Never In Short Supply
Deacon Donald Barksdale
Do you know and believe that God is able to supply all of your needs? Can you truly say that in every situation, you trust Him to be in control even when you don’t see the way or means? Do you find yourself worrying about how you will make it or how things are going to work out?
Jesus instructs His disciples in Matthew 6:25-34 to “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? (v.25) Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? (v.26) Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? (v.27) And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: (v.28) And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. (v.29) Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? (v.30) Therefore take no thought saying, What shall we eat? Or, What shall we drink? Or Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (v.31) For after all these things do the Gentiles seek for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. (v.32) But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (v.33) Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. (v.34)
Jesus gave these instructions and warnings to his disciples as they were sent out and these sayings hold true to us even today. Now, this doesn’t mean that you don’t have to put in work and everything is going to drop into your lap; nor is it saying that everything is going to be easy and simply come to you either. When we worry about things and try to make things happen on our own, we are idolizing ourselves as we think we can meet our needs and fix our situations. We reject idolatry every time we remember and respond to “through Him we live, move and have our being.” (Acts 17:28)
We must keep our faith and focus on the relating to Jesus Christ; knowing and believing that every need of ours will be met as promised to us in Philippians 4:19. As we seek God and His Kingdom, we will gain a greater understanding of who God is and His disposition towards us. We will begin to realize what our real needs are, versus our vain-driven wants and carnal desires.
Martha was busy catering to external wants, while Mary chose the most needed thing - intimacy with Jesus. The Psalmist got it right in chapter 27 when he said “One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple.” God tells us that seeking Him first commands everything in our lives to seek after us; so as we run to Him, our needs run to us. (Matthew 6:33, Psalm 23:1)
Images: Felix Russell, Jeremy Bishop