." Matthew 6:26
Then we are directed to the flowers:
"Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these." Matthew 6:28–29
And finally:
"But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you?" Matthew 6:30
Now, does this mean we are supposed to be lackadaisical?
(Now that was a fun word to use. ☺️)
Absolutely not!
In Proverbs 6:6, we are told:
"Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise."
Take just a minute to read this short article by Julianne Bisognini about ants, and you'll learn some pretty amazing things about these tiny creatures:
- Ants teach other ants.
- Ants have specific jobs.
- Ants are farmers.
- Ants can survive underwater.
- Ants are VERY strong.
And that is only a tiny portion of what we know about ants. Seriously, they are absolutely amazing creatures. The more we looked up facts about them, the more we understood why God would point us toward the ant in Proverbs.
Ants work. They prepare. They have responsibilities. They accomplish what is in front of them.
So Matthew 6:34 is certainly not telling us to submit our resignation at work, grab our lawn chairs, kick back, and say, "Well, God—do Your thing!"
No!
It is telling us to STOP BORROWING TROUBLE.
Trust me, all of us here at Boss are guilty of doing some "borrowing."
We think about the what ifs.
What if this happens?
What if that doesn't work?
What if the plan falls apart?
What if tomorrow brings something we aren't prepared for?
There is nothing wrong with planning ahead. There is nothing wrong with preparing, working hard, or trying to make wise decisions. Scripture certainly does not teach us to be lazy or irresponsible.
But there comes a point when planning turns into worrying.
And when we reach that point, sometimes we simply have to surrender it and pray.
An inconvenience or setback may be an opportunity for us to practice patience, trust, and faith—even when things are not going the way we planned. That does not mean we have to pretend everything is wonderful. It means remembering that we can only handle what is actually in front of us.
You can only do so much at one time.
You are only one person.
And if you have a team, let them help. Delegate. Praise them for what they do well. Teach them when something needs to be done differently. You do not have to carry every responsibility by yourself.
Do the work that God has placed in front of you today.
Prepare where you can.
Work diligently.
Pray.
And then trust Him with the things that are outside of your control.
Tomorrow will arrive soon enough. There is no reason to drag all of tomorrow's possible troubles into today.
Don't borrow trouble from a day that isn't even here yet.
