My sister and her friends every year create an online advent calendar containing all things creative and wonderful to share their love of Jesus at Christmas time. This year, I had the opportunity of doing a piece of artwork for it - and today, the 21st December, it features!
I think it's time for me to share with you what has been going on for the last three months. My only excuse for this enormous time delay is.... well, business and fulness of life! You will see what I mean in a second :)!
This time last year, I was applying deferred entry to uni. I knew I wanted to go to uni. I also knew I wanted a gap year - I always had done since my brother and sister went here there and everywhere on theirs, bringing back spiritual treasure with them each time. But I wanted to know what God's will for my gap year was. It was a time of doubt for me - am I even meant to be doing this, is this just my selfish human nature, I want to know God's heartbeat especially for this opportunity ... how do I find it? He spoke to me and confirmed my want to do Modern Languages next year. And the sense that I, and others kept coming back to was that God was saying "what do you want to do on your gap year?" It was like He was giving me the liberty and gift of this year. He was asking me to co-partner with Him. This is a really Biblical idea, and if I'm honest, I struggled to accept it. I just wanted God to give a sign out of the sky with an arrow saying GO HERE. But that didn't happen.
What did happen was that I started to depend on Him more and more. That is one of the most valuable things! It was hard but looking back now, I wouldn't change that experience - I can see all that God was preparing me for. One day, my art teacher randomly suggested that I do an art foundation course. I wasn't totally sure, and if I'm really honest, I wanted to go off on some amazing exotic adventure rather than stay in England and study art.
I decided I'd apply and see if I got in because it is really competitive. When I visited the college, I loved it. I could really see myself fitting in. I had my interview and got a place, and I had this unexplainable ridiculous JOY. Whilst on the campus tour, I had an overwhelming sense of peace that just convicted me that this place was where I needed to be for my gap year. The Spirit of the Lord was moving in my heart.
I was really excited all summer leading up to it. And then 2 weeks before leaving home, a lot of "flaming arrows from the evil one" - I had allowed my "shield of faith" (Ephesians 6:16) to drop for that moment in time. But what this did mean was that I had to consciously choose to trust in God with every small ounce of strength in my body. If I didn't, I couldn't cope.
On the way down in the car with mum, we prayed and declared scripture all the way. We asked for someone nice to meet when I got there. We asked for things to keep my mind off home in the first week. We asked for Godly strength.
This song holds a lot of significance for me. It got me through the tough time of leaving home, leaving my safe childhood stepping out into an adventure with my Lord and Saviour. I didn't want to do it without Him! It is based on Psalm 18, have a listen!
God provided everything - every.single.thing that I needed. There was someone lovely that I met as soon as I got here. The first week was busy and I didn't miss home too much. The art course is amazing. Jesus is teaching me how to release His presence through art. The place is INSANE. I get to live by the sea!!! God just knows my heart so well - everything is so chilled; no one ever wears heels on a night out - I love that! Beautiful inspiration is all around me. He has planted me so well in places that hold no coincidence. I have been able to witness so much to my friends. God has blessed me with a church that just wants to know the Father's heart.
And it's true, there are hard things: - It is not always easy being away from home. And I have had to step out of my comfort zone a lot. But I'm not so fearful of doing that now. God is shaping me in radical ways, in ways that only He can do. I wouldn't change that for anything. And whilst part of me still wishes I got to go travel, I know that deep deep in my heart, I am in the right place for this year. No hardship that I encounter can ever take away from the all-surpassing greatness of knowing Him! I do have a long summer holidays, so am praying about what to do with them :)! Please join me in praying.
So I'll leave you with a word of encouragement and advice for you all -
This experience has made me realise that I just don't want to go anywhere that God is not calling me to be. Sometimes you have to look really hard to find what that may be, but believe me, it is such an important thing. "Keep on seeking, and you will find" Matthew 7:7.
He is shaping me in His potter's hands. And I believe that I really am just a jar of clay made to shine with the Lord's glorious treasure. (2 Corinthians 4:7)
With love,
Sarah xx
In a few weeks' time everything I know will simply be a memory. The place that I've called 'home' and the people that I've called 'family' are going to violently ripped away from me. Put slightly less dramatically, School will be finishing... Forever. And ever. And. Ever. (I lied about the 'less dramatic' part!)
