There is a lot of anxiety in our world today. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines anxiety: “apprehensive uneasiness or nervousness usually over an impending or anticipated misfortune.” This apprehension is not always grounded in facts as much as it is in our perception of what might happen—focused mostly on the negative possibilities. The rise in anxiety disorders and anxiety attacks speaks to our tendency to look at the negative and take the weight of those possibilities into our mind and our heart.
In Psalm 55:22 we read, “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.” The Psalmist’s invitation is for us to place our cares, worries, and anxieties onto the Lord. I love the word, “cast,” because it reminds me of fishing with a rod and reel. The whipping action of the rod casts the lure or worm toward the desired location. Unlike fishing with a cane pole in the boat with my great-grandfather, where we dangled the hook and worm into the water, the casting is more expressive and definitive.
When I cast my cares on the Lord, I am not always laying them at the Lord’s feet. The image is too sterile and too calm. There are anxieties, worries, and cares in my life that I want to cast away from me because they are overwhelming. I don’t want to hold on to them any longer. I want them to be cast from my mind and my heart.
In 1 Peter 5:7, Peter picks up on this psalm’s imagery when he writes, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” When I cast my anxieties, worries, and cares at the feet of Jesus, I know he is not too busy to receive that anxiety. He sustains me and he cares for me in the midst of the struggle. It is not that the struggle disappears as soon as I give it to the Lord. In reality, I cast it on the Lord, so I do not have to carry any longer on my own. When I cast it on the Lord, I know He is faithful to walk with me and give me the strength to overcome the anxiety and worry.
Where is anxiety active in your life? Are you trying to overcome the anxiety and worry in your own power, only exacerbating the issue? What if you cast that anxiety and care on the Lord? Do you trust the Lord will sustain you and care for you?
Today, let me invite you to cast your cares and your anxiety on the Lord. Don’t carry the weight any longer. God is faithful to walk with us through every season and issue of our lives.
Prayer: Lord, when I am anxious and fearful of what might happen, remind me to cast the anxiety and the issue on you. Give me the confidence of your presence that sustains me and cares for me. In Jesus’ name. Amen.