I
heard a story this past week about an old monk who lived in a forest. Each day,
he went for a walk. He usually kept to the forest trails; but one day, he
decided to go in the opposite direction towards a nearby military base that he
usually avoided. When he reached the gate, the sentry stepped out and asked
him, “Who are you and what are you doing here?” The monk was silent for a
moment, and then asked, “How much are you paid for your services?” Thinking
that the monk hadn’t heard him, the sentry repeated his questions more loudly:
“Who are you and what are you doing here?” The monk asked the sentry once
again, “How much are you paid for your services?” Finally, the sentry boomed
out in a no-nonsense tone of voice, “Who are you and what are you doing here?”
The monk’s eyes filled with tears. “I have no answer to your questions,” he
replied, “but they are the most important questions in the world. Whatever your
salary is, I will double it if you will come to live with me and ask me those
two questions every morning when I get up.” Those questions cut to the heart of
who we are as the people of God. Let’s consider them one at a time.
“Who
are you?” The answer to that question has nothing to do with our last names or our
skin color or our countries of origin. It has everything to do with what we
human beings have in common. The short answer is that we are hybrids: physical
creatures that were created by God, and spiritual creatures that were made in
God’s own image. As physical creatures, we are a part of God’s creation; and that
creation is “very good!” Please don’t pay any attention to the people who claim
that flesh is bad while spirit is good. God, after all, called creation “good”
six separate times during the creation story in Genesis 1; and after God
created human beings, God pronounced it “very good!” But because we are also
spiritual creatures, made in God’s image, we are tempted to hold ourselves in
higher esteem than we should. Psalm 8 explores this when it asks, “What are
human beings that you even think about us?” (We are, after all, part of
creation.) “Yet you have made us a little lower than God, and crowned us with
glory and honor.” (We are, after all, made in God’s image.)
And that
begs the question, what does it mean to be made in God’s image? Well, we
certainly have a sense of good and evil. Some things are pleasing to God
(good), while others are not (evil). But I think that it means much more than
this. It also means that we have a sense of time. We have memories of the past;
we have a sense of the present; and (this is what really sets us apart from the
other animals in creation) we understand that there will be a future. Animals
don’t have a sense of the future. They may know what happened yesterday; and
they certainly sense what’s going on now, but the future? Not a clue. And that
sense of time is what tempts us to worry. We know that we are physical
creatures who have needs; and we know that we will have those same needs in the
future. So we plan (that’s a good thing), but then we worry about it (that’s a
bad thing). And that’s something that Jesus clearly tells us not to do! “Look
at the birds,” he says. “They don’t have closets or warehouses or 401(k) plans,
and they do just fine! You can’t add a single hour to your lifespan by worrying
about it! So why are you doing it?” (Read Luke 12:22-26, although maybe Jesus
didn’t say it in exactly those words!) If we didn’t have physical needs, we
wouldn’t worry. If we had no sense of the future, we wouldn’t worry. But we
have both… and that causes problems.
Now,
let’s tackle that second question: “What are you doing here?” We already know
that worrying isn’t the answer that God wants us to give to that question. For
one thing, worrying puts the focus of our lives squarely on ourselves; and we
should be focusing on other people. And for another thing, worrying actually
hurts us! Psychologists have shown that people who worry tend to die earlier
than people who don’t. No wonder that Jesus tells us not to do it! God wants
his children (us) to live long, happy lives; and worrying cripples us. So… if
we’re not supposed to worry… what are
we supposed to do? We can find the answer in the 23rd Psalm if we
read between the lines. In that psalm, God promises us a life that is full and
beautiful – but we have to let him be our shepherd! When we lie down in green
pastures, we will find rest. When we are led by still waters, we will find
peace. When our souls are restored, we will be renewed. When we are led in
paths of righteousness, God will help us in the difficult decisions that we
have to make. When we walk through the valley of the shadow of death (yes, we
will have tough times!), we won’t be afraid. Even our enemies won’t be able to
take our full lives away from us! And as to the future: “Surely goodness and
mercy will follow me all the days of my life!” But to get this full life, we
have to trust in God and let him be our shepherd! We have to follow where he
leads us, just like sheep do when they trust their shepherd. Worry isn’t a part
of that equation! Spending time in creation can help to remind us not to worry.
None of the other creatures in God’s creation worries about the future. We’re
the only ones who insist on doing it! Maybe we should learn from the example of
the animals. Do what you need to do to plan for the future. Even a squirrel
gathers nuts in preparation for the winter. But I doubt if, after that squirrel
has stored her nuts, she consults the Farmer’s Almanac and worries about
whether she has gathered enough!
So,
here’s today’s take-home message. Trusting in God means doing your best and
then letting it go! We don’t know what the future holds – but God does. Don’t
worry about the future; let God handle it! Trust God to hold both you and the
future in his hands. You might even pray this kind of prayer when you go to bed
at night if worry keeps you from sleeping (as it sometimes does to me): “Loving
God, I have done my best today. I give what I have done to you. Watch over me
tonight, and help me face tomorrow with the confidence that you are with me
through everything. You hold the future in your hands; and you hold me, too.”
One of my favorite poems describes the peace of creation that God offers to us.
It is titled “The Peace of Wild Things,” and it was written by Wendell Berry
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s
lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the
great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with
forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of
still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am
free.
