Scripture journaling

Matthew 6:25-34

Many people turn to this passage on the nights when the list of worries feels longer than the day. It speaks plainly about ordinary things: food, drink, clothing, the bills and plans behind them. It does not pretend those needs are small. It says your heavenly Father knows you need them, and it points your attention to the birds, the lilies and the grass of the field.

Journaling with these verses can help you slow down and name what is pressing on you, one worry at a time. You might write a prayer, make a list or simply describe what you see out the window. If anxiety is heavy for you right now, go gently. These prompts are for reflection and prayer. They are not a test of how much faith you have.

25 Therefore I tell you, don’t be anxious for your life: what you will eat, or what you will drink; nor yet for your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

26 See the birds of the sky, that they don’t sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns. Your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you of much more value than they?

27 “Which of you, by being anxious, can add one moment to his lifespan?

28 Why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They don’t toil, neither do they spin,

29 yet I tell you that even Solomon in all his glory was not dressed like one of these.

30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today exists, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, won’t he much more clothe you, you of little faith?

31 “Therefore don’t be anxious, saying, ‘What will we eat?’, ‘What will we drink?’ or, ‘With what will we be clothed?’

32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

33 But seek first God’s Kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well.

34 Therefore don’t be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Each day’s own evil is sufficient.

Matthew 6:25-34, World English Bible, public domain

Reflection prompts

  1. Verse 25 names food, drink and clothing. Write down the everyday needs that are on your mind this week, as plainly as you would tell a close friend. Then offer the list to God in a short prayer.

  2. Verse 26 says, "See the birds of the sky." Find a bird today, through a window, on a walk or in your memory, and describe it in detail. What do you notice about how it spends its day?

  3. Verse 27 asks who can "add one moment" by being anxious. Think of a worry you have carried for a long time. What has holding it cost you, and what might change if you set it down in prayer for a moment?

  4. In verse 28 you are invited to "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow." Write about something growing near you, a plant, a child, a friendship or a skill. How does it grow without being forced?

  5. Verse 32 says, "your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things." Write a prayer that begins with the needs you find hardest to admit you have.

  6. Verse 33 speaks of seeking God's Kingdom first. What does seeking first look like in the ordinary hours of your day? Write about one small way you could begin tomorrow morning.

  7. Verse 34 says "tomorrow will be anxious for itself." Divide a page into two columns: what belongs to today and what belongs to tomorrow. Choose one item from today's column to bring to God in prayer now.

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