“Casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.” 1Peter 5:7
Sunday mornings for me, are a mixed bag of anticipation, exhilaration, and sometimes, consternation. I look forward in anticipation of fellowshipping with some of the lovely people of God that I don’t get to see during the week. I also experience a sense of exhilaration as I look forward to worship and the teaching of the word in the house of the Lord. But with that, there are also the souls among the congregation who are weighed down with cares, worries and often urgent and deep needs. I too have walked amongst God’s people with anxieties of my own. I often feel the weight of others who are crying out to God and join with them as we pray through their concerns. Then there are the personal and private concerns that life delivers on my doorstep, in which my own faith is tested.
There are two kinds of cares in this text. There is anxious care in the words, “Casting all your care upon Him”; and there is affectionate care, in the words, “He cares for you.” What a profound contrast! Over and above our own anxious care is our Savior’s never-failing affectionate care.
In the first part of this verse the word “casting” in the Greek means once for all. What does that look like in real life when one care after another is always nipping at our feet? It simply means that you and me get into the habit of saying, “Lord, whatever cares may be coming, I cast them all in advance on You. If we do that, what a mental relief it brings. Next, the verse commands us to cast “all” our care on Him; not only the larger but the lesser; not only the spiritual but the material; not only in general but in particular, all the time. Our Savior invites us to do this.
In this life, we will never be exempt from cares, but we can be free of anxiety that often causes a thousand other difficulties. Another translation of this verse is ” Throw the whole weight of your anxiety on Him.”
J. Sidlow Baxter said, “Careworn Christian, put your ear to this text again, and hear the dear Savior coming to your rescue!”
Last but not least, think about the closing sentence of this verse, “He cares for you.” He who upholds the very universe cares for you, me and all His beloved. Another translation in the Greek is, “It really matters to Him about you.” Everyday day and every hour our Creator cares for us.
This is so beautiful!
About 4months ago, I was in a car accident and suffered 4 hairline fractures on my right foot. The last 4months have been full of anxiety, depression and anger. I was worried about losing my job and my normal routine of life. I prayed that God will heal my foot but little did I know that God had a different plan. He wanted to heal my heart. He wanted me to “cast all of my anxiety onto him”. To trust him because he “loves me”. Life hasn’t gotten any easier for me, I’m still at home recovering, without a job and have to move out of my house soon. Despite of all these issues of life, I choose the joy of the Lord. Knowing that he is guiding my life brings me joy! As I recover, I sometimes feel the anxiety, depression and anger coming back but I take it to the cross on a daily basis. Sometimes it’s on a hourly basis or even more. I choose to no longer wait with anxiety but with excitement! I choose to wait with hope and not depression. I choose to wait with calmness and not anger. I wonder what the Lord has planned. He always has the best plans and I know it’ll be a beautiful chapter of my life. I know this because “He cares for me”.
He is healing my heart.
He is good Father indeed.