“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. -Matthew 6:34 ESV

When I first stopped drinking and using other drugs, I repeatedly heard and thought about the phrase “one day at a time.” I clung to that as a strategy to survive in this new sober life. That same adjustment to attitude also worked for other things, such as quitting smoking.

Clearly, Jesus knew this attitude was essential in one’s faith, as it is discussed in more than one place in the gospels. Planning for tomorrow, whether it involves overcoming an addiction, battling illness, financial distress…whatever the issue, it is pointless. Living in today allows me to focus on what I know I have to deal with. God has never failed to provide for my needs in any given situation as He provided daily sustenance for His people in the wilderness in the form of manna (Exodus 16). It is important to note that they were instructed to take only what they could eat for that day. Again, the message is clear: we must trust God to give us what we need for each individual day. As it says in Lamentations, His mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23).

Have I learned to trust God enough to live in today?