Bible
Study: 2 Chronicles 24, 17 to 25 and Matthew 6, 24 to
34.
Our first reading today is a
clear example of what could become of us if we forsake the worship of God for
idols. King Joash forgot the hand that fed him, he wouldn’t even listen to the
advice of the son of the priest Jehoiada who had fought to ensure he became the
king. Instead he stoned the priest’s son to death. Johoiada did not retaliate
on his own, instead he left everything to God and had faith in the prayer his
son prayed before dying; “May the Lord see and avenge.”
Eventually, God made it
possible for the Syrians to defeat Jerusalem with only a handful of soldiers. It
was clear that their defeat was not as a result of their lack of physical
manpower but the hand of God fighting against them as a punishment.
Dear friends, you cannot
serve both God and mammon. You cannot serve God with one hand and serve idols
with another. It is not a matter of giving to Caeser what belongs to Caeser. God
deserves our full worship because he created the world and everything in it.
In our Gospel passage, Jesus
explains that one way we try to serve two masters is by anxiety. The presence
of anxiety in our hearts is a testimony to our deep seated lack of trust in God’s
providence and love. The feeling that God cannot take care of me often leads me
to become excessively worried when I try to put everything in my life under
control. I become worried about my next meal because I do not really believe it
when I pray; “Give us this day our daily bread.”
The key to killing anxiety
is to realize that no matter how hard I try, I cannot become a god for myself;
no matter how good I am, I cannot take care of myself, no matter how hard I work,
I cannot secure my future. The key to killing anxiety is giving my full trust
to God and God alone. It is seeking first God’s Kingdom and his righteousness. It
is living my life everyday as if today is my last day, it is living for this
moment only and assuming that tomorrow does not exist. If at all there will be
tomorrow, it belongs to God and only God can take care of my tomorrow.
All I have is this very
moment and this time I have I must use it to serve God, I must strive to be
righteous by keeping his commandments and putting God first in everything I do.
Let us Pray:
O God, deepen my trust in
you that I may not make myself, my money or my work into a god. Amen.
Good morning.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. Happy Weekend.
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