"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:34)

I've found myself reading this verse a number of times in the past few weeks. I suppose it's easy enough for anyone to agree with the second sentence, but I think it's safe to say most of us struggle not to worry about tomorrow.

Markets have been at their most volatile since the end of the Second World War and all signs point to the global economy on the edge of what could be a deep recession whose length is anyone's guess.

Last year, my employer of 12 years was acquired in a friendly merger that made my job redundant. This year, my new employer cut me and dozens of other people in a wave of cost-cutting layoffs that put me out of work for a few months. Now I'm days away from wrapping up a contract job that may, or may not, turn into a full-time job.

One interpretation I draw from this verse is to take life one day at a time.

More specifically, I choose to read Matthew 6:34 to mean that no one knows what tomorrow has in store for us, but that we are defined by our actions today. So I take this verse to mean I am expected to do the best I can right now, and have faith that God will take care of the rest.

A friend of mine still works with my former long-term employer overseas and he just learned that his position is being cut in January. He was told he has to find himself work elsewhere in a multinational that is still in the throes of melding two companies into one, or look outside.

My advice to him was to explore all his options while motivating himself to do the best work he can in his current job, until his destiny is revealed.

Gilbert LeGras