O Worship the LORD in the Beauty of Holiness

CASTING ALL YOUR CARES UPON HIM

“Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.” (1 Peter 5:7)

1 Peter 5:7 introduces a very relevant theme - we all have cares, especially worldly cares! The word "cares" can be translated as "worries" or "anxieties." When Paul exhorts us in Philippians 4:6, "Be careful for nothing, but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God," he meant, "Do not be anxious or worry about anything...."

There are many things that can cause us intense worries and anxieties. We face immense pressure at work with long hours, tight deadlines, unrealistic sales targets, and we worry about keeping our job amid uneconomic uncertainties. Some of us may be sick and we worry about how to cope with the sickness physically, emotionally, and financially. We worry about how to look after our ageing parents, how our children are faring in school, and how to keep the family together in the face of the rampant breakdown of the family unit. This is a world of cares because of sin. What does 1 Peter 5:7 teach us about cares?

1. Acknowledge our Cares

Did you ever think of your concerns and troubles as something from God in the sense that He allows it in your life? How true is the statement in Job 5:7: “Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward.” Troubles and cares come alike to all. The rich have their share of cares as well as the poor. Ecclesiastes 5:12: “The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.” Many rich people have so many investments and assets to take care of and worry about. I remember a very successful Christian professional who was among the top earners in Singapore, and yet he was constantly worried about losing his hard-earned money to inflation and not having sufficient for the future!

What we are going through that cause us great stress and anxiety, God knows, and He has permitted it for some wise and loving purpose. It has not come to us because of “fate” or “bad luck.” When confronted with a worrisome situation, we must recognize the hand of God in it. To understand and acknowledge this is to take the first step in dealing with it. God does not make His children care-free (free from anxiety-producing situations); if not, we would become careless. It is patently unsound to suggest that once a person becomes a Christian, all his or her problems and worries will disappear. In fact, Jesus warns in John 16:33: “These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” Let us recognize that we will meet with anxieties and cares in this life.

Peace of mind is found in Jesus. It does not depend on solving all our problems, righting all the wrongs, or getting all we want. Some things will not change, and we need to be realistic enough to accept that there are problems that have no solution. Yes, we may have many cares and anxieties. What is more important is that we must not be careful, ie., worry excessively. Worry can become sinful when it leads to doubts and causes us to question God's goodness and sovereignty. And if left unchecked, we can drift into an attitude of constant worry and concern over a future that we cannot control, like the seed that fell among thorns, “and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful” (Matthew 13:22).

A study was done on anxiety, and it was found that 40% of the time we are apprehensive over things that never really happened, about 30% of the time with past matters beyond our control, and another 12% of the time, we anxiously fear the loss of our health, although our only illness is in our imagination. The study discovered that only about 8% of the time the problems that we worry about are real. Many of our worries are like that - unfounded and unnecessary. There are 2 days in a week that we should never worry about - one is yesterday because it is past, and the other is tomorrow because we have no control over them.

2. Cast our Cares Upon God

What should we do with anxieties and worries? Some people drown their worries in alcohol. Some people chain-smoke to calm their nerves. Others, when things are not going well, head to the refrigerator for “comfort food” or the shopping malls for “comfort buys.” But our all-knowing and all-wise God has a better plan. He calls us to cast all our cares on Him. The word “cast” means “to throw, hurl, fling.” It is a decisive act; it means to take the load we have been carrying and throw it to God! Daniel was cast into the lions' den; Jonah was cast into the sea; Paul was cast into prison; and you and I are to cast all our cares and anxieties upon the Lord. We are to take the apprehensions, the fears, the nervousness, the uncertainty off our own back, and let God carry them. He has broad shoulders; we do not.

How do we cast our cares upon God? By bringing it to Him in prayer! Philippians 4:6, "Be careful for nothing, but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." The Christian is given the means to deal with his cares for he can bring it to God in prayer. God is only a prayer away. Will you cast your cares upon the Lord? Will you let Him carry it for you? David did that many times. We read of his frustrations, distress, fears, sorrows, etc. in his prayers recorded in the Psalms. David cast all his cares upon the Lord. That is why David could say in Psalm 46:1: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Whenever cares come into our heart, take it to God. Nothing is too big for God to handle or too small for Him to care. The best way to “un-burden” ourselves is to cast our load upon God by faith and prayer, to commit them to Him. Jesus invites all of us in Matthew 11:28, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

The injunction “casting all your care upon Him” implies that we must not keep doing it but to do it once for all. Once for all we are to cast our cares upon God and not take it back. That is, we are to take it to the Lord in prayer and leave it there. Do not pick it up again. We often continue to fret and worry even after committing the matter to the Lord. It has been said that worry is like a rocking chair; it will give you something to do, but it will not get you anywhere.

3. Trust God to Take Care of our Cares

Why should we cast our cares upon God? Upon what basis do we do so? In this wonderful verse, Peter states that it is simply because God cares for us. What Peter is saying is that “it matters to God concerning you." God who cares for the birds of the air and the lilies of the field surely cares for His chosen, redeemed children. This reminds us of Mark 8:35-40 when the disciples were in the boat which was in danger of sinking due to the storm, and the disciples cried out to Jesus, “Master, carest thou not that we perish?” Of course He does! And after Jesus calmed the storm, He rebuked the disciples: “Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?”

