PLAYBOOK DEVOTIONAL
Athlete, Do this and be Carefree
Michael Ruamthong
1 Peter 5:5-7 (NET)
... And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. And God will exalt you in due time, if you humble yourselves under His mighty hand by casting all your cares on Him because He cares for you.
Humility is a virtue to be desired. No one likes the prideful athletes on T.V. who fails to acknowledge their team or coaches for their success. Likewise, God opposes the proud.
God is the giver of every good thing and the sustainer of every entity. All things are held together by Him.
It is clear to everyone that taking all the credit and not giving it where it is due is prideful. But it is counter-cultural to believe that keeping your cares and anxieties to yourself instead of casting them on a loving Father is prideful.
Some would argue and believe that keeping your cares and anxieties to yourself is being humble. Not in the eyes of God.
An act of humbling ourselves is to cast all of our anxieties on God. We are prone to think that God is too busy for our problems or that He doesn’t care about them. We may think that we are capable of handling all of our worries ourselves. God’s Word tells us differently.
God cares for you and wants you to humble yourself by casting every worry that you have on Him.
This act of giving over your worries to God allows you to know that God is in control. Though outcomes may make it seem like God isn’t in control, He is.
Let us grow to not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let our requests be known to God (Philippians 4:6,7).
Reflect: What things in my life are causing me to be anxious or worrisome? Am I hesitant to make any of these known to God? Why?