“IN GOD WE TRUST”

MATTHEW 6:24-34

24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 

28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin,

29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’

32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.

33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

This may be one of those urban legends that circulate from time to time but I’ve heard it said that just before we die our life flashes before our eyes. This thought crossed my mind one Saturday last September when my neighbors and I got together and organized a neighborhood yard sale. It took me days to prepare. I found myself walking around the house pulling things out of closets and cupboards, taking packed boxes of stuff out of the basement and attic, unwrapping glassware and dishes from yellowed newspapers, dusting, washing, and hauling items up and down the stairs, and then finally tagging them. The entire process was exhausting especially when deciding which items I was going to keep and which I going to sell.

On the morning of the sale I went with one of my neighbors to strategically place signs around town and within 15 minutes people began to arrive. As I looked out across my front yard at the fold up tables crammed full of my earthly possessions, I saw my life flash before my eyes. There were all those beanies babies I just had to have, the bread machine, the electric piano for my daughter’s 10^th birthday, the old VCR recorder I couldn't wait to own, the expensive leather shoes I dreamt about wearing which ended up hurting my feet, the George Forman grill, and those leaf shape green plates I couldn't live without. And there was more! Seeing all that stuff I once anxiously desired and sought after, I remember saying to myself, what was I thinking? It was then I realized the time I spend anxiously pursuing the possessions now on my yard sale tables was precious time I had not centered my life on trusting in God.  

That yard sale makes me think of the words that Jesus spoke in the Sermon on the Mount.

 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

Isn’t life more than beanie babies, an old VCR, pretty green leaf shaped plates and a nice pair of leather shoes?

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For …your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.

With those words Jesus is presenting us with a choice that we all have to make when it comes to how we are going to live our lives. The choice is, are you going to put your trust in God or are you going to put your trust in money and material things? Or to say it another way it’s the difference between a God centered approach to life and a money centered approach to life.

Which approach best fits your needs?

As far as Jesus was concerned the money centered approach to life will only bring us hours of anxiety. Some of you may even have experienced feelings of anxiety caused by striving for wealth and material things in your lives. It’s so easy to get caught up in the money centered approach.  Look at the motto that’s printed on all of our currency. When we hear what Jesus is saying here in today’s scripture reading, I wonder what he would say about the words “In God We Trust” printed on our coins and paper money.

I believe the motto “In God We Trust” is a powerful and important phrase in understanding ourselves as Americans.  It was first introduced when eleven Protestant denominations started a campaign during the Civil War. In a letter addressed to then Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase, from Rev. Watkinson of Ridleyville, PA, the pastor requested the Treasury Department add a reference to God on Federal currency. Chase supported the request and in 1864 "In God We Trust" appeared on the new two-cent U.S. coin. Chase explained, “No nation can be strong except in the strength of God, or safe except in His defense.” The motto was a reminder that the Union placed its trust in God while seeking justice by ending slavery.

Still not everyone was in agreement in using the words. Decades later, President Theodore Roosevelt in a letter written in 1907 to William Boldly disapproved of the motto. He wrote: "My own feeling in the matter is due to my very firm conviction that to put such a motto on coins, or to use it in any kindred manner, not only does no good but does positive harm, and is in effect irreverence, which comes dangerously close to sacrilege...It is a motto which it is indeed well to have inscribed on our great national monuments, in our temples of justice, in our legislative halls, and on buildings such as those at West Point and Annapolis -- in short, wherever it will tend to arouse and inspire a lofty emotion in those who look thereon. But it seems to me eminently unwise to cheapen such a motto by use on coins,..." The issue was finally settled in 1956, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the law making it mandatory that all coinage and paper currency display the motto.

Understanding the historical back ground of the phrase “In God We Trust” helps to put into perspective the original intent, to orient the country toward a vision of God's kingdom. Yet often we find ourselves orienting ourselves away from trusting in God’s vision instead finding ourselves placing our faith in material possessions. And in today’s scripture Jesus tells us we cannot have it both ways. We cannot trust in our own money centered approach as the foundation of our well being and also trust in God as center of our lives. There can only be one foundation, only one trust. So it seems we must continually and mindfully choose which of these we want to make as the focal point of our lives. Our choice will determine the ground on which we stand. As Jesus says, No one can serve two masters.

However, this doesn't mean that we can or should all stop working. Put our feet up and watch the world go by. But it does mean that if our trust is in God's care for us, there is no reason to eliminate the hope that God will graciously provide us with the things necessary for our well being. Instead what will change is "worry about your life."   If we have faith and trust in God's loving care even though we may work hard and even "strive," in the end our striving is not the source of our well-being.

Jesus understands our needs; his call to a worry-free living is not based on unrealistic views of the world. His words are for those who understand that God will not leave us without resources or support. We can face life with all its uncertainties with the assurance that we are not alone.  Jesus is telling us that God is the source of our well being, our center, no matter what circumstances may come and go. God hears, sees, and cares about us and our situations. Look at the birds he says and consider the lilies, they do not worry and neither should we. By eliminating unnecessary anxiety we free ourselves to live lives devoted to things that give meaning to our lives such as seeking to bring about God’s reign.

Jesus' message is for all of us, rich and poor, for the amount of money involved is not the concern. Rather, at issue is the orientation of our trust and the goal and character of our striving. Jesus is inviting us into God’s realm, where priorities are clear. The focus in God’s kingdom is not about how much we have, but where our hearts lie. Our participation in the kingdom is not about striving for possessions to later discard in a yard sale, it is about God’s vision of peace and justice for all creation.  Jesus encourages us to imagine the world differently, to see it from God’s perspective, and to value the things God values.

A person of God, my hope in the days and weeks to come is that we seek first the God centered approach to life by mindfully eliminating the money centered anxiety producing tendencies in our lives.  Instead, let us take the words of the motto, In God We Trust, found in our wallets and place them on our hearts. In the days and weeks to come when we find ourselves standing in the tension between anxiety over money and a worry free trust in God may we remember the words Jesus spoke, “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you.”  AMEN

Kate Pinkham, Student Minister

February 27, 2011