1440AFC100314 – Pulled Both Ways
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Philippians 4:6 – Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. New English Translation (NET)
Aloha pumehana – Warmest Aloha – to all of you. I did not realize it until just this morning, but this message today is part of a series that started on September 5, 2014. Let me recap the titles so you can see what I mean.
9/5/14 – Gathered Together (Where two or three are gathered)
9/12/14 – Stage 2 – What is born of flesh is flesh and what is born of spirit is spirit
9/19/14 – My 4,357th Second Chance – Repentance is always an available option
9/26/14 – Duplex Grace – Gratitude and Generosity
10/3/14 – Pulled Both Ways
The common factor there is 2 – two people, two natures, two chances, two perspectives, and two … something.
This passage is from the Epistle for next Sunday. It’s from the last chapter of Paul’s letter to the Philippians, and it contains instructions for community living, including exhortations to live in Joy and Peace, comments about their generosity, and a farewell from Paul and his companions.
The part of this verse that refers to two things is the word anxious. In the original text, this word is μεριμνάω (merimnaó) [mer-im-nah’-o]. It means drawn in opposite directions as in divided into parts, to be divided or distracted; worried, troubled with cares about one’s own interests. It is sometimes expressed in the prayer we all pray so often: “Lord, what should I do?”
I am reminded of another old Gospel chorus, Why Worry:
“Why worry when you can pray?
Trust Jesus, He’ll be your stay;
Don’t be a “doubting Thomas.”
Trust fully in His promise.
Why worry, worry, worry, worry,
When you can pray?
Alfred B. Smith, John W. Peterson
© 1949 Singspiration Music
Back in May of last year we covered the topic of worrying in a post called Scissors and Stars. This same word for worry – μεριμνάω – is also used in Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount and Luke’s Sermon on the Plain:
KJV Matthew 6:25-28 – Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
NIV Luke 12:22-26 – Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?”
It is not our job to worry about how things will turn out. We are to trust that God will provide, but in order to live like that we have to follow that advice to first seek the Kingdom of God (See Matthew 6:33) Our mission is to walk through The Kingdom following the straight-and-narrow path to Heaven. Along the way, we are to use our hands and feet, our eyes and ears, and our lips and voices to praise God and share the Gospel. Many of us might recall the words of the Spanish mystic and Carmelite Nun, St. Theresa of Avila:
“Christ has no body now but yours. No hands, no feet on earth but yours. Yours are the eyes through which he looks compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good. Yours are the hands through which he blesses all the world. Yours are the hands, yours are the feet, yours are the eyes, you are his body. Christ has no body now on earth but yours.”
It is our feet that now follow the Way of Christ. It is our feet and carry us to help others, to a place of worship, to evangelize our neighbors, and to carry us to Heaven. As we walk along that narrow path, we do so frequently find ourselves divided in purpose; we want to “Enter through the narrow gate,” (Matthew 7:13-14) but our feet wander off the path. Go to one side and we enter the territory of becoming “God’s Perfect Little Helper.” We get to be so full of ourselves that we never realize we have strayed from that narrow road. Wander off to the other side and we get tangled up in the darkness of doubt and despair where faith is dry and it seems noting is possible.
It is our hands which reach out to lift up those who have fallen away on one side of that narrow road or the other. It is our hands which reach out to sooth and to heal. It is our hands which build shelter for the poor, distribute clothing to the needy, and feed the poor. Our hands can also grab and hold the things of this world. Our hands can be raised up to wound rather than to help or to praise. Our hands can turn love into fear and push away the stranger who needs to touch the hands of Christ. Right this very moment, it is the hands of Christ that fly over this keyboard to share whatever the Spirit commands.
It is our eyes which show the world the compassion of Christ. It is our eyes which see the horrors of war, the destructiveness of addiction, and the hopelessness of poverty, famine, and plague. It is our eyes that see the glories of God’s creation, and that glory inspires our hearts and minds to seek him out in every place that needs his presence.
Our hearts and minds are not created for anxiety or worry but for the honor and praise of God. When we feel that we are pulled in two directions – to worry about the world rather than to calmly trust in God’s providence – we would do well to look at our feet to see where we are standing. The book of Psalms begins with this advice: Psalm 1:1 – How blessed is the one who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand in the pathway with sinners, or sit in the assembly of scoffers! New English Translation (NET)
When we feel we are pulled in both directions, we have usually forgotten that we need to be mindful of the things we can change, the good we can do, the path we must follow. There are no “two things” to divide us if we remember Jesus’ question: “Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?” Why indeed? There is another passage where this word for “worried” is used, and in my mind and heart, it is the most instructive passage on this topic. It is at the home of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. Martha is flying around the house trying to take care of being the perfect hostess. She complains to Jesus that her sister, Mary, is not helping her; she’s just sitting around chatting with Jesus. What Jesus told her is something we should all remember.
Luke 10:41-42 – But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things, but one thing is needed. Mary has chosen the best part; it will not be taken away from her.”
Next time you’re being pulled in both directions, think of that verse, put your name in place of Martha’s name, and choose what Mary chose: To be with Jesus. That’s all you need to know.
Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever — at your service, Beloved!