I don't know about you guys, but I love my school. I love the 'quintessential' grounds, the teachers who feel like friends, the atmosphere that just screams 'God is present', but most of all the people who I have gradually come to know as a part of me.
I can't walk around school without remembering a thousand different memories.
This is the library where we decided to smuggle in a picnic one day and where have got to a stage of having 'our' seats. This is the classroom that holds so many memories of GCSE English and too many laughs to count. These are the toilets where we locked all the doors and I fell in the toilet after breaking the lid that I was standing on. This is the dining room where we have sat for hours eating, laughing, praying, foot stomping, shouting, and frequently getting told off for doing so. This is the stage where I met a person I shouldn't have, as well as having an oodle of laughs with the 'Hot Box girls'. This is the art block where 'under pressure' was sung in the last 5 minutes of an exam, we have been a bit 'in the dark', we never get a computer, we didn't get a cookie, but we have done some pretty ridiculous stuff for our grades. This is the Hockey block where we were threatened with a 'sitting plan' every week and crawled on the floor doing gun drills (for CCF, I hasten to add!). This is the bridge we hid under during a 'latin treasure hunt'. These are our 'preferred' toilets which we daily frequent, even when half of us are actually only keeping the other half 'company', which sertinly amuses some people. This is the room where I'm never lonely, we stay up until the wee hours of the morning, we watch endless movies, we strum guitars, we write songs, we occasionally do some work, and we get to share each other's company. This is the house that always has an open door, always warms our hearts, lights our smiles, calms our troubled minds, provides props for our photography, quenches our thirst with endless cups of tea, and can be called none other than 'The Tea House'.
For anyone who thinks several of those memories were ridiculously weird, then you would be excused for thinking so, but I think we've all got to a stage now where we can embrace our insanity. It stems from being in the company of good friends, and my friends are simply wonderful.
As we come to the end of our time together, I want us to remember the laughs, but also the tears. We have all faced troubles in one way or another but with amazingly comforting friends and a glorious God, these times have shaped us to become the (Dare I say?) 'women' of God that we are today.
The constant in our relationships has always been God and although the rest of our lives look utterly terrifying, as long as we have Him, then we will always hold a tiny piece of each other.
Right now, I want to look at these few short weeks ahead and cherish the present. It truly is a gift.
Whatever the future brings I want you all to know that in this moment, I love you. Please never forget that.
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline ~ 2 Timothy 1:7
Gina and I were talking and I explained to her this idea that I'd had about faith. It's a cool sort of irony that faith should be our blindfold, shutting ourself off to a worldy view of life, and it should be how we see, looking through heavenly eyes. Faith is complete reliance on God, dependant that he will lead us where we need to go and never let us down.
Anyway, I had this idea that life is a minefield...living in the world we're always surrounded by dangers, but because we're not of the world, God will lead us around the mines to reach the treasure at the centre. If we didn't have God we'd run straight towards the treasure and get blown to bits! The metaphor is clear: we need to rely on God to get through life and get to the ultimate treasure at the end.
So we decided to write a short story about it from Gods perspective:
I lace my fingers through her hand. She can't see me, yet she can feel My presence. Her timidity falters and a knowing smile breaks through. I give her hand a tender squeeze and her hold tightens. I don't have to look at the ground, though the mines are swarming around us like wasps on a hot day.
I see her swallow in apprehension and flick the hair from her eyes, wide and searching. I begin to imagine her without me, breaking into a sprint, without a backwards glance, eyes locked on the treasure, heart racing, lungs pounding, mind blindly charging forwards, not thinking. I shudder at the thought, sickened as I hear the explosion echo through my imagination. I grip her hand tighter, flooding her with my reassurance and love.
Bending down close to her ear I whisper quietly and gently. In obedience she starts to move, letting my Words and touch guide her. Her steps are tentative at first, her foot arching as she steps out, but as I put my arm securely round her shoulder, she begins to trust. Her steps come quicker as I guide and weave her around the mines. I spin her round and round, her dress billowing in a multitude of colours, the air around her shimmering. She opens her mouth and starts to laugh, the joy flying from her features. As she grips me tighter her laughter grows and I laugh with her, her joy increasing as she releases herself to me.
