Sermon by The Very Rev Chris Yaw, Matthew 20:1-16, 9/24/2023
Centering Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ,
Son of God,
May your will be done,
Through me.
As you take your seats, I have to tell you that my secretary was feeling really anxious this week! I asked if she could put her finger on what was causing it -
Of course, I then had to tell her that I don't like to be touched...
Anxiety!
It's running at an all-time high in our culture isn't it?
Many of us have come to church beset by it -
Maybe you're worried about your finances -
Maybe you're worried about your family-
Maybe you're worried about a bad report you received from the doctor -
Maybe you're worried about our country - and the plight of the world-
Yes, worry and anxiety are gauges on our dashboards - but for too many of us,
They've been elevated to become the windshields through which we see the world.
Everything around us becomes a threat, a risk, a potential for danger!
Not long ago, a new NFL player signed his first football contract-
All of a sudden he was a rich man - with a big house, lots of cash, new cars -
And he was told - 'You ought to buy a gun to protect yourself'
So he did - he put it under the front seat of his Porsche.
Soon after, at a stop light - a poorly-dressed man approached him in his Porsche - waving his arms - shouting something incomprehensible - motioning for the football player to roll down his window.
The NFL player grabbed the gun under his seat, put it on his lap - and rolled down the window as the man approached - 'What do you want?' asked the player -
'Oh, I need to tell you - you left your blinker on.'
That NFL player felt so embarrassed -
When he got home he threw his gun away -
He did not want to be transformed into a suspicious, untrusting person - who was prepared to shoot a man who was just being kind.
But while there are forces all around us working to cause us worry and anxiety -
We have come to a place this morning that stands for just the opposite!
Welcome to God's house - your house - your community - where faith, hope, love, and peace reign! Where we rest in God's promises -
The title of this morning's message is: God will provide.
God is here to tell us that we don't need to suffer from excessive worry.
We don't need to take on the worries of tomorrow that are just so daunting.
We don't need to carry the burdens of anxiety over the future.
God has heard!
God has answered!
God will provide!
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About 10 years ago when I was divorced, I discovered what a lot of you divorced people also know: Divorce is not a financially prudent thing to do!
You're left with half as much money and now have to pay twice as much as you were paying!
That limited my housing prospects - I was lucky enough to be able to afford a house -
But in the neighborhood where I was looking - the home that caught my eye was barely a 3 bedroom with no basement - and its backyard bordered Telegraph Road - all 8 lanes of it.
Not ideal, but what I could afford.
But on my second visit to the home - where I was going to meet my family to get their input -
I arrived early. So I decided to drive around the neighborhood.
That's when I discovered another home for sale that I hadn't seen advertised.
It was much bigger,
Larger yard,
On a quieter road,
But it looked like it had been abandoned and needed a lot of work
One of the doors was unlocked - and I even got a chance to go inside - where there were leaves and broken locks.
Later, when I arrived back at the first house - I asked my realtor to look up that abandoned home - Sure enough, it cost more money than the house next to Telegraph - but not that much more.
Then, when I took my family by the home - there was no question which was the better option.
The only problem was affording it.
So I took it to God:
'Lord, you know my bank account - and you know my family - 2 young kids who would need a safe yard and growing space - I don't know how you're going to do it - but I'd sure like to live here.'
I was worried - like we all get - but I kept reminding myself that I had prayed about it - and now it was up to God.
Through a series of events - involving bankers, realtors, and the seller - we were able to arrive at a price - and my family and I saw God provide.
God heard!
God answered!
God provided!
I wouldn't be surprised if you have a similar story of God's provision.
Did God get you into a home?
Into a car?
into a job?
And perhaps out of a jam!
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That's what happened to the Israelites when they found themselves wandering through the wilderness with no food.
The 'Chosen People' of God had just been miraculously delivered from the Egyptians!
God had parted the Red Sea so they could safely cross it -
And then see their enemies vanquished once and for all.
But now they were hungry.
They had no food.
They told God.
This is when the Lord provided bread from the heavens - you see it on your bulletin covers -
Like dew on the ground, it was gathered up - some compare it to angel food cake!
The Israelites looked at each other and said, 'What is it?'
In Hebrew it's 'Manna' - so that's what they named it.
And when the Israelites told God they also needed protein - the Lord provided!
