Leave It to God: 4 Ways to Cast Your Cares on Him
The wheat field bends low in waves of ragged green as an evening storm blows in. Like velvet brushed by an unseen hand, the monochrome swath is broken. “Leave it to God,” I whisper as I stroll down our country road. Meanwhile, the same ethereal hand seems to sweep my cares away with the wind.
I come to cast my cares on the Lord out here beneath these open skies as often as possible. Sometimes, I list my worries one by one. At other times, I imagine opening my heart and letting the One who sees every part of me wash away the concerns that are weighing too heavily.
I need this space daily.
Perhaps you need to cast your cares on God today, too.
Leave It to God: How to Cast Your Cares
Let’s walk through a few practical steps to help us “leave it to God” as we cast our worries on the him.
1. Cast your cares on God by naming your concern.
Begin by naming your concern. Be specific.
What is bothering you or weighing heavily on you?
Naming your worry, care, or burden will help you cast it onto God.
2. Leave it to God by digging deeper.
For years, I assumed my fears and worries were always sins. Instead of digging to find the roots, I rebuked my emotions. I told myself not to fear and rarely explored the hidden roots beneath my worries.
Fear and worry can lead us to sin. However, the instant you feel fearful or worried, God is offering an invitation. Your emotions are God-given, and he is inviting you to approach these emotions with compassion.
What’s beneath your fear, worry, or anxiety? Are you afraid of rejection, failing, being misunderstood, or inflicting pain on someone else? Are you afraid some worst-case scenario will ruin your life, and God will abandon you?
Ask God to show you what’s beneath your worry. He might reveal a deeper root he wants to pull out, a wound he wants to heal, or a lie you’ve been believing.
3. Heave your cares and concerns onto God.
I find it interesting that Scripture tells us to cast our cares onto the Lord. We’re not told to lift them gently. God knows our worries aren’t easy to get rid of. For this reason, he tells us to cast them away—like Olympic shotput throwers.
Imagine heaving your worry onto God. Imagine his strong arms reaching down to take the worry from you. He wants to help you live lighter.
I find the strength to heave my biggest worries onto God by asking myself a simple question. I ask, “Have I done my best to steward the assignment God placed before me?”
If I can answer yes—if I know I’ve done my best with what I’ve been given—I then remind myself of an important principle: God calls me to steward the assignments he sets before me and trust him with the outcomes.
God calls me to steward the assignments he sets before me and trust him with the outcomes. #trust #stewardship #control Share on XThe outcomes in my life are not mine to control. I want happy, healthy kids, harmonious friendships, lots of cushion in the bank account, and pleasant circumstances all around me. However, sometimes life just isn’t pleasant. Kids get sick. Friendships falter. Bank accounts run empty. Life gets hard. Nevertheless, if I can go to bed each night knowing I’ve done my very best to steward God’s daily assignments, then I can trust him with the outcomes—even when I don’t understand his ways.
4. Stand on God’s Word.
Lastly, after naming my worry, studying it, and heaving it onto God, I can plant my feet on solid ground by standing on God’s Word.
I memorize a fear-fighting Bible verse that speaks specifically to my circumstance, and I repeat it every time I feel fearful. God’s Word is a weapon, and we can use it to find victory over the voice of fear. (For a list of Bible verses about worry and fear, join me right here.)
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Calling all moms and daughters—and parents of boys!
As the parent of two sons and a daughter, I have a heart for helping parents develop deeper relationships with their children and with God. Our kids, ages 6, 11, and 14, share this vision. They have helped me write three family devotionals for parents or grandparents to read with the children they care about.
God’s Warrior: Devotions for Boys Who Want to Grow in Courage and Strength is for boys ages 5-13. Now, more than ever, our world needs men who are willing to courageously carry God’s love into the world. Written with input from our two young sons, Aiden and Caleb, ages six and eleven, this book will help the boys you care about find courage and strength in God. Find this life-changing devotional book here.
Devotionals for Girls
Girl to Girl: 60 Mother-Daughter Devotions for a Closer Relationship and Deeper Faith is written for girls ages 7-12. It includes 60 devotions with Scripture, conversation starters, and a shared journaling section for moms and daughters after each devotion. I wrote this book with the help of our daughter, Bekah, when she was eleven. Find this one-of-a-kind shared devotional here.
Heart to Heart: A Mother-Daughter Devotional With 50 Devotions for Teen Girls is for teenage girls ages 13-20. It includes 50 devotions, each with a shared journaling section to help moms and daughters connect through writing. This is a great book for moms who want to communicate about awkward topics—like dating, sexuality, peer pressure, and more—but don’t know where to start. Bekah and I will help you right here.
All three books are available in print and eBook form here on Amazon. They are also free on the Kindle Unlimited plan, which you can enjoy with a free three-month trial! These books make great gifts, and you don’t need to be the parent of young children to read them. Share them with your grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or the young ones you love.
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