ANXIETY

1 Peter 5:7 ESV “casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”

Anxiety can creep up at times when we least expect it and quickly overwhelm us. Or it can take up unwelcome and apparently permanent residence in our lives. Anxiety may take on different faces, and it may be propelled by different circumstances, but the issue itself is surprisingly common. When we face anxiety, we often try to ignore it by distracting our minds: engaging in activities. Notice, though, that in this verse, Peter does not say we are to deny, ignore, or flee from anxiety. Instead, we should be “casting all [our] anxieties on him.” The Greek word for “cast” here could be used to describe throwing out a bag of trash. So, instead of going through our days pressed down by the burden of anxiety, we are to throw it, hurl it, upon the Lord. To do this requires us to be humble. Being humble is what enables us to give our worries to God. When we attempt to take matters into our own hands through too much worry, we indicate an absence of humility; we are more concerned with ourselves than with our heavenly Father, or we are more determined to navigate our own course than to leave it to Him. There will always be a circumstance that can make us anxious. Peter does not address any specific circumstances, though; rather, he addresses the anxiety produced by the circumstances. Our anxiety itself is what we cast upon the Lord, doing exactly what the Bible says to do: humbling ourselves under God’s hand, saying, “My Father knows best. He cares for me better than I can care for myself.” The Lord is always willing to help. Perhaps it has been a long time since you knelt beside your bed and truly cast your burden upon the only one who is able to carry it, saying, “God, I cannot live my life with this burden anymore. Take it. It is Yours.” If that is you, do not hesitate any longer. Cast your anxieties into the loving arms of your heavenly Father and experience the freedom and peace only He can provide.