God gave them quail each day as well.
The idea is that when God's people call upon the Lord, God answers.
What are you asking the Lord for this morning?
Is it food?
Is it a house?
The same God who provided food in the desert can provide for you!
Now I realize that many of you are probably unconvinced -
Many of you are thinking, 'I prayed for what I wanted - and I did not get it!'
What's up with that?
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One of the people I love to consult on this topic is a man named Daniel Gilbert - not THAT Dan Gilbert, our local, Southfield-born Billionaire, but Daniel Gilbert, a Harvard professor who writes books and gives TED talks on how difficult it is for you and me to know what makes us happy.
Gilbert says that we humans are horrible at imagining what will make us content.
Take lottery tickets.
People buy them by the boatload.
We imagine 'if I just had a couple of million dollars!'
And we imagine a new house, new car, new places to travel.
What we DON'T imagine - are all the people coming out of the woodwork asking for a handout.
What we DON'T imagine - is how hard it will be to maintain our current friendships when we drive up in a Ferrari and jet off to Paris for lunch.
What we DON'T imagine is that 80% of the people who win the lottery will lose it all rather quickly.
So if we don't know what will make us happy - There's a good chance that getting mad at God for not giving us what we wanted - may be a waste of time.
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This is what Pete Best found out -
I realize I'm among a cohort of people who could accurately tell me that Pete Best was the original drummer for the greatest Rock Band the world has ever known - the Beatles.
Best was 'cut' early on in the Beatle's career when the other band members felt that he didn't fit in. He was replaced by Ringo Starr - before the Beatles went on to fame and fortune on a scale no one had ever reached before.
Now, if you think that getting dumped by the Beatle's would just about the worst thing that could possibly happen to a professional drummer - you may be right - but you would not be speaking for Pete Best.
Interviewed years later about his career, Pete Best, who went on to be a highly respected studio drummer, said with conviction not spite, that 'He had lived a much happier life than he would have had he stayed on with the Beatles.'
Happiness is as fulfilling as it is unpredictable.
And Jesus knew this - which is why his most famous instruction to us about prayer included this line in the 'Our Father': Thy kingdom come, thy will be done' -
In other words, Jesus asks us to pray NOT for our will to be done - because our judgment is so bad - but for His will to be done - which is perfect.
God knows what will make us happy.
God knows that we don't.
God hears!
God answers!
God will provide!
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Imagine you're a day laborer.
You've got a family to feed.
You've got rent to pay.
You've got clothes to buy.
And you need to make 'so' much money per day to stay afloat.
You have to work 'so' many hours a day to make that money.
Then along comes a boss - at 9am - he hires your buddies - who go off to the job site.
At 12 noon the boss comes back - picks two more of your buddies - takes them to the job site.
He comes back at 3pm - picks two more of your buddies - and takes them to the job site.
Finally, he comes back at 5pm - and finally picks you - and takes you off to the job site.
Then 6pm rolls around - the end of the day
And it comes time to get paid.
And you are dreading this!
Because you've only been working an hour -
And that's not nearly enough money to make rent - to buy dinner - to get your kid a new shirt because he's growing - You'd need nearly a whole day's pay to afford that!
BUT - the boss seems to know this!
Because out of his purse he pulls out some money -
And he gives you that full day's wages!
God has heard!
God has answered!
God has provided!
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My father moved into St. Anne's Mead - next door - this week.
If you get fed up with my sense of humor and want to make a complaint - go see him, he's the one responsible...
And like I ask many of my beloved who have reached into their 8th decade and more -
I asked for advice - for any tips he's picked up - lessons he's learned - along the way.
I asked my dad that question this week - And he turned to me and imparted this piece of wisdom:
'Don't worry so much.
Things turn out ok.
Worrying will only make things worse.
God has always gotten me through.'
Friends, we are surrounded on all sides with good reasons to fret, worry, and get nervous-
But I believe, as we get better at living into the contentment of God that resides in our hearts - the more peaceful our lives will be.
I believe that, as we get better at living into the contentment of God that resides in our hearts - the more peaceful our communities will be.
I believe that, as we get better at living out the contentment of God that resides in our hearts, the more peaceful our world will be!
To the joy of humanity and the glory of God!
And if you're with me, can I get an Amen?