When fear and affliction make the world feel unsteady, it is easy to wonder whether you matter to God. Today’s Daily Cup answers with a word spoken on a hard morning and confirmed in Scripture: He sees you, He cares for you, and He will take care of you.
By Dianna Hobbs
Dianna Hobbs and her husband, Kenya Hobbs. (Photo: Kaiah Hobbs)
My husband Kenya is an incredible caretaker. On January 17, 1998, when we exchanged wedding vows, he promised to love me in sickness and in health. Neither of us knew how often sickness would test that promise. We certainly couldn’t have foreseen the medical crises I would face, especially the one seven years ago that permanently altered my brain and changed the course of our lives.
Kenya has kept his word. He is steady, present, and tender, even when my own mind and emotions are not.
Sometimes sadness descends on me without warning. Other times confusion swoops in, and simple thoughts become difficult to gather. I cannot always explain what is happening inside me, much less control it. And though I am deeply grateful for Kenya’s faithful care, there are places within me that he cannot reach. Only God can calm those restless seas.
Today was one of those hard mornings.
Then I heard the voice of God so clearly: I am your God. I will take care of you.
What a comforting message. Living with a traumatic brain injury and compromised immune system can make the world feel frightening and unpredictable. My body is frequently afflicted, and my mind doesn’t always cooperate. In dark seasons like these, the blessed assurance of God’s care brings me immeasurable peace.
But that promise isn’t mine alone. It reaches beyond me to you. And when you take it to heart, it can quiet anxious thoughts when life feels uncertain.
The words God spoke to me affirm one of my favorite biblical promises: “I am your God and will take care of you until you are old and your hair is gray. I made you and will care for you; I will give you help and rescue you” (Isaiah 46:4, GNT).
The verses around that promise make it even more meaningful.
In Isaiah 46, God contrasts Himself with the idols of Babylon. Those idols were statues made of gold and silver (v. 6). They could not move on their own, so people had to lift them onto their shoulders and carry them from place to place (v. 7). When the idols needed to be moved a long way, they were loaded onto animals like heavy luggage (v. 1). And when someone prayed to one of them, it could not answer or rescue anyone (v. 7).
God describes Himself very differently.
He says He has carried His people since the day they were born, and He will keep carrying them until their hair turns gray (vv. 3-4).
People had to carry their idols. God carries His people.
So the question beneath this morning’s promise is simple: Who is carrying you? Israel faced that question long before Isaiah’s day.
In 1 Samuel 8, the prophet Samuel had grown old. He appointed his sons, Joel and Abijah, as judges in Beersheba. Joel means “Yahweh is God,” and Abijah means “my father is Yahweh.” Sadly, their conduct contradicted their names. Scripture says they “turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment” (1 Samuel 8:3).
The elders of Israel were understandably distressed by this corruption. They gathered at Ramah and presented Samuel with their solution: replace his sons with “a king to judge us like all the nations” (8:5).
The desire for a king did not take God by surprise. Long before Israel crossed the Jordan, Moses had anticipated a day when the people would say, “I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me” (Deuteronomy 17:14). God even gave instructions for that king in advance (17:15-20). The problem was that Israel wanted a human king to provide the security they had already been receiving from their divine King.
1 Samuel 7:13 says, “the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.” Yet in 1 Samuel 8:20, the elders revealed what they expected their new king to do: “go out before us, and fight our battles.”
They wanted security they could see, and they overlooked the God whose hand had sustained them.
When life feels uncertain or painful, or the future looks frightening, we can become desperate for something tangible to reassure us. We may look to a person, a plan, financial security, or our own frantic efforts to give us a sense of control.
God often sends His care through people and practical means. Kenya’s love is one of those gifts in my life, and so is the medical care I receive. Accepting help is wisdom. The danger comes when we expect any person, plan, or resource to do what only God can do. No human being, no amount of money, and no carefully constructed plan can take His place.
Dianna Hobbs and her husband, Kenya Hobbs. (Photo: Kaiah Hobbs)
And when we forget where our ultimate help comes from, we exhaust ourselves trying to secure what only God can give.
Friend, whatever may be troubling your heart at this moment, you have a loving Father who sees, knows, and cares. He never meant for you to face life without Him.
The apostle Peter put it this way: “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” (1 Peter 5:6-7, NIV).
The original Greek links these two instructions. We humble ourselves by casting our anxiety on God. When we do, we let Him be our King.
The Greek word translated “cares,” melei, means that something matters to a person and holds their concern. You matter to God. Your circumstances have His attention.
The same word, melei, shows up in a storm. With waves filling the boat on the Sea of Galilee, the disciples woke Jesus and asked, “Master, carest thou not that we perish?” (Mark 4:38). Frightened people have asked some version of that question in every storm. Scripture answers it with that same word: He cares for you.
I needed that answer this morning. My mind would not cooperate, and the sea inside me was restless. God met me there with His word: I am your God. I will take care of you.
Peter’s words reach back to an older promise, one I’m stirring into your cup of inspiration as today’s sweetener: “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee” (Psalm 55:22).
As you drink down the contents of your cup, grab hold of this promise. Bring Him your fear, your uncertainty, and every burden too heavy for you to lift. Your King has not forgotten you. Your Father has not abandoned you. He is your God, and He will take care of you.
Now, let’s pray.
God, thank You for reminding me that I matter to You. Thank You for caring for me and reaching the places within me that no one else can. Help me cast every anxiety on You, knowing that You will calm the restless seas and hold me steady. I honor Your faithfulness and glorify You for the care, favor, blessings, and new mercies You show me daily. You are my King, and I confidently place my life in Your hands. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
