Because He Cares

I had a conversation with a client today that I experienced in the same way that I would the sudden burst of light into a dark room upon drawing back the curtains.

This client is struggling with perfectionism, which leads her to believe she can't go before the Lord because of her failures. She isolates herself from Him, wanting His closeness but fearing she doesn't deserve it, thereby leaving her without the ability to throw her fears and worries into His ready-and-willing hands.

I could relate.

As we talked about this, I reminded her of the Words in 1 Peter 5:6-7:

"Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."

As these words came out of my mouth, with my mind and heart focused on helping her to trust that she need not demand such unattainable standards of herself, I experienced one of those moments that happen to me - often - as a counselor. While I believe I was called to this career because the Lord wired me to be passionate about helping people find freedom from the cages this world traps us in, I know something else as I spend more time doing it: I realize that being a counselor is also for me. The things I say to clients are, more times than not, things I need to say to me. The Truth they need, I need. The grace they hunger for, I hunger for. I am sometimes, in an effort to be a voice of Truth and a demonstrator of grace in their lives, often a mouthpiece of such things in my own.

It's an odd - and beautiful - thing.

So when the words tumbled out of my mouth, I realized there was a powerful reminder for both people in the room - her and I. The Lord asks us, her and I (and you), to cast all our anxiety on Him... because He cares for us.

As I squinted in the face of such bright, piercing Truth and felt the grace it held, it occurred to me that there are a myriad of other reasons we often falsely conclude why we're told to do this:

"Cast all your anxiety on Him... because He is annoyed by it."

"Cast all your anxiety on Him... because He can't stand it when people are so weak to feel anxious."

"Cast all your anxiety on Him... because it gets in the way of serving Him."

"Cast all your anxiety on Him... because, if you really trusted Him, you wouldn't feel anxious."

"Cast all your anxiety on Him... because He told you to, and He gets upset with you when you don't do what He says."

"Cast all your anxiety on Him... because you have to be a good example for others."

"Cast all your anxiety on Him... because He'll be disappointed in you if you don't."

But that's not what it says.

"Cast all your anxiety on Him... because He cares for you."

I was thinking, as I said this, that there is likely a very specific reason He worded it this way. Since it's Him, He strings words together very specifically because there is a particular point He wants to make. He is clear with us so that we understand His point and don't have to read between the lines. He knows that some of his adopted children (like me) struggle with trust, so He makes His point clear in order to make it easier for us to believe Him.

He could have communicated many different lessons in these verses. After all, this is a commandment. Casting anxiety on Him is the right thing to do. He does have an expectation that we obey Him. He wants us to encourage others, and we can't do that as well when we're anxious. He wants us to trust Him.

But, like I said, He knows us. He knows that some of us have the experiences that make it hard to trust on command. He knows that He's got to explain why He's trustworthy. So He spells it out for us.

He's trustworthy... because He cares for us.

I was blessed with a mom who is always willing to listen, who never gets tired of me reaching out, and who wants me to confide in her when I'm stressed or anxious or fearful. As I told a coworker recently, I can't remember a single instance in 31 years of her making me feel guilty or compelling me to do what she wants through passive-aggressive or shaming behavior. And she's just a human being, made of skin and bone that breaks and decays with motives that aren't always pure and thoughts that aren't always wise. But she is genuine in her desire to hear my anxieties, to help me with them, to be sensitive in response to them, to remind me of Truth, to show me grace, to be kind in handling my mind and my heart. Because of this, I trust her and share my heart with her, fears and joys and doubts and decisions and anxieties and excitements and all.

And she's just a normal, run-of-the-mill, imperfect mom. So if she wants to hear them from me, and she handles them well, and I trust her with them... see where I'm going with this? How much more does He want to hear them from me? How much better can He handle them? How much worthier of my trust is He?!?

Maybe these verses, then, are worded in this way because His biggest priority here is to remind us that He wants to be the receiver of our worries based on how much He cares for us. He cares. In a persevering, lasting, committed, trustworthy, patient, passionate, redemptive, restorative, renewing, complete, tender, gentle, nurturing, saving, rescuing kind of way.

Why cast our anxieties on Him?

Because it's like He said: because He cares.