Wart ... Wort

             “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.  If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matthew 6:25-24)

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. (Luke 12:6-7)

 

The first thing that I see of how God views us is as a bunch of worrywarts. And in many cases, I think He’s correct. Maybe in more than many cases, though some people hide it well, sometimes even from themselves. Historically, the term is worrywart. A wart is a small, hard, benign growth on the skin, caused by a virus. It’s also an obnoxious or objectionable person. But I think it should be worrywort, because a wort is an herbaceous plant, often used to relieve medical symptoms or problems, or it is a sweet liquid drained from mash and fermented to make beer and whiskey. I suppose it depends on whether you’re on the outside or the inside of the situation. We like to think that worrying helps, while it mostly irritates others.

Enough fun and games. The next observation about God’s view of us is that we are more valuable than birds and plants. God shows their value by feeding and “dressing” them. And after assuring us that God knows we need food, water, and clothing, He tells us what He wants to see us do: seek His kingdom and His righteousness. That adds to the sense that He sees us as valuable.