Luke 12:22-31 (KJV)
Consider the Lilies
22 And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on.
23 The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment.
24 Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls?
25 And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit?
26 If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest?
27 Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
28 If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and tomorrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?
29 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.
30 For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.
31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.
John 1:1-5
Through Jesus All Things Were Made
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Consider the lilies is an interesting statement...For me it is a statement of living here, and living right now...It is also noticing all the beauty around us...There is this beauty around us, which we often lose sight of and miss...And constantly losing sight of the beauty around us and those things around us is not a good thing...It is also not a healthy thing...
God made our world to see and enjoy...Jesus tells us to consider even the lilies and how they grow: the lilies do not toil, they do not fret; and yet in all Solomon's wisdom, his glory, and his wealth -he was never clothed like one of these lilies....Jesus wants us to consider not only the beauty of the lilies, but all of His creation...But if we hurry through life, we might miss the beauty seen in the lilies around us...We all to often get lost in our thinking and miss the beauty of those lilies and the other things around us..There is all this beauty around us...And He is the Source of Beauty...This is because all things are made through Him...The lilies were created and made through Him, and they help connect us to this world and our neighbors around us...Jesus want us to very much to consider the lilies and be paying attention to the present moment to all the beauty of this world...
Jon Kabat-Zinn has studied the mind and the body for years...He founded the Mindfulness Behavior Stress Reduction clinic in the University of Massachusetts' Medical Center...According to Jon Kabat-Zinn, "mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way; on purpose, in the present moment, and non judgmentally."...He has studied mindfulness and has shown in scientific studies how paying attention to the present moment is good for our health...When we get carried away and along in our thoughts and lose track of this current moment, we are no longer mindful...People who constantly live and react to their past and present thoughts are often caught up in anxiety and worry...He has discovered people with constant worrisome thoughts, and feelings cause problematic body sensations and more negative thoughts that spiral us down into anxiety...But by living in this present moment of the lilies, we are less prone to these mood disorders...And we worry less...
Jesus knows this, and tells us to consider the lilies...When we consider the lilies, we are aware of this moment and the lilies around us...Living in this moment, we are focused on the beauty of the lilies right here and right now...When we are always considering the lilies, we feel better...We worry less when we are always in this moment and living in the present moment, rather than being preoccupied in our past thoughts or our future thoughts...God has made this world so we will live in it, right here and right now...When we think of it, when do we live -we can only live right here and right now...
God wants us to notice these things...When we look at the way He has made the beautiful green grass clothed in the fields, which is today in the field, and tomorrow is cast into the oven and is gone away...He wants us to enjoy it in the moment...When He has made the grass and lilies so beautiful, how much more will He take care of us, and let us hold to our faith that He will...