Encouragement

Ecclesiastes 11:10 – So then, banish anxiety from your heart and cast off the troubles of your body, for youth and vigour are meaningless. (NIV)

Today's scripture, written by King Solomon, appears near the end of a work that, quite honestly, contains many discouraging words. In his writings, Solomon continually states that he sees much of life as vanity, as meaningless, or as a chasing after the wind. He describes his constant efforts to find meaning and purpose in the things of this world, and they all fail him. He tries women, wine, money, and possessions, and none of these brings him joy or happiness. In fact, they all bring him more worry and regret than anything. But, as he nears the end of his writing, he begins to reveal some of the jewels of wisdom that he discovered along the way, that were able to bring some joy and happiness into his life.

For me, the most precious of these jewels is today's scripture verse: "Banish anxiety from your heart, and cast off the troubles of your body." Oh, how much more peaceful and joyful our lives would be if we were able to master and follow this one simple verse. I am naturally a worrying type of person. I easily become anxious and worried when things don't go exactly the way I plan, or if something interrupts the "normal" flow of my day. What makes it worse for me is when I become nervous; the anxiety just builds upon itself, thus making me more and more anxious.

As Christians, we have God's gracious gift of being able to cast our cares and anxieties upon Him, so that we need not bear them ourselves. For us, this lesson is one that we are still learning, but the more we practice it, the easier and more peaceful our lives become. May it be an encouragement to know that we can cast our cares upon Jesus and banish the anxiety from our heart. Our heavenly Father will handle it for us.

Prayer: Dear Jesus, we take this time now to cast all of our cares and worries upon You. We ask that You help us to banish the anxieties and troubles from our lives so that we might better commit ourselves to serving you. Amen.