Should I worry about others?

The Bible has a lot to say about worry and trusting God.  However, it always seems to talk about things that affect me.  In the Psalms, when the author is asking God for help, he always talks about stuff that is affecting him directly.  For example, people are threatening to kill him.  Sometimes, the concerns are about the author's personal health or financial situation.  The same appears to be true throughout the Bible.  Whenever someome is appealing to God for help, it is for relief from personal affliction.  There are times when people petition God on behalf of the entire nation of Israel, but that also includes the petitioner.

When Jesus talks about suffering and relief from God, he also makes it personal.  In the sermon on the mount, he mentions a person worrying about food, and clothing.  In John 10, Jesus says, "In this world, YOU will have trouble."  Again, it is personal.

Everything that happens to Job happens to him personally.  Yes, his kids die but that is directed at him because it is an event that is over for the kids.  They are not suffering with disease or poverty.  Their death affects Job personally as does losing his wealth and his bodily afflictions.

The lesson the Bible gives us for all of these situations where we are personally afflicted is, "Don't worry."  "God will work all things together for good."  "God is God, and you are not.  He's got this."  (That last one is, what I think, the lesson for us in Job.)  This is all good stuff and very true.  We should not worry about our lives.  We should have peace in every circumstance.  We should trust God to take care of us.

What about other people that I care about?  What about my kids?

Are there places in scripture where people are sad or worried about others?  Does anyone cry out to God because there child or friend is suffering.  There is the story of the Prodigal Son.  The father in that story is suffering on behalf of his child.  How do we know this?  Because he is standing at the edge of his property looking for his son to return.  When the son finally returned, the father saw the son "when he was a long way off".  This is a man who was concerned for his son.  Every day.  For years.

There is also the story of the paralytic man that was let down on a cot into the room where Jesus was.  His friends were concerned for their friend.  They took action and brought him to Jesus.  They had faith that Jesus would heal him.

Jesus showed concern for others.  He wept over Jerusalem.  He wept for Lazarus.

Is the lesson for those who worry about others the same as those who worry about themselves?  The father of the prodigal son got his son back.  The paralyzed man was healed.  Lazarus was raised and returned to this friends.  Jerusalem did not repent.  Most stories of unbelief end with the unbelief persisting -- Sodom and Gomorrah, the rich man and Lazarus, Pharoah and the Israelites.

The only time people who mourn do not find relief is when their loved ones are falling away or not believers.  Not all children of Christian parents will be in heaven.  No matter how much a parent prays for their child, the child may still not believe or repent.  How does a parent deal with that?  How can a parent find peace?  Do you just rejoice that your name is written in the book of life.  Do we not care about others in this case?  The same verses that comfort us in our personal afflictions do not apply.  God may not work a child's unbelief for good.  How can it be good if they end up in hell for all eternity?

I don't know the answers to these questions.  I suppose all I can do is continue to witness to my kids and pray for them and hope that the seeds we planted in their youth will bear fruit someday.  Hopefully, the mistakes we made can be overcome.  Maybe we should focus on other people who are called and chosen by God.

How do parents find peace?  How can we rejoice?  How does God find peace when the vast majority of his children refuse to believe in him?

All we can do is hope.

I don't want to eat right

I have type 2 Diabetes.  It affects my sleep.  It affects my energy.  It affects the nerves in my feet and hands.  

My diabetes is not genetic or caused by any medical condition that is out of my control.  I eat too much of the wrong stuff and do not exercise enough.  If I go to my doctor, he is going to tell me to eat better and exercise more.  He is absolutely right.  If I did both of those things to the right levels, I would not have diabetes.  The thing is, I don't want to eat right nor exercise more.  (I'm actually eating some Nutter Butter cookies as I write this.  Not good.)  It does not matter how many times my doctor tells me what to do, I am not going to follow his advice (at least not to the extent that I need to).  I just want him to fix me--get rid of the diabetes.  Hit the reset button on my carb levels so I can keep eating the stuff I like.

I also have problems in my life.  My marriage could be better.  My kids could be making better decisions (this is actually an understatement).  My job could be better.  If I take my problems to God, he will give me advice in the same vein as my doctor.  He is going to tell me to love my wife more; listen to her when she wants to talk; stop being rude.  He'll tell me to be tougher on the kids.  He'll suggest my problems at work are because of my attitude and efforts.  The thing is, I don't want to change in any of these areas either.  I know what I should be doing but I don't want to make the effort.  I just want God to make my problems go away.

There is no magic pill to cure diabetes and there will be no miracle to fix all the problems in my life.  Now what?

One path to take is to simply accept where I am at; don't let things get worse but also don't do the needful to improve.  I'm not really that unhappy where I am and moving off of center in either direction will not be fun.  I can learn to live with where I am, right?  The problem with this strategy is two-fold.  First, if my health declines more, I will face some serious problems.  My feet or fingers could get amputated.  I could have a stroke.  None of that would be good and is not a fair trade to have the ability to eat a donut or some cookies once in awhile.  The other problem is that my bad behavior affects other people.  It's not really fair to them for me not to try harder to be a better husdand, dad, and co-worker.

Another path to take is to make the effort.  Step it up.  Eat better.  Listen more.  Stop goofing off and spending so much time on entertainment activities.  I would prefer this but my track record is pretty dismal.  I start off well but then taper off as real life starts getting too hard.  Will it be different this time?  I doubt it.

Maybe, I just admit defeat and take the treatment to the next level.  For the diabetes, my doctor wants to increase the treatment and put me on insulin.  That would help but once I start, I can never stop, never go back.  Also, I will just eat more junk to account for the increased insulin.  How does that really help?

For the rest, what can God do for me?  Maybe the metaphorically equivalent treatment is to completely change the focus of my life.  As the Bible says, my life is just a mist that is here for a short while.  Heaven is my true home.  That is where my treasure should be stored (Luke 12:32-34).  Jesus invites me to deny myself and pick his up cross (Matt. 16:24).  He says I should take his yoke upon me for his yoke is easy and his burden is light (Matt 11:30).  Maybe my treasure is not my health, nor my job.  Maybe his cross and his yoke are telling (and showing) others that God loves them.  Maybe I need to stop looking for change and just trust that God will work all things for my good (Rom. 8:28).  Maybe I need to stop trying to do things myself and let Jesus live his life through me (Gal. 2:20).

None of this is easy nor comes naturally.  All of this is the complete opposite of the way my sinful nature wants to run my life.  This is the struggle that Paul describes in Romans 7.  "In my mind I am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful self I am a slave to the law of sin.  I thank God for his salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord!"

That being said, I know that I can do all things through Christ.  This does not mean I can perform brain surgery.  It does not mean that I will start eating correctly or listen more to my wife.  It means that in Christ, God will help me carry the cross, and take up his yoke.  It means that I can endure all things, all hardships, all setbacks, all medical issues.   I can add to my treasures in heaven.  I can share the gospel message and the love of Jesus.  Because it is not me.  It is Christ living in me.

Lord I believe.  Help thou my unbelief.