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Jun 02, 2026 06:00am

Walking Through Luke: Do Not Be Anxious

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There are a lot of things that make us anxious.

In high school, these anxieties may include uncertainties like, “Did I study well enough to pass the test?” or “Does my crush like me back?” As we grow older, they may become more serious: “Am I going to be able to afford college?” or “Am I making the right choices for my future?” And beyond that, we wonder if we’re providing well enough for our families, whether the economy will hold together, and when we’ll get that dreaded phone call about an elderly relative’s passing.

Sometimes, anxiety is reasonable. Sometimes, it is oppressive and constraining without a logical reason to back it up.

Finances are probably among the biggest sources of anxiety. This is especially true as we get older and move out of the high school and collegiate years and into adulthood. Will I be able to afford to pay rent this month? How many shifts do I have to work to make sure the bills are paid? Do I have enough to get new tires on the car? Can I pay for the kids’ new shoes and clothes?

Before my wife and I had children, we moved to a smaller town than the one we lived in because it was closer to the church where I ministered. Shortly after moving in, we received a letter in the mail from our previous apartment complex. They were billing us $960 for damage to the carpet—damage they said had clearly been done by a dog urinating repeatedly on the same spot, which would have been a violation of their no-pets policy. We contested this because we never had a dog in that apartment or even allowed someone else to bring one in. But they insisted that we were lying and that they would not reconsider the bill.

This obviously caused a great deal of stress. They were going to charge us nearly $1,000, and if we didn’t agree to a payment plan within a very short timetable, they were going to send the bill to collections, which would affect our credit score. We did not have the money to pay it, and we knew we were being charged unjustly. That was definitely one of the most anxious times in my life, and it came the week before Thanksgiving, which put me in a bad mood anyway.

After consulting with two lawyers, I wrote a letter to the apartment ownership, stating that we had been informed of our rights as renters and that if we did not see explicit evidence of the damage and proof that we were the ones who caused it and had violated our lease, we would pursue legal action. Additionally, if they sent it to collections without providing us that proof first or at least confirming that they could not provide proof, then we would pursue legal action. I delivered the letter by hand, emailed a copy, and sent a copy in the mail so they couldn’t claim they had never gotten it.

We never paid, and we never got a bill from collections.

God allowed that situation to work out for us thanks to the friends who referred us to those legal consultants. However, in leading up to that resolution, we did wrestle with anxiety over the situation. Thankfully, we learned a lesson from it, and our faith and trust in God’s provision grew.

Following a lesson about greed and hoarding wealth, Jesus launched into a branch off of this conversation, which He directed specifically at His disciples. We see this happen more than once; He will teach the crowd and then focus on His disciples and give them a more detailed continuation of the lesson. In the case of Luke 12:22–34, He continued the line of thought about storing up possessions.

Most of Jesus’ disciples were not financially well off. Peter, Andrew, James, and John, for example, had been fishermen—but since they left those jobs to follow Jesus, they no longer had a steady source of income. Naturally, this would cause most people more than a little stress. We saw back in Luke 8:3 that it was the women who followed Jesus who financially provided for Him and the ministry at large, since most of the Twelve’s time was focused on being with Jesus as He preached and healed. He addressed the concerns they must have been having about their finances.

He told them not to worry about food and clothes. There was more to life than these things. Birds don’t build barns to store their food; still, God ensures they eat. Humanity is far more important to God than birds. So rather than worry about where our next meal will come from, we should trust that He will always make a way. After all, we can’t make our lives an hour longer just by worrying about it. Worry doesn’t solve anything. At the end of the day, when we spend all our time worrying, we haven’t solved the problem—we have only sacrificed our peace of mind.

Likewise, when it came to clothes, God made the flowers beautiful—more beautiful than the finest clothes a king could wear. If He gives flowers that much beauty, He can certainly ensure we are clothed. We may not have the fanciest name-brand clothes or always be on trend, but we’ll certainly never have to worry about having clothes. God will make sure we are cared for.

Jesus acknowledged that everyone in the world worried about those things. But God knows we need them. So if we know that God knows, why should we spend time worrying? He isn’t going to let us go lacking. Rather than worry about our provisions, we should be focused on God—on growing closer to Him, building His kingdom, and drawing the world to Him. And as we do, the things we need will be taken care of.

Because of that, we can do what Jesus said: be generous, give what we have so that the less fortunate can have their needs met, and not worry about ourselves. That can feel frightening, but it’s a step of faith. When the opportunity presents itself, we can stretch the muscles of our faith by giving even when it seems like we might not have enough. God sees and honors that generosity. And when we do give sacrificially, we are storing up treasure in the kingdom of God rather than temporary goods on earth.

Choosing generosity in the face of hardship is a difficult choice. It’s not one that most people would make. But it is what Jesus urges us toward, and it is a sign of strong faith and a tender heart. This isn’t necessarily a call to give all our money to a specific church or ministry, but it is an endorsement of providing for those who are incapable of providing for themselves. If we only have a little, we can still give a little. But if we do, it should be out of cheerful generosity, not obligation or guilt. And we should do so without anxiety or fear, because God will make sure our needs are met.