Blueprints: Trust Over Worry
If you’ve ever found yourself wide awake at 2 a.m. wondering if you’re going to have enough — enough money, enough security, enough clothes, enough anything — you’re not alone. In this seventh installment of our nine-part series Blueprints: Jesus’ Plan for Life, we dig into something that hits close to home for all of us: worry, particularly when it comes to money.
But here’s the twist: Jesus’ teaching on money isn’t really about money. It’s about trust.
A Personal Story of Worry
Growing up as an anxious kid on a dairy farm in rural Illinois, I was a city-minded teenager obsessed with escaping farm life. The exit strategy? Education.
I became so laser-focused on school success that every quiz and project felt like a life-or-death situation. But the worry wasn’t really about grades — it was about financial security. I believed more money would fix everything. Spoiler alert: it didn’t.
This kind of obsession may sound extreme, but most of us have been there in some form. Whether it’s fear of not having enough or obsession with accumulating more, we’ve allowed money — or the lack of it — to dominate our thoughts.
What Jesus Said About Worry
Jesus addresses this directly in Matthew 6:25:
“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing?”
Jesus wasn’t being dismissive. He was drawing attention to a deeper truth: worry reveals where we place our trust. And for many of us, that trust is misplaced in money.
To illustrate this, Jesus uses two very familiar examples from nature — birds and flowers.
Birds and Flowers: Everyday Theology
Standing on a hillside by the Sea of Galilee, Jesus pointed to the birds flying overhead:
“Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are?” (Matthew 6:26)
Then he turned to the fields:
“Look at the lilies… they don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are.” (Matthew 6:28–29)
In a world where most people only owned one or two outfits and food was a daily concern, Jesus’ message was radical: You don’t need to be consumed by worry. God provides.
But this wasn’t permission to quit working and wait for a miracle. The Bible consistently supports hard work and wise stewardship. What Jesus was after was the mindset — that anxious energy we pour into the illusion that we’re in control.
The Real Issue: Trust
This section of the Sermon on the Mount isn’t a budgeting seminar. It’s a call to evaluate our relationship with God and our relationship with money.
“You cannot serve both God and money.” (Matthew 6:24)
You will trust one more than the other. So which one do you truly believe will sustain you?
When Jesus says in Matthew 6:33:
“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.”
He’s not promising a lottery win. He’s saying, “Trust me first — with your priorities, your provision, your future — and I’ll take care of your needs.”
Not a Me-First Promise — A We-First Principle
Here’s where this gets even more interesting. Jesus’ original audience didn’t live in an individualistic society like ours. When He said, “He will give you everything you need,” the you was plural.
It wasn’t about me getting everything I need. It was about us, as a community, having enough — and sharing as needed. In Acts 2, the early church lived this out: those who had more shared with those who had less.
That’s how we apply this principle today. For example, Landing Place Church recently gave $10,000 to Samaritan’s Purse for Texas storm relief — using resources from those who had more than enough to help those who suddenly had nothing.
That’s kingdom living. That’s trusting God collectively.
Rich Isn’t Bad — But It’s Not the Goal
I eventually achieved my dream — went to med school, made money, lived the good life. And while being rich was fun, it came with its own kind of trap:
“Money started to erode my trust in God. I subtly began to believe I didn’t need Him anymore.”
But God challenged that mindset with a bold invitation: Sell it all. Move halfway across the country. Take a 75% pay cut. Go into ministry.
It made zero financial sense. But it was never a money question. It was a trust question.
Two Final Questions
If we’re honest, most of our money-related anxiety boils down to fear of not enough or obsession with too much.
So here are two questions to take with you this week:
- What are my unnecessary worries around money?
Are they based in reality or fear? Are they fueled by culture or by trust? - What’s one action I can take this week to put God first?
Maybe it’s generosity. Maybe it’s a shift in mindset. Maybe it’s letting go of control.
Whatever it is, remember this: Peace comes not from having more, but from trusting more.
Final Thought
Jesus doesn’t promise us a life without trouble. In fact, He promises that trouble will come. But when we build our lives on His blueprint — when we seek His kingdom first — we build on a foundation that even the fiercest storms can’t shake.
And in a world that’s constantly shouting “not enough,” that is peace worth pursuing.