For the world in its present form is passing away. (1 Corinthians 7:31)
What are your greatest sources of worry or concern? Without knowing the specifics, I would be willing to bet that your answer will involve things of the world – people, circumstances, “what if’s”, etc. If that’s the case, Paul’s words should make you feel better.
Even though we need to deal with the problems of this world, we should take consolation in the fact that we’re not going to be here forever. We were created to live in heaven and will only live on earth for a relatively short period of time. Furthermore, all of our earthly problems (the ones that are keeping us up at night) are temporary. They will either be gone in this life or when your life on earth is over.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus expressed some thoughts about this topic…
“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:31-33)
Every minute spent focusing on things that won’t last is a minute not spent focusing on things that will. If we listen to Jesus (and Paul) and reorder our priorities, we will not only have greater peace, but we’ll ensure that we end up in the right place when our life on earth is over.