I delight in her joy and love. I lead her carefully and purposfully through the mines, our movement that of a dance, twirling and spinning and running and jumping! It's a long circuitous route, not as direct as she might have wanted or expected but we arrive breathlessly at the threshold to heaven. I watch as my Son comes out of the darkness around us, stretching out his hands and forming an archway.
My hand never leaves hers as she takes the leap of faith and jumps into his arms, burying her face into his hair.
She's home.
'I am the gate'
And on a slightly random note (you'll get the pun in a minute) there's a really great song that sort of matches this post. It's by Sanctus Real and called These Things Take Time, enjoy!
I often find that when words fail but my heart still longs to speak, good music becomes it's voice.
You know that feeling when you hear a good song and just every part of you is singing 'yes!'
And then those other moments when you're listening to a song and its just so completely wrong.
Well from now on, I do not want to be caught listening to the music that unsettles my heart. Even if the tune is catchy, the words do not lift my spirits and feed my soul. There is nothing of God in those songs.
From now on, I am dedicated to finding the songs that sing the song my heart longs to speak. The words that surround me with truth and wash over me with beauty.
Today I liked to share with you a few of my all-time favourite songs. Some are sad, some are soppy, some are bouncy, some are contemplative, and some just make me smile and fill me with an overwhelming sense of contentment.
So, in no particular order... 1. Jenny & Tyler - Faint Not* 2. Switchfoot - In This Life* 3. Taylor Swift - Safe & Sound* 4. Laura Marling - Ghosts 5. Ross Copperman - Lucky Day* 6. Regina Spektor - The Call* 7. Lenka - The Show 8. Sara Bareilles - City* 9. Saticoy - Arethusa* 10. Benjamin Francis Leftwich - Shine* 11. Brooke Fraser - Betty 12. Charlene Soraia - Wherever you will go 13. Colbie Caillat - You Got me* 14. A Fine Frenzy - Whisper* 15. Ingrid Michaelson - You and I* 16. Jon Foreman - In My Arms* 17. Kelly CLarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You 18. Mumford & Sons - The Cave* 19. Newton Faulkner - People Should Smile More* 20. Owl CIty - If My Heart Was a House
I know I haven't linked them all on here, but they are ALL so worth looking up! Youtube, iTunes, whatever you do, DO IT!!
*When making this list is was impossible to choose just ONE good song from some artists. All the ones with stars next to are ones where the whole album, or actually just all their work is INSANE!
This post could also be entitled 'How I'm going to get my life back on track', but I though that 'A Guide to Finding Yourself' sounded much more enchanting and less like a lot of hard work!!
First of all, I will be polite and ask how you are. How are you? Good, I hope, because the sun is shining here, even if its not wherever you are!
Now, despite Milla's best efforts (she was distracting me on Facebook!), I am determined to share this with you today!! In the process of finding myself, and discovering who God is calling me to be, and calling me to do, there are few things that I'm going to start doing consistently, to help hear God and get things in order.
These may be no help whatsoever to you, but maybe there'll be a few ideas for things that you could do too...
Here goes... 1. Get into the word ~ oftentimes this is something that is literally the most obvious thing to do, but also the hardest. With life getting busier and busier in the run up to exams its so easy to think 'But I don't have time for that!', as I have done for a couple of months now. But I'm discovering that unless I'm drenching myself in the word every day, then nothing else matters, and the likelihood is that I won't survive the exams anyway!
Ephesians 2:10 ~ For we are God's Masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
2. Write things down ~ This bit comes in three parts (as all good messages do!) i) Get a notebook and write down what you are learning in bible study times. This makes it much easier to remember what God has said to you in these times, as it is often so easy to forget. Also, it focuses your mind to study the passage more in depth if you know that you're then taking notes. ii) Keep a notebook by your bed. My gorgeous friend Sarah showed me this wonderful podcast about how God speaks to us in dreams and its so true. I'm one of those people that has MAJORLY vivid dreams. A few examples... I was a toothbrush, I was a piece of cheese on a mousetrap, I was conducting the ceremony for Voldemort and Harry Potter's wedding, and Megan's mum got decapitated. There are also certain places in my dreams that I recognise, not because I've been there in real life, but because I've been there before in a dream. Often I know if I'm going to have a nightmare, because it will be a new place, so I don't have the security of the 'Familiar'. Maybe I should do a seperate blog post on this!! Anyways, back to the point... write down dreams as soon as you wake up, because God could be speaking to you through them, so you don't want to forget! iii) Write a priorities list. I feel like I need to do this and redo this every few months. It's so easy to lose focus of your priorities and what you're really working for, and a priorities list helps you to really reflect on what you are putting at the centre of your life, and what you're focusing on.
