Worry and Perspective

In Mathew’s account of the Gospel, Jesus says, “And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?” (Mt. 6:27) 

There is a lot to worry and fret over, yet Jesus calls us to consider the lilies of the field. 

I came across a website, “Here is Today” and it puts things in perspective. All the stress and worry that I have matters to me and believe it matters to God and others in my life. But in the grand scale of life, is what I’m upset about really worth the extra energy? (A good reminder as emotions are about to be at an all time high this weekend with College Football starting back up the eminent birth of our daughter.)

Jesus goes onto say, “So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” (Mt. 6:34)

Heaven help us all

What is going on?

I, probably like most Americans would be fearful to admit,  get a lot of my news from my news feeds in social media. If I only follow my friends, or people I like or agree with, my view is fairly self-serving. If I am not following people who I know have different views, I am not a part of the conversation. I am part of the noise. [This is an observation of a problem.]

What is the remedy to the problem stated above? Follow more people who have differing opinions? Get off social media?

What’s going on in this world?

ISIS in Iraq and Syria. Martial Law, riots, and a police state in our own country. The death of a beloved actor.

There are countless other stories that are happening in this world that need to be told, but these three in particular stand out because they force us to face reality that we would at times rather not face.

War is real.

Racism is real.

Depression is real.

The problem is not only that these evils exist, but that people somehow now find it their job to use these things as opportunities to prove how correct they are in their thinking, and how other people are wrong.

Think about it: how many articles have you read that are trying to prove a point, that are perhaps guised as articles of awareness?

So this is a post trying to prove how right I am. Yup. I’m one those.

But I’m not trying to prove my rightness (that’s self-righteousness). I want to think deeper about the way in which God calls us to live through Christ.

Here is a question for those who consider themselves part of the Christian faith: “When did we start taking things that humans say more seriously than what Jesus said?”

Jesus says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God (Mt.5:9).”

But wait, didn’t Jesus also say five chapters later, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.”

Oops. Come on, Jesus. Be consistent. At least make it easy for us.

But that’s not the way. We’d rather be right, hiding behind the black and white, picking and choosing what works for us when convenient, rather than struggling with Christ’s words and call.

We’d rather use scripture against our enemies than let God use scripture against our own souls.

War is real.

Racism is real.

Depression is real.

We learned that this week. Did you enter into the conversation? Did you tell the truth or the convenience?

This week, our scripture for worship is Revelation 2:1-4. It talks about starting strong in the faith. But the church in Ephesus has abandoned the love they had at first. The love that they had at first was not a love for God. That was a given. Read in conjunction with Ephesians 1:15, there we read that the first love that the people there was to God and others...just as Jesus commanded.

When our love breaks down, we are left with hate. Or, as The Lumineers suggest, the opposite of love’s indifference.

Evil is real. In the Christian tradition, we call this sin. Sin is real. So is temptation.

We have lost our first love, our first call--to love God and to love other people. We enter into this fallen world and try to make it a little better with God’s help. When we insist upon our own way, we are not following our first love.

Heaven help us, when our first love is ourselves.