“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7, NIV)
When my kids were little, we listened to Psalty, the singing songbook. Psalty taught kids to praise God with their songs and their lives. I loved hearing my children sing praises to Jesus and the Kids Praise series featuring Psalty, certainly encouraged it. I’m not only thankful for the impact this music had on my children’s lives, but I’m also thankful for how it has encouraged me.
This morning I found myself singing “The Cares Chorus” from Kids Praise 5. This song is a prayer calling the petitioner to release burdens and cares, leaving them to God. It is a song of humility, admitting ignorance and finiteness. It is a cry from the heart that begs God to carry whatever is weighing us down.
It is a simple song based on 1 Peter 5:7, simple and yet profound. We can take any bother, worry, stress, care, anxiety, or burden and throw it God’s way. He will gladly receive it and deal with it because he “cares for” us. The Creator of the Universe, the Great and Mighty, the Self Existent One, cares for me.
This astounds me. With more than 7 billion people currently living in the world, God cares for me. He cares so much he is willing to ease my anxiety levels by caring for my burdens. It reminds me of another Psalty song, and Bible verse, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God” (1 John 3:1, KJV).
God has poured out his love on me, and I am blessed. I am so thankful for God’s Word and how it draws me into a deeper relationship with my Heavenly Father. I am also thankful for the faithful ministers that have been a blessing in my life. I have never met Kelly Willard, but she has encouraged me by writing the “Cares Chorus”. Debby Kerner and Ernie Rettino have encouraged and blessed many through the Psalty recordings. I have never met them either and yet they have had a lasting impact on my life and my Christian walk.
I pray that today as I write, choosing to be faithful to the calling God has given me, I will bless someone’s life. I pray that someone will read these words and find peace. I pray that someone out there whether I know them or not will be blessed by the lessons that were handed down to me by his faithful servants. God cares for us and desires to relieve us of our stresses. He cares because he loves us so much. Have a blessed and stress free day!