I have a slight obsession with notebooks...
3. Make time for things you love. For me, this is hanging out with my stunning friends, taking photos, using my grandma's sewing machine to make things (tutorial coming soon!), reading other wonderful blogs (list coming soon), reading Jane Austen novels etc etc... The more you do things that you love, the more God will lift your spirit through these things.
As the title suggests, there will be another section coming soon, but I don't want to overload you all in one hit! And I haven't got this all sorted yet, either, so we're journeying through this together! If you want a teaser for Part 2, here it is... It is nothing to do with Elephants. Or Anchovies. Leave a comment below if you have any suggestions of things that are helpful in your life! xo
Courage.
In my opinion, there's two types of it: Bravery and Bravado.
Sometimes we generate this 'home-made' courage inside of us, a dilute mixture of deep breaths and positive thinking. It'll be a familiar concoction to you I'm sure, it's when you walk with a lifted chin, shoulders back and try to appear mature, grown up or in-charge (when really we're just a bunch of floundering little girls who panic at the thought of flying the nest! Or at least some of us out there are.)
But I'm going to break some, perhaps welcome, news to you at this point:
That is not courage.
True courage is divine. It's when your soul says 'YES' but your head and heart shout 'NO!' (Or maybe, 'No way not in a million years, you'd have to drag me by the ankles and whip me with a garden spade.') It's approaching situations not with fleeting, momentary confidence- a sudden spark, a flood of adreneline- but with the wind of god on your cheeks and his breath on your lips. We can be confident when we know God's on our side. We can be brave when we know he's holding our hand. We can square up to fear when we know we're not alone. OR... we can embrace it all, every last terrifying risk life has to offer, every dagger it has to throw and abandon inhibition all together- stand on God's shoulders and be: fear-less.
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear...
1 John 4:18
I have to say when I read Eve's first post of this series that I was powerfully moved. And at her prompting invitation at the end to add one of my own unforgettable memories, my initial thought was this: .
Blank.
White.
Nothing.
Following this, when I tried to scramble for a memory, none of them felt right. I think I was trying too hard. Just a few minutes ago, after eating a picnic lunch outside in the ridiculously unusual English weather, sun beating down on my head, a few celandines caught my eye...
This immediately took me back to a truly unforgettable memory for me. My fingers instantly started weaving, punching holes and posting more celandines through each other until ta-dah! I had a Celandi-Chain (Is that a word? It is now.....)
As I sat there, gently, absentmindedly creating my childhood head garland, my mind wandered back to when I first learnt about Celandines. It was once again, a sunny spring day when I was 5, and my extended family and I were wandering down a village path to a small church. There were plants and weeds jumping out from every crack in the pavement and cobbled wall that they could. Being my true self, flowers were, as ever, of utmost importance. And this gleaming yellow flower, beckoning my eye to catch it's light, immediately made me burst out - 'BUTTERCUPS! Look, Mummy. Bapu, come here! It's nearly summer!!' Such innocent excitement. Bapu (my Grandpa.....it came from my cousin's interesting first attempt to say Grandpa!) knelt over next to me with an 'oof' and said - 'Ah, Sarah, you've not found a buttercup there. It's not quite summer yet. That's a celandine that's caught your attention!' After letting out a few bemused looks, a shy little smile came across my face and I exclaimed - 'Is it like a buttercup, just this is spring's one, and summer gets to have the normal buttercups?'
'Well, nearly,' said Bapu, 'it's just that if you look really, really closely, you can see that the celandines have more petals, and they're more pointed. Buttercups are rounded, more "cup" shaped like their name suggests!' He laughed a gentle but hearty chuckle and pulled himself up with another 'oof'. Off I ran with a wide smile on my face, burst into a conversation and said - 'Mummy, mummy! Look I've found a CELANDINE!' More smiles. And more hearty chuckles ring in my ears, even now, as if it were yesterday.
