Go Rest High on that Mountain - Pt 1

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:25-34 ESV).

Sometimes I just get in the mood to go to my computer and pull up various country songs from The Grand Ole Opry. It seems to clear my head and focus my mind when I find circumstances challenging. Today was one of those days when I needed a little focus. One of the first videos to pop up was “Go Rest High on that Mountain” with Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, and Ricky Skaggs do the vocals. It’s not much of a secret that song is one of my favorites. I hope you’ll take a few minutes and click on the link. You can find it at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwFiWCUkk4M. There are some people in positions of authority or power who find it very effective to keep their people in a state of constant anxiety. They reason that if the people are anxious about their life, and worry about where their next meal is coming from, then perhaps they will be more willing to do more work. They reason that anxiety keeps them in their place. Fear makes their position firm. But one of the greatest things about Jesus is that he does not want his people to be anxious. The main point of today’s text is that God does not secure his position by cultivating anxiety. On the contrary, the aim of God’s kingdom is to free us from anxiety. God doesn’t need to keep us anxious in order to establish his power and superiority. Instead, he exalts his power and superiority by working to take away our anxiety. If you are born again his will for you this morning is that you not be anxious about anything, but that you enjoy deep serenity and peace and security. He gives us real rest both today and forever. There is a day coming when I can “go rest high on that mountain.” And, that thought clears my head and focuses my mind. We’re going to be looking at that more in the coming days. Perhaps it’s merely because I need it. Perhaps you do as well. My prayer is that you will find the tools and the means to be at rest in your life regardless of what is happening.