Cast your cares
Peter writes to suffering Christians who were far from safe. He does not tell them to stop feeling anxious. He tells them where to put their anxiety: on the One who cares for them.
Anxiety tends to keep us carrying things we were never meant to hold alone. Name the worry that is weighing on you most right now, and hand it to God in plain words, as you would hand a heavy bag to a friend.
Lord, here is what is weighing on me today. I do not know how to carry it well alone. Take what I cannot hold, and remind me that You care for me more than I can imagine. Amen.
μέριμναν (merimnan (MEH-rim-nan)). “Anxiety” or “care.” The word describes a mind pulled in different directions. Peter uses the same root that Jesus uses in Matthew 6 when He warns against worry.
First Peter was written to scattered believers in what is now Turkey who were facing hostility for their faith. The letter repeatedly encourages them to trust God in suffering and to live with hope.
Jim Elliot and four other missionaries were killed in Ecuador in January 1956 while trying to reach the Waorani people. Their families later returned to live and share the gospel among the community.