A few months later, Bapu passed away, and I decided that whenever I saw a celandine, I would think of him. And more than ten years later, I still do. It's a beautiful, ongoing memory for me. I love the way that the yellow gleams with the shiny, inner layer it holds on it's magnificent petals, subtly reflecting the sun's beam.
Perhaps there's a metaphor in there for us to learn from...How can we be active, attention-grabbing, gentle and spring-ful reflectors of our Son, Jesus Christ's powerful beam of light? Do we remember to ask the Spirit to fill us up with His graceful, beautiful, transforming presence so that we can have a layer that gleams inside of us? Because it's real and powerful - 'You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you' - Acts 1:8.
Have a great day!
And notice the celandines next time you go outside - maybe they can be a reminder for you to ask the Holy Spirit to fill you up.
Love,
Sarah
P.S. I've just come back from a lovely couple of days by the sea, so sorry this is late, but remember today's OPERATION SPEAK OUT! (See blog post below...)
My friend Abi over at 'Creating Paper Dreams' (great blog, go and have a look...) had this brilliant idea of commenting on blogs, just for simple and honest encouragement on Thursday 5th April.
She says... "On Thursday 5th April I am going to make it my mission to comment on EVERY BLOG I VISIT. Just for this one day I am going to speak out on these blogs. Blogs big and small. I will write a comment."
So although I’ve been silent for a few days up until today (two in one day... Radical, right?!), I have been thinking a lot about what I want to write on here. I thought it might be nice to start a little feature for a week or two. I haven’t run this by the others, but I just thought it might be nice to write down some of our memories from the last 18 (or so) years…
I’d also like to take the bold step of opening this up for reader submissions. If you’re reading this and have a memory you’d like to share then leave a comment and we’ll be in contact ASAP!
I’ll start…
On Wednesday the 7th of June 1994, Edward Lincoln Balshaw landed on the shores of Normandy. As a terrified, homesick and very wet (he was lowered over the side of the boat to test the depth of the water… he couldn’t swim!) 19-year-old boy, nothing could have prepared him for what he was about to see. Yesterday had been D-day, and today, I imagine, was something like stepping into hell.
60 years later, my Grandad returned to Normandy for D-day Anniversary celebrations. For some very different reasons, he was also unprepared for what he would experience.
On one of the afternoons, they had decided to present all the veterans with a special memorial medal/badge, my Grandad included. Grandad appeared in the morning wearing a light summer shirt, perfect for the blazing French sun, but rather unsuitable to hold the medals that he had pinned to the front breast pocket. Having never worn his medals since being given them at the end of the war, Dad handed over his own suit jacket, and Grandad was made a tad more presentable for the occasion.
We drove as close as we could, but the crowds prohibited much proximity to the main event, so we travelled the rest of the way on foot. As a young girl holding Grandad’s hand, I was relatively unaware of what was going on around me, and in the busyness and heat of the day, so was Grandad. Grandma, Jonathan, Mum and Dad were following us and we soon found ourselves walking down a blocked off road, with people lining both sides. As we walked down the middle we began to hear the pitter-patter of claps. And more. And more. All around us, applause was breaking out. (I’m starting to cry as I write this now!) Grandad looks up and sees crowds of faces smiling back at him and clapping and cheering. It dawns on him… They were applauding HIM. They were thanking him for the sacrifice he made, and the battle he fought for THEIR freedom. Slowly he pulls back his gently sloping shoulders, straightens his back, with his head held high, and grips my hand, walking on with an overwhelming sense of pride.
Suddenly everything that he had gone through was starting to make sense. The horrors of his time in that place 60 years ago had really counted for something. Without him, these people would not have the freedom to stand in the streets and salute the men who had given their all.
This is probably one of the clearest memories I have of my Grandad. Seeing the releasing of pain and fear that he had held up for so long is something I hope never to forget.
A picture of my Grandad and Brother taken a few months ago on my phone when we went to stay with Grandad for what ended up being his last Christmas.
I'm not sure I'd advise actually listening to many of these when you revise, but it's a little humorous list to lighten up your working day! The songs I would actually listen to would be wordless (Wordless?? I mean...lyric-less...) ones, such as 'Test Drive'- How to Train Your Dragon, or 'River flows in You'- Yiruma, or the Pride and Prejudice score, etc.
What do you listen to?
If you're working this easter- Good Luck!
