A Crisis of Faith: He's Got The Whole World

Two things are a crisis of faith for me: money and hurricanes. I grew up in East Texas where the most natural disaster we had to worry about was occasional flooding, a random ice storm, and maybe a tornado. In college, at Oklahoma Baptist University, I came to know the fear and wonderment of tornadoes; but they were never a crisis of faith for me. Tornadoes are random. They appear and disappear and while their destruction is greater than any hurricane, the tornado does not normally last for a very long time and is usually contained to one area. Hurricanes on the other hand are very stressful for me.

We're given a lot of information ahead of time and the meteorologists do a very good job of predicting the path of the hurricane. We know when to expect it and we are usually told to fear the worse: being without power, water, gas and food shortages, etc. Waiting out a hurricane takes time, sometime the entire day and into the next day and it is a real crisis of faith for me. It causes me to worry, no matter how prepared I am, I worry that I've not prepared enough.

Likewise, money is a great stress for me. No matter how much I have it never feels like it's enough. I feel like I'm supposed to have more. I'm supposed to be able to pay my bills and then have enough to go on vacation or put into savings or tithe. Finances are a great stress for me and it when it comes time to work on the church budget or seeing the giving for the week, I get myself worked up. My greatest fear about it all: How it affects me. My worry is about myself and that is the cause for my crisis of faith in those moments.

We all have those moments, don't we? We hear about the impending weather, an upcoming bill, a health concern, and our immediate thought is “how is this going to affect me”. The media sells us on this concern. A majority of the news on the big news networks is about how world events affect you and I. Very rarely is it about it affects others and very rarely is about how we should be concerned for others. The individualistic nature of our culture causes us a lot of worry and worry becomes our master.

Standing on the mountain, Jesus began to speak to the crowd that gathered around him. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit eternal life. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

He told the people gathered with him that they are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. He told them he had come not to abolish the law but to fulfill it. He said, “You have heard it said, “You shall not murder.” But I say to you that if you are angry with your brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment. If you say “You fool,” you will be liable to the hell of fire. You have heard it said, “Do not swear falsely, but I say to you do not swear at all. You have heard it said, “An eye for an eye, but I say to you turn the other cheek. You have heard it said, “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy but I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”

He warned them of practicing piety before others. He warned them not to be like the hypocrites when they pray or fast. He told them not store up treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and thieves steal; but store up yourselves treasures in heaven, where there are neither moth nor rust nor thieves. For where our treasure is so will our hearts be. Therefore we cannot serve two masters. We cannot be devoted to God and wealth. We can only serve one or the other.

He then tells the people not to worry. He tells them not to worry about their lives, what they will eat or what they will drink, or about their bodies, what they will wear. “Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 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? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?”

He asks, “Why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?' For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today.”

There is a lot of worry in our world today. We worry about elections, nuclear weapons, taxes, super storms, global and local economy. We worry about our jobs, our children, our homes, our families, our friends, our cars. We worry about where our next meal is coming from, if we'll have enough to make rent or pay the mortgage, or if we can pay our electric bill. Life is full of worry. Why else do we end up with little gray hairs? Life is stressful and Jesus seems to be out of touch with reality. Obviously he wasn't paying attention over the past year else he would know that things he says not to worry about are exactly what we're worrying about and we are worrying about so much more.

We're having a crisis of faith, Jesus.

Our worry has lead us to place our faith in things not of the kingdom. Our worries are urgent and painful, causing great stress on our families and in our lives, and we are in need of a reminder to hold fast to the One whose love endures forever. We are in need of a reminder that our worries will not be eased by Councilmen, Senators, Congressmen, Presidents, or anyone in power. We are in need of a reminder that peace for our worries comes from Christ. We are in need of a reminder that Christ is here in our midst. We are in need of a reminder that Christ is continually writing this story. We are in need of a reminder of who the One is that has written the ending. We are in need of a reminder that the song, “He's got the whole world in his hands” is not just a happy tune we teach to our children. It is our faith and it is our trust in the truth of that song, the truth that our scriptures speak to, that God does indeed have the whole world in his hands.

We're having a crisis of faith, Jesus.

We worry about things that we cannot control. We worry about our votes, our 401ks, the weather, our government, our schools. We worry that we're not keeping up with the Jones and we're falling behind. We worry and we worry. Our worries lead us down a rough path. Our worries lead us to things that can tear down our souls. Our worries damage our friendships, our relationships with our families. Our worries turn our neighbors into enemies. Our worries, when allow them to, can be dangerous to our spiritual lives. So let us again remind ourselves, “He's got the whole world in his hands.”

We're having a crisis of faith, Jesus.

Our worries are infecting the way we live. We live as a people who throw their money at their problems instead of working together for a solution. There has been a few reports on how much candidates have spent on their campaigns this election season. The presidential candidates spent nearly $1 billion on television ads and other campaign advertizements. The men who ran for our district's congressional seat raised close to $1 million for their advertizements to be elected. Several Christian organizations gave close $600 million for advertizements to try and get someone elected. So much worry was tied up in who was elected that people gave willing to a cause that is not of the kingdom. Let us ask ourselves this serious question: Could that 1.7 billion dollars have been given to a better use? Could that amount of money gone to organizations who work to ease the worries of the homeless, the hungry, the naked, the sick, the imprisoned. Could that amount of money gone to something that is more important than an election?

Our worries over this past election season gives an honest look at Christians in America and we need to remind ourselves once again, “He's got the whole world in his hands.”

We are having a crisis of faith, Jesus.

Jesus says we need to look no further than the birds in the air and the flowers on the ground to see God's amazing work at hand. We need to look no further than the birds and the flowers to see that God truly does have the whole world in his hands. So why do we worry so? Why are so concerned about tomorrow? Is it our fear of the unknown? Does it have to do with issues of control? Does it concern our faith? Do we really have faith in Christ? Do we really have faith in God? Let us listen once again to the words of Christ:

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 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? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. “So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” (Matthew 6:25-33 NRSV).

Let us be a community of faith that looks to Christ when our worries consume our lives. Let us be community of faith that helps ease our worries by sharing with one another the gifts Christ has given us. Let us be a community of faith that knows and believes in the One whose steadfast love endures forever. Let us be reminded that God is the Alpha, the Omega, the beginning and the end and that he truly does have the whole world in his hands. Amen.