Easier Said Than Done

“Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?” (Mt 6:25 AV)

That is easier said than done.  Especially as these days progress.  The closer we get to the coming of the Savior, the harder it will be to have faith for the basic things of life.  As the world crashes toward anarchy, the more precious a loaf of bread might be.  With all their bragging, the world will end up starving their own.  Jesus is speaking to those who will consider Him as their Messiah.  The implication was lost on them.  Even though they may trust Jesus as their Messiah, the implication will be a time of hardship might follow. This was certainly true.  When Jesus rose again, the disciples knew exactly what Jesus meant above.  There would come times of hardship for those who chose to trust Christ.  And those times might be coming again.

Personal need and comfort are hard things to ignore.  When the stomach aches because it hasn’t had food, it is obvious.  When one is cold and wet, life takes on a whole new meaning.  Growing up in Boy Scouts, we learned what both of these things meant.  We camped in some pretty miserable conditions.  It was part of the scouting experience.  The worst were the winter camps.  There is simply no way to stay warm and dry.  It is near to impossible.  Surrounded by snow and ice, everything from outerwear to our socks was soaked.  Tried as we might, we simply could not get dry and warm.  We placed one set of clothes over the fire while wearing a second set.  That doesn’t dry clothes out quickly enough.  When it came to eating, we had to use the same fire for cooking that we were using to dry our clothes out.  Not an easy task.  Trying to clean up after a meal while sitting in a snowstorm is no easy task.  Suffice it to say, winter tent camping is not for the faint of heart.

So, when Jesus gives the challenge above, I know how hard that can be.  Been there, done that.  I shudder to think of what will happen to our churches if real persecution comes.  There were a high percentage of churches that closed simply because they could not agree to stay unified amid the hardship of COVID.  When the world descends upon our churches, persecutes the believer for their professed faith, and jails our preachers, where will the saint be?  Will they be more concerned about the food on the table than they are living for God?  There is a real possibility that the above challenge will fail.  May God give us the strength to trust Him no matter what!