I'm pretty sure we've all done it. Dreamed of the moment when we look up and see HIM. He's just smiling casually, and then he catches your eye and you both just KNOW. And that's it. Fast-forward and you're sailing off into the sunset for the perfect 'Happily Ever After'...
But I'm starting to learn that Prince Charming is what you make him. Bradley Cooper. Ryan Reynolds. THAT guy. Or maybe just pure fiction.
Hear me out here. I'm really not a cynic, but I'm also fully aware that I'm not perfect. (Spend 10 minutes with me and you'll find that out for yourself!) So why on earth do I expect my future husband to be perfect? As much as I would like him to be, in reality it's just not fair for me to have those kinds of expectations. I would feel so inadequate if he had those kinds of expectations of me, and although I want to be the best I can be for him, 'perfect' is never going to be attainable in this life.
I have spent years dreaming of the 'perfect' romance, the 'perfect' proposal, the 'perfect' wedding, and then the subsequent life of 'perfect' bliss. But the whole point of a meet-cute is that it can't be planned! Or at least not by us.
I have faith in a God who has already planned out my perfect romance. Whether that is with a guy who He has set apart to be mine, or whether that is with God, as in the end He should be the ultimate romancer of my soul.
From now on, my perfect guy is not perfect. But neither am I, so I guess he's perfect for me.
My journey in faith is getting harder as my mind grows older and I become increasingly aware of the sin steeped world I am in. I sometimes yearn for the days where I just blindly trusted, there were no questions, no doubts, no lust for logic or visible, tangible evidence. I feel world weary at 17, and sceptical as I know it's going to get worse...
So my prayer is this: keep me close to you.
The 'future' is rapidly approaching. This 'future' has always been a distant, blurred blip on a hazy sevanah. I don't think I ever believed it would come. But now it's bearing its teeth and I'm having to confront it. And as i'm writing to you right now, I'm in those three deep breathes before the fightbegins. This 'future' I'm talking about is leaving school. School, this shell, this sheild, this prison, this safe and comfortable haven, is about to be ripped away from me. I feel like a snail that's been plucked from its leafy green sanctuary and hurled into a desert.
In a way it's a good thing because it will force me to cling to you. Grappling with the unknown and uncomfortable will force me to fall back to you as you will be the only familiarity in a universe of strangeness. I pray, I plead, I deplore that you will live in me, be my guide, be my confidence, be my topic of conversation, be the thing that people see when I walk past and smile.
My mind will betray me, this I know. Predators like worry, despair, lonliness and hate will prey on me as I forget your promises. In this way, memory is like a poison. Slowly, agonisingly, drawing me into sin, I will forget your love for me, I'll forget that I need to serve you, I will sucumb to selfishness.
But Lord, you say in your infallible word that these things crumble in the face of your love. These things shall never separate me from you. We can conquer them because you can use them for good. So what power do they have over me? Nothing.
Romans 8 v33-37:
'Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?...No in all these things we are more than conquerers through him who loved us.'
We are not exempt from suffering, but we do not need to be afraid of it because you will always conquer it. Be my armour against the snarls of this enemy God, through this battle I pray that I'll mature in faith and become a better servant for you so that when it's over I can rise victorious with you in eternity. Amen.
I wasn't sure what to write on my first ever blog post! Should I write about God and all he has done for us? Should I post some fun pictures of me and my friends?
I wasn't sure, so I figured that I'd go for something simple. Right now, we're on the build up to exams and we're facing many coursework deadlines. Stress levels are running quite high. These are the most important exams of our school careers and I think we're all starting to realize that. I'm such a natural worrier, so I decided that I would try and simply post a bit of encouragement about why we should be living with a deep peace. Not just saying that we're fine whilst we're sinking under deadlines. The peace I want comes from living with a knowledge that our value doesn't comes from Christ alone.
Here's why:
1.God has a plan for our lives (Jeremiah 29:11) that we can trust in.
2.There is no way for us to avoid human suffering. We live in a fallen world, so there is no point in worrying about any hurt that the future might bring us.
3.Worrying distracts us from God’s purpose for us.
4.God is enough for us. Even if we lose all earthly things, He. Will. Still. Be. Enough.
5.Rather than worrying, we can pray about our fears (Philippians 4:6), which is a much more constructive response.
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear… Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?... See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field… will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” Matthew 8:25-30
