Matthew 6:25-34

Mat 6:25 So I say to you, Take no thought for your life, about food or drink, or about clothing for your body. Is not life more than food, and the body more than its clothing?
Mat 6:26 See the birds of heaven; they do not put seeds in the earth, they do not get in grain, or put it in store-houses; and your Father in heaven gives them food. Are you not of much more value than they?
Mat 6:27 And which of you by taking thought is able to make himself a cubit taller?
Mat 6:28 And why are you troubled about clothing? See the flowers of the field, how they come up; they do no work, they make no thread:
Mat 6:29 But I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.
Mat 6:30 But if God gives such clothing to the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is put into the oven, will he not much more give you clothing, O you of little faith?
Mat 6:31 Then do not be full of care, saying, What are we to have for food or drink? or, With what may we be clothed?
Mat 6:32 Because the Gentiles go in search of all these things: for your Father in heaven has knowledge that you have need of all these things:
Mat 6:33 But let your first care be for his kingdom and his righteousness; and all these other things will be given to you in addition.
Mat 6:34 Then have no care for tomorrow: tomorrow will take care of itself. Take the trouble of the day as it comes.

I mentioned worry at Brighton last Sunday. There I said that it was an opportunity to pray. I mentioned that all of us worry. One of my listeners took umbridge with that generalization. I should never worry. He felt that he never did. He spoke at length about it after the service. I thought to myself, "You are in a great nursing home. All your needs are met." But that was unfair of course. His wife has been gone for twenty years and he still speaks of her in the presence tense. I really know nothing of his life. But what I do know he has surely been blessed. He said he is 97 years old. He is very mentally alert and gets around very well with a walker. He has little stoop at all.

In the evening sermon August 8 RC challenged us to know we will be with him in paradise, to have no doubt, to not worry about it.

It boils down to knowing God only gives good gifts. His gifts do not come with curses attached, with unexpected gotchas. They might come with responsibilities but that is not the same thing. We can overcome those.

I am a man of little faith. I pray, and firmly believe that God has a place in his kingdom for men (and women) of little faith.

Even though I am evil (have a bent towards selfishness) I attempt to give good gifts. My Father God is much more willing and able to give good gifts to those who love him. In fact he gives good gifts to all people.

Yet I can be like the lamenting psalmists. I look at my circumstances and complain to God. He hears. The psalmists always end a psalm with a statement of faith. Somethings it seems this statements really do not have much faithful force behind them. The psalmist is making the faithful statement trying to will himself into believing it. I think often he wants to believe it but is struggling to really feel it. At least I know that is true for me. God smiles. He is taking care of me.

Help me God to love you more than money, to trust you more than money. Help me to trust you for security despite the fragility of my investments. Help me to yearn to have more association with you and to love our time together more.