This series of devotions are focused around Soren Kierkegaard’s “Christian Discourses etc.� The biblical text to consider during these devotions is: Matthew 6:24-34.
To be without anxiety, yea, that is a difficult gait to go, almost like walking upon the water; but if thou art able to believe, it can nevertheless be done. It is true of all danger that the principal thing is to get away from the thought of it. Thou canst not get away from poverty, but thou canst get away from the thought of it by thinking constantly of God. So it is the Christian goes his/her gait; s/he turns her/his eyes upward, s/he looks away from danger, in poverty s/he without the anxiety of poverty. But s/he who desires to be rich – his thought is constantly upon the ground, with his anxiety about earthly things; s/he walks with bowed head, looking constantly before him/her, if perchance he might find riches.
Let’s face it, when we are people of plenty – as may be most people who are ready these devotions – we face the whole notion of poverty with quite a different eye than people who are literally on the edge of poverty – the edge that can mean life or death. For me and my kind, we must watch how quickly the anxiety of poverty attempts to seduce us into trusting something other than our God who promises to bring us life and with that life, daily bread. That must be a daily discipline. For many of the people who stood in line at our Project Help (clothes, food & toy) Give Away this weekend the discipline takes place as they endure the worst of physical situations. On Saturday I was simply taking hot chocolate and cookies out to the people waiting in line and my body was getting cold right down to my bones. These people were standing in line, little movement, some dress in less clothing than what I was wearing, in temperatures that never went above 29 degrees, for two to six hours. In thinking about poverty and anxiety, we must not linger within the isolation of our own lives where are notion of poverty is often a web within our thinking. No, we must make sure that we are always connected to others. For in that connection, we begin to see how God really takes care of people and we are blessed to see the various depths of faithfulness and hope when the situation at hand seems to offer no hope.
Connection: We must work for justice and the well being of all. Sometimes that begins as we offer what we have to others who are in need. It may help them, but it also helps us put our riches in proper perspective.
