“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:34 (NIV)

Driving into work this morning, I was overcome with a sense of all I needed to get done and everything I haven’t been able to accomplish lately. At one point, I looked down at the speedometer and realized I was even driving faster than I normally do. Granted, things have been crazy at work preparing for Easter and the Thorn production, renovating the campus, launching a new ministry and being the husband and father God called me to be, but I know I am not the only one feeling the pressures and demands of life.

God’s word tells us His grace is sufficient for us and that His power is made perfect in our weakness. When life continually piles circumstance after circumstance on top of you it’s really easy to try and carry the weight of the world on your shoulders, but when we choose to trust God the oppressive burdens of life will be lifted. When I got to work I just closed the door and began to read the word of God and dwell in His presence and then I began to look inward because where we spend our time and treasures will illuminate the desires of our heart and this is so important because our heart always follows what we treasure most.

It’s so easy to make one small choice and then another and another and before you know it everything is out of alignment. In all things, God must come first, then your spouse, then your children/family, and then your career/ministry and then your hobbies/sports/interests. If you elevate any of these above the others, you are on the road to disaster. As life presses in on us from all sides we must carefully guard this hierarchy and the priorities in our life so when we are hard pressed on every side we won’t be crushed; so when we are perplexed, we will not be in despair and so when we are persecuted we won’t be abandoned and even when we are struck down we won’t be destroyed.

God is closer than you think; He often seems far because we have pushed Him in the background. The only thing any of us need more of is God.

When we allow God to open our eyes, we will see Him everywhere. When we allow God to open our hearts, we will be filled with His Spirit and we will feel His presence no matter what we are walking through. When things seem out of control, slow down and look to God, not as an escape from reality, but as a way to find true reality. Remember to give thanks in all things and trust God to see you through whatever is going on. When we thank God, we open the door for Him to come into our lives in a deeper way and it builds our trust, confidence and faith in the Great I Am!