“Therefore I say to you, be not solicitous for your life, what you shall eat, nor for your body, what you shall put on. Is not the life more than the meat: and the body more than the raiment? Behold the birds of the air, for they neither sow, nor do they reap, nor gather into barns: and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not you of much more value than they? And which of you by taking thought, can add to his stature one cubit?”
You have a loving Father that cares for you. When you thrash and cry and take matters into your own hands, “my soul is continually in my hands: and I have not forgotten thy law” (Psalm 118:109), you take control from someone wiser and more capable. Though work remains necessary, “if any man will not work, neither let him eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10); “Whatsoever thy hand is able to do, do it earnestly” (Ecclesiastes 9:10), it becomes more for the sake of growing in love rather than taking care of temporal matters: “Whatsoever you do, do it from the heart, as to the Lord, and not to men” (Colossians 3:23). The Lord has given you the spiritual grace of His Son: “For God so loved the world, as to give his only begotten son” (John 3:16), would He then ignore the lesser matters of your life? He has clothed you in splendor and beauty of soul: “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, and my soul shall be joyful in my God: for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation: and with the robe of justice he hath covered me, as a bridegroom decked with a crown, and as a bride adorned with her jewels” (Isaias 61:10), He will also give what is less important. It is a call to work tirelessly to grow in love and in the building up of the Kingdom, “And the Lord God took man, and put him into the paradise of pleasure, to dress it, and to keep it” (Genesis 2:15), but to trust God as a child being carried through life as though He will do everything: “I have put my words in thy mouth, and have protected thee in the shadow of my hand, that thou mightest plant the heavens, and found the earth: and mightest say to Sion: thou art my people” (Isaias 51:16). Life is so much greater than the fleeting cares and pleasures of the world, but finds its true beauty in the expression of love that is spoken through you: “The spirit of the Lord hath spoken by me and his word by my tongue” (2 Kings 23:2); “Thy lips, my spouse, are as a dropping honeycomb, honey and milk are under thy tongue; and the smell of thy garments, as the smell of frankincense” (Song 4:11). These are the garments of divine love with which Mary will adorn you if you trust her: “And she put on him very good garments of Esau, which she had at home with her” (Genesis 27:15). As for the birds of the air, these are beautiful pieces of divine art that are of little comparison to your preciousness in the hands of your Father: “Thou becamest honourable in my eyes, thou art glorious: I have loved thee” (Isaias 43:4); “Surely Ephraim is an honourable son to me, surely he is a tender child” (Jeremias 31:20). You need not worry nor be distressed, but love and be loved, doing all things in love and for the sake of love: “Let all your things be done in love” (1 Corinthians 16:14), trusting that such love will not be hindered by cares. Finally, the Lord exhorts you not to worry about the end of your spiritual life, whether you are enough or if you will find your full expression of love. The natural end of the life of grace is perfect love: “Being confident of this very thing, that he, who hath begun a good work in you, will perfect it unto the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6), and by fidgeting and dwelling on your failures in the spiritual life, you take your eyes from your Beloved: “Therefore we also having so great a cloud of witnesses over our head, laying aside every weight and sin which surrounds us, let us run by patience to the fight proposed to us: looking on Jesus, the author and finisher of faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2). You will be brought by love to your full growth, be this a lily, a rose, or a violet; your expression of love is beautiful not for its merits but because it is yours: “But now God hath set the members every one of them in the body as it hath pleased him” (1 Corinthians 12:18); “How beautiful art thou, and how comely, my dearest, in delights!” (Song 7:6). While your nature may revolt and be plagued with anxiety, a gentle brushing aside with a “Jesus, I love you, and trust in you,” will bring you back to peace of soul: “But seeing the wind strong, he was afraid: and when he began to sink, he cried out, saying: ‘Lord, save me.’ And immediately Jesus stretching forth his hand took hold of him” (Matthew 14:30-31). Therefore, keep the eyes of your mind continually focused on Jesus, be it by image or by word: “Thy face, O Lord, will I still seek” (Psalm 26:8); “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you” (John 15:7), and trust that He will carry you lovingly to His Father and your Father through the brambles of life: “For though I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will fear no evils, for thou art with me” (Psalm 22:4). Therefore, do all you can for the sake of Love, no matter how feeble it may seem, and trust that the Lord and your neighbor will take care of what you are incapable of, realizing that the Church is one body that relies on each other and builds each other up: “For which cause comfort one another; and edify one another, as you also do” (1 Thessalonians 5:11); “Now you are the body of Christ, and members of member” (1 Corinthians 12:27). Run to your Beloved, and he will bear you up, and carry you to the end.