Seeking First the Kingdom of God: How to Stop Worrying and Start Trusting

Worry is one of the most universal human experiences. Whether it’s about money, security, relationships, or health, most of us spend a significant amount of time anxious about what we don’t have or can’t control. Jesus addressed this directly in Matthew 6, and His answer is both simple and profound: seek first His kingdom.

What Was Jesus Really Saying About Worry?

In Matthew 6:31-33, Jesus speaks to a crowd that was overworked, underpaid, and living hand to mouth. Sound familiar? He says: “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.” – Matthew 6:31-33 Jesus isn’t simply telling people to calm down. He’s giving our hearts somewhere better to go. Worry is rarely just about circumstances. Most of the time, it’s about pursuit. What are we chasing? What do we believe we must have in order to be okay?

Why Do We Keep Running After the Wrong Things?

Jesus describes the pattern clearly. The world “runs after” things like money, security, approval, comfort, and control. That phrase “run after” describes a restless, exhausting pursuit of trying to forge life for ourselves. The problem isn’t that we have needs. Jesus already acknowledged that. Your Heavenly Father knows that you need them. The problem begins when those needs become the organizing center of our lives. Think of it like a treadmill. You can run fast, sweat hard, and exhaust yourself completely, yet remain in the exact same place. That’s what endless striving feels like. All this effort, all this motion, and the heart still feels restless. No matter how much ground we think we cover, we don’t actually go anywhere. Jesus invites us to step off the treadmill of anxious pursuit and walk with the Father instead.

Does God Actually Know What You Need?

One of the most comforting statements in this entire passage is found in verse 32: “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them.” He knows what you need before you explain it. Before you ask. Before you figure out how to solve it. This doesn’t mean every desire will be fulfilled exactly as we imagine. What it does mean is that our lives are not invisible to Him. The Father sees the hidden need, whether it’s a financial stress, a family burden, a health crisis, or a fear you haven’t spoken aloud to anyone. We are not seeking the kingdom in order to convince God to care for us. He already cares. He already knows you. We seek the kingdom because the Father already cares.

What Does It Mean to “Seek First His Kingdom”?

Matthew 6:33 is one of the most well-known verses in Scripture, and for good reason. Everything starts here. That word “first” is about priority. It’s about what comes before everything else, what sets the direction, what organizes the rest of life. Jesus isn’t saying nothing else matters. He’s saying everything else must find its proper place beneath the kingdom of God. To seek the kingdom means asking questions like:

What is God doing right now?
What reflects His rule and reign?
What reveals the Father’s heart?
How can my life participate in His will?

This completely reframes the focus of our lives. It’s not about adding religious activity to an already crowded schedule. It’s about bringing every part of life under the loving rule of the Father. Think about buttoning a shirt. If you start from the wrong place, everything ends up misaligned. But when you get the first button right, everything else falls into place. Seeking the kingdom first is that starting point. When it’s right, everything else begins to align, not always comfortably, but correctly.

What Is Righteousness and Why Does It Matter?

Jesus pairs the kingdom with righteousness: “Seek first his kingdom and His righteousness.” This is important to understand correctly. Righteousness is not something we earn through religious performance or perfection. It is a gift we receive in Christ. Paul puts it this way:

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” – 2 Corinthians 5:21

Jesus took our sin and gave us His righteousness so we could be restored to relationship with the Father. That is an extraordinary gift, freely given. To seek His righteousness means desiring that our lives increasingly reflect His character. Not performing spirituality or simply looking the part, but becoming people who live rightly before the Father, with hearts genuinely aligned to the kingdom.

What Does “All These Things Will Be Given to You” Actually Mean?

This promise at the end of verse 33 is not a blank check. It’s not a guarantee that life will unfold without difficulty or that every desire will be met on our timeline. What it is, is a promise that the Father can be trusted with our needs. Jesus is shifting our focus from provision to Provider, from gifts to the Giver, from control to trust. The kingdom is not a strategy for getting what we want. The kingdom is the treasure. The Father is the reward. As we seek Him, we discover that He is faithful to care for His children.

How to Actually Live This Out This Week

Here are three practical ways to apply this truth starting today:

Identify what you’ve been running after. What pursuit has been consuming your attention? What have you believed you must secure before you can have peace? Bring that honestly to the Father and ask Him to help you pursue His kingdom first.
Ask a kingdom question every morning. Start each day with this: “Father, what would it look like to seek Your kingdom first today?” Let that question shape your next conversation, decision, response, and responsibility.
Do the next right thing. You don’t need to solve tomorrow. Jesus closes this passage by reminding us that tomorrow will worry about itself. You need enough trust for the next faithful step, nothing more.

Life Application

This week, choose one area of your life where worry or striving has taken over, and intentionally surrender it to the Father. Each morning, before checking your phone or running through your to-do list, pause and ask: “Father, what does it look like to seek Your kingdom first today?” Let that question guide at least one decision, one conversation, or one response throughout your day. As you reflect, consider these questions:

What am I currently running after, and is it bringing me peace or keeping me on the treadmill?
Do I genuinely believe that the Father knows and cares about my needs, or am I living as though it all depends on me?
What would change in my daily life if seeking God’s kingdom was truly my first priority?

Kingdom alignment was never about perfectly managing every part of life. It was always about bringing every part of life back to one center: the Father. When our hearts are aligned with Him, everything else begins to find its proper place.

Steve Lawes is a Church Consultant and also provides coaching for pastors, churches, ministries and church planters.