Antidote To Anxiety - The One Year Praying the Promises of God

What is the price of five sparrows—two copper coins? Yet God does not forget a single one of them. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.

Luke 12:6-7

In these verses, Jesus wants to drive home a point. He wants to make sure that we really see what he is promising. He wants to paint a picture in our minds that will stick with us: we don’t have to fear anything, because God—Creator God, Ruler God, Power-over-Life-and-Death God—values and cherishes us.

We have great worth to him. It’s so improbable a concept that Jesus adds some texture to the promise with a description meant to anchor it in our understanding.

When Jesus spoke the words above, he and his audience were outside. Maybe the marketplace was in view and they could see in the distance someone purchasing some sparrows, the cheapest and least-valued birds—the fare of the poor, for the most part. Imagine Jesus pointing in that direction, framing the scene in his hearers’ imaginations and asking, “What is the price of five sparrows—two copper coins?”

Jesus emphasizes that God is fully aware of every single sparrow—creature of little value, cheap to buy. But if God watches over even the sparrows, then surely he watches over and cares for you and me.

We don’t have to be afraid of anything, anytime, anywhere. God’s protection and provision for us are so detailed that he knows how many hairs are on our heads. Nothing escapes his notice. Nothing gets past him. Nothing is hidden from his sight.

So, Jesus reminds us, we don’t need to be afraid.

When anxiety tries to lay claim to my thoughts, when fear seeks a foothold in my mind, when confusion threatens to make a stand in my heart, I look to you; I seek your face. You are all the antidote I need to anything that might steal my peace.

The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety.

George Müller(1805–1898), German evangelist and orphanage director