Does He Really Care?

I’m about to enter the crescendo of life which has been reserved for those of us who have managed to live long enough to see it. I’m discovering that it takes a lifetime of wisdom to deal with Social Security and Medicare issues and decisions. Shopping for health insurance that won’t leave one penny-less has always been a problem. Like the old TV commercial used to remind us, “Pay me now, or pay me later” it still seems to hold true whether we’re fixing our vehicle or maintaining our body. Choices have befuddled my wife her entire life, extending from the grocery shelf to a simple burger menu, she has a real tough time making a decision. It’s hard for her to grasp the concept of paying for good insurance over a period of time or going bankrupt if and when everything goes south. We don’t like to think about it, but life doesn’t seem to get any easier and it will take wisdom to press forward. Old age ain’t for sissies.

There was a man who had worked all his life and saved all his money. He was a real miser when it came to cash. He loved money more than just about anything and just before he died he said to his wife, “Now listen. When I die I want you to take all my money and place it in the casket with me. I want to take my money to the afterlife.” So he got his wife to promise him with all her heart that she would do that for him. Well, one day he died. He was stretched out in the casket and his wife was sitting next to her close friend. When the ceremony was ended, just before the undertaker was going to close the casket, the wife said, “Wait just a minute” whereupon she produced her dead husband’s favorite briefcase and placed it in the casket. The undertaker locked the casket down and rolled it away. Her friend protested, “I hope you weren’t crazy enough to put all that money in the casket.” She replied, “Sure I did. I promised. I got all the money together, put it in my bank account and wrote him a check.”

[1 Peter 5: 7] “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” That’s true! But it’s also true that God doesn’t care about some things – some of the things we care about deeply. God doesn’t care about how many Facebook friends we have. His concern is that we are Jesus’ friend. “When Jesus saw their faith he said, ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven’” (Luke 5:20). God doesn’t care how many Twitter followers we have. He only cares that we deny ourselves, take up our cross daily and follow Him (Luke 9:23). God doesn’t care about how many minutes we have on our cell phone plan. He cares about the minutes we spend talking with Him (1 Thessalonians 5:7; Ephesians 6:18). God doesn’t care if we have the fanciest watch. He wants us to watch the use of our time (Ephesians 5:16). God doesn’t care about the size of our homes or how much money we have. He wants us to realize that material things don’t last, “…store up for yourselves treasures in heaven…” (Matthew 6:19-21); “…put (your) hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment” (1 Timothy 6:17-19). God doesn’t care about what work we do. He wants us to do all things in His service and to His glory (Colossians 3:23-24). God doesn’t care about the color of our skin. He cares about the content of our character. (Galatians 5:22-23). God doesn’t care about a lot of things we care about. But God does care about us! He cares about us so much that he gave his son Jesus to die on the cross, the perfect sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins. “…He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish…” (2 Peter 3:9). He cares for you!