Happy Friday, everyone!

This Sunday is going to be the Sunday that the whole country is talking about the Super Bowl—one of the biggest stages in sports. For many people, a dominant storyline isn’t just about who’s going to win the Super Bowl; it’s all about how young quarterback Drake Maye is going to handle the pressure of his first Super Bowl appearance.

Maye is just 23 years old, and this is the biggest game of his life so far. He’s heading into Super Bowl LX (60) with questions about performance and whether he’ll rise to the moment, especially after dealing with shoulder soreness in the lead-up to the game. That’s a moment most of us can relate to outside of football and not just on Sunday.

Think about your week: big deadlines, hard conversations, uncertain outcomes, moments when you feel the weight of expectation. For many of us, we encounter those Super Bowl–level stress moments where we wonder, Can I perform well here? Am I going to get it done? Will I make the right decisions? Can I even handle the pressure?

Even outside of career or public performance, maybe you’re wondering how you’re going to navigate a strained relationship, financial pressure, a health challenge, or the emotional weight of caregiving without crashing under all the stress. The game of life creates high-pressure situations, and in those moments our hearts can tighten, stress can drain our attention, and anxiety can sap our joy—the very things we need to perform life well as leaders, spouses, parents, and friends.

But here’s the good news. God doesn’t call us to avoid stress. He doesn’t call us to shrink back, disengage, or pretend that pressure isn’t real. Instead, He calls us to go through it with Him—to bring it to Him—because He cares about every part of us. Our hopes, our worries, and our performance moments are the big Sunday games of life.

That’s what 1 Peter 5:7 is all about. It says, “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” That word translated anxiety is the same idea Jesus described when He talked about worries that choke out what matters most. It’s not a trivial word. It’s the weight of divided attention—constant worrying, fear of what might happen, fear of failure. We’re talking Super Bowl stress.

But notice what Peter doesn’t say. He doesn’t say, “Ignore it.” He doesn’t say, “Pretend you don’t care.” He doesn’t say, “Don’t feel it.” He says, “Cast it.” Actively give it over, because God cares about you in it. That means when you step into your week—your version of that Super Bowl stress moment, that big pressure moment—remember this: God is on the field with you.

He’s not watching from the sidelines, wishing you’d handle it better. He’s with you in the huddle. He’s with you in the noise. He’s with you in the moments that make your heart pound. You don’t have to carry it alone. So today, as you head into your weekend, invite God into your Super Bowl moments of life.

Give Him the stress. Give Him the fear. Give Him the hope of victory, because He cares for you and He will see you through to that victory.

Prayer
Gracious God, You know the pressures we carry. You see the moments that make our hearts weigh down and keep us awake at night. You know the meetings, the decisions, the conversations, the responsibilities that feel bigger than us.