John 16:33
Jesus Says We Will Have Troubles in Life
33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Matthew 6:25-34
Do Not Worry
25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Jesus makes it clear in His two statements that we will have troubles of some sort in this world and in our lives...He said, "In this world you will have trouble."...And He adds, "Each day has enough trouble of its own."...We might expect to have a few or more troubled days in our lives...
Jesus turned all His troubles and worries over to God...He was very, very good at letting go and letting His Father help Him in times of troubles...And He says in this world you will have troubles...He is, of course, right...Yet, I am one who tries to think through all the possible problems that might come up, when I am involved in something...But a trouble here and there always comes up to test my resilience...My mind just does its best to head off any problems, but it hasn't been able to so far...And I also have this tendency to worry...Even though I know God feeds the birds and all the other wildlife in the entire world...Yet these thoughts of heading off a problem or problems still come up...
I need to pray more about trusting in the LORD when I am involved in certain things, and again when the troubles come up that I could not predict or did not think about...
Author Kathleen Norris gives some good advice on the troubles, worries, and the things that come up in our lives, “Before you begin a thing, remind yourself that difficulties and delays quite impossible to foresee are ahead...If you could see them clearly, naturally you could do a great deal to get rid of them but you can't...You can only see one thing clearly and that is your goal...Form a mental vision of that and cling to it through thick and thin.”...