Considering Lillies
Rev. Lee Ann Bryce
Community Christian Church
February 27, 2011
Today we return to the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew’s gospel. Jesus continues to talk about the lifestyle of those who claim to belong to God’s kingdom on earth. Today’s text deals primarily with how God’s people are to relate to money; to material things.
Before I begin reading the scripture, I want to ask you a question. What do you worry about? Are you someone who wakes up in the middle of the night with niggling thoughts running through your brain that you struggle to control? Or do you drift off in daydreams about the things you’re afraid of? You know, those old, familiar thoughts: will I get laid off from my job? Will I find a job? How can I afford to make that pricey repair on my house? What if my child continues to struggle? What if that medical test comes back indicating a major health issue? What if I don’t have enough funds to live on when I retire?
Many of us have these kinds of worries. Sometimes they even follow the same pattern. How we choose to relate to the things that leave us anxious makes a difference in the quality of our lives. As Christians, we seek to live to some extent as Jesus did. Our worries can greatly impact our ability to live lives centered in the peace of Christ.
The good news is that in this passage, Jesus speaks precisely to this issue that almost everyone can identify with. Matthew 6:-24-34: (Text read while images are shown.)
“No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. “So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.
These words of Jesus may well have originally been directed specifically toward his disciples. Remember, they had left homes and families to become, like Jesus, traveling teachers. As those who had given up worldly possessions they may have been wavering in their faith. Could they really meet the demands of the job to which Jesus had called them?
These words, though originally addressed the disciples, are equally pertinent to us. We should not understand this passage literally and legalistically. To the disciples and to us, however, these verses represent a radical call to move away from our cultural values and toward a life of trust.
Of course, trusting in God’s provision doesn’t mean that we give up on working or owning property. Rather, we are to see that our life is not based on these things. We are not called to carelessness or irresponsibility. We’re not to become birds or lilies, but to consider God’s providence for all of creation – birds, wildflowers, human beings. We are warned against a slavish, anxious, worried preoccupation with wealth as though money were one’s owner or master.
And verse 34 comes across loud and clear: So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today. In other words, address each day’s problems as they come, confident that your life is in the hands of God who somehow holds the whole world in holy hands.
So, Jesus tells us not to worry, so let’s just not worry ok? Can that just be the end of the sermon? I wish that would be how it worked, don’t you? If your mind is like mine, it’s just not that easy to shut it off once those little niggling thoughts get going. Before you know it, you’re looking at the clock as the hours tick away, dreading the early alarm that starts another day, on a night’s sleep brought short by worry.
Why do we worry so much? What is wrong with us? Rarely do the things we worry about happen. Is there anything we can do to stop the destructive habit of worrying?
I think Jesus gets us started in a positive direction in dealing with worry with the very valid point he makes in v. 27: Can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? It’s a good question. Has worry ever, in the history of humankind, every done anyone any good? No, of course not. Worrying provides zero benefit whatsoever. In fact, not only is it a waste of time, a completely ineffective strategy for dealing with life, it actually makes things worse. By worrying, our problems seem worse than they really are. Our energy is drained, and our capacity to deal with life effectively is crippled.
The good news is that we have more control over the tendency to worry than we might imagine. We can break the habit of worry and therefore free ourselves of its destructiveness. And I will offer some specific ideas on how to get started, but first I just want to make a clarification. Being concerned and worried are two very different things. Being concerned about something means that there may or may not be a potential problem. From a concerned mindset, we can assess the situation intelligently, and decide on how best to handle it; we have control over how the situation is affecting us. Being worried about something, on the other hand, puts all the power into the problem or situation. The issue usually becomes much worse in our minds than it actually is. Our thinking becomes sluggish, and a sense of panic or foreboding sets in. We become almost paralyzed, waiting for something terrible to happen.
Whether you worry all the time or only occasionally, we can all benefit from some specifics to help us end worry when it sneaks in. First, try writing your worries down. When these thoughts constantly float around in your brain, worries can seem much bigger than they actually are. Writing them down may well give you more control over them. Write exactly what is going through your head. You might return to it later to find what you’ve written seems completely crazy. Or if you don’t dismiss it as crazy, you can begin formulating possible solutions for the problems you face. In one study, people wrote down their worries for 14 days. When they reviewed their lists after that period, they found that 85% of their worries never came to pass.
Another idea - play the time warp. Pretend you are in the future. Look back on the problems you are worrying about today. Do they look as difficult or scary as they do today? Frequently you’ll find that this perspective helps you to see your current difficulties in a different light.
Something else that helps? Resolve to live in the present moment. And that means being present to your life just as it is, without judgment. Spending time feeling guilt about the past or taking on tomorrow’s troubles keeps us from being present today. Psychologist Richard Carlson said, “As you focus on becoming more peaceful with where you are, rather than focusing on where you’d rather be, you begin to find peace right now, in the present.”
It also helps if you cut yourself a little slack. Self-criticism feeds worry. Though some think constant self-assessment and criticism spurs them toward their goals, in reality it usually does just the opposite.
You also might try something proactive. Invest yourself in a daily practice of meditation. This helps to boost your ability to live in the present moment. Start with a modest program of daily meditation – 5 minutes a day. Anyone can manage 5 minutes a day just to sit and breath. (And if you don’t know how to start, we have coming up the perfect opportunity to learn. Sign –up for the Pre-Lenten Mindful Meditation Morning that Lisa and I are facilitating on this Saturday, March 6.) I honestly believe a daily meditation practice will change your life for the better in more ways than you could imagine.
One last suggestion, be grateful. Gratitude can have a profound effect on calming fears, reducing envy, cooling anger. When you look at the rest of the world, where hundreds of millions of people struggle every day to find enough food to eat and clean water to drink, most of us in North America have much to be grateful for. Another study revealed that people who kept a gratitude journal were significantly happier than those who did not. Gratitude creates a healthier perspective and a more hopeful outlook on life.
“So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today. Worry does not empty tomorrow of its troubles – it empties today of its strength. Instead, strive first for the kingdom of God and its righteousness.
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