God cares for us personally; He knows every little detail of our pain and struggle. The Psalmist assures us that “the eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry” (Psalm 34:15). Do we know this promise? That we have a God who cares for us. Do we really believe that God cares for us in such a personal way? If we do not believe this truth, then we will have difficulty casting our cares upon Him. But has not God proved it repeatedly that He cares for us?

The promise “He (God) careth for you” also presupposes that God is able to take care of our anxieties and worries. We are not to doubt God that He is able to care for us. No difficulty or problem is too difficult for God. Our Heavenly Father is willing and able to carry our heaviest (and lightest) burdens. We as parents take pride in our ability to take care of our children; we send them to the best school, provide them with the best education, and we always bail them out of their troubles. God does it much better than anyone of us. He is not only willing, but He is able. “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and He shall sustain thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved” (Psalm 55:22).

The remedy for cares and anxiety is complete trust and confidence in God's ability to deal with it. God has promised peace of mind to those who are willing to cast their anxieties upon Him. George Mueller once said, “The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety.” The perfect cure for worry is to trust in a God who cares when we cast our anxieties upon Him.

– Elder Ng Beng Kiong 

Shorter Catechism Question 30

30. How doth the Spirit apply to us the redemption purchased by Christ?

The Spirit applieth to us the redemption purchased by Christ, by working faith in us, and thereby uniting us to Christ in our effectual calling.

Appointments for the Week

Monday, Jan 13

        7.30 pm     ERBL: Counselling in the Local Church (Mr Joel Seah)

Tuesday, Jan 14

        8.00 pm     Prayer Meeting (Bro Shawn Lim)

Wednesday, Jan 15

      10.00 am     SF Meeting & CNY Thanksgiving Lunch

Thursday, Jan 16

      10.00 am     Ladies’ Prayer Group

        7.30 pm     ERBL: The Epistles of Peter (Rev Bendick Ong)

Saturday, Jan 18

        3.00 pm     LTF / YLM

Sunday, Jan 19

  8.00 am Do Not Drift Away Hebrews 2:1-4 (Rev Calvin Loh, with Holy Communion)

  8.00 am Choir Practice

  9.15 am Library (Sanctuary Balcony)

  9.40 am Sunday School / Catechism Class

10.15 am Coffee Corner

11.00 am Do Not Drift Away Hebrews 2:1-4 (Rev Calvin Loh)

11.00 am Children’s Ministry

11.00 am Chinese Service (MPH)

11.00 am Filipina Service (Rm 1-6)

12.15 pm Library (Sanctuary Balcony)

  2.30 pm Thai Service (LMH)

  4.00 pm Indonesian Service (Rm 1-6)

Announcements

CNY Angpows

Angpows are available at the front of the Sanctuary. There are two types – gold and red packs. The red ones are large enough to insert tracts in them.

Church Camp 2025

Save the date! Please mark your calendars for our upcoming church camp!

Theme: Are We Prepared to Meet Christ?
Dates: 17-20 June 2025
Venue: Radisson Hotel, Batam, Indonesia
Speaker: Rev Ian Goligher, Retired Pastor of Free Presbyterian Church in Cloverdale, BC Canada.

Join us for a blessed time of spiritual growth and fellowship as we explore the messages from the letters of Christ to the seven churches in Revelation. Camp registration will commence from January onwards. For any questions, please contact Dn Chen Wei'an.

Traffic Warden Service

We welcome all church members to join in this work. Our TW’s role is to provide godly service to facilitate worship. We need help in following time slots for Sunday: 7.30-8am or 10.30-11am with a frequency of once or twice a month. Please contact Dn Chan Yong or Bro Kelvin .

Holy Communion Elements Preparation

Lifers are invited to serve in the Holy Communion elements preparation, clean-up and washing. Those interested may contact Jenny or Wendy .

Library Ministry

Members are invited to serve in the Library Ministry. If you are available on Sunday, please contact Sis. Mimi or Bro. Paul for more details.

Door to Door Evangelism

19 January 2025 (Next Sunday) Meet in Beulah Room 2-11, 12.30pm Contact: Desmond or Amos 

Mailbox Club Bible Correspondence Course (MBCC)

Another Church Outreach Ministry invites Lifers to register their young children, teens, or grandchildren with our MBCC. Those whose loved ones, friends or colleagues who are either young in their faith or being non-believers, are interested to know and explore more of Christianity, are also invited to register with us by filling in the registration forms which are now available at the Church front counter and post them to:

Life B-P Church

No.10, Gilstead Road

Singapore 309064

Attention: Mrs Ong Chuay Ying

Thanksgiving

(1) The family of Doreen Tan  would like to thank Lifers for the condolences, prayers and words of comfort during the bereavement of her mother, Mdm Teow KE.

(2) Siew Cheng and family would like to thank the pastoral team and members of the church for their prayers, condolences and visits during the bereavement of her beloved mother, Mdm Ngam AK (90 years old) on 31 December 2024.

Condolences

(1) Our condolences to the family of Elder Khoo Peng Kiat (93 years old) on his homegoing on 4 January 2025. 

(2) Our condolences to sister Judy and family on the homegoing of her husband, Victor (67 years old), on 6 January 2025. 

Seeker’s Class: Book of Matthew

Beginning 12 January 2025! Contain Dn Joshua Chia for more information 

Ladies Fellowship 2025

Invites all ladies to join us in our various areas of fellowship (Bible Study, Outings, Ukulele class, Tea Fellowship, Love & Care Ministry). Please contact Sally or Gillian for more information or if you are interested to join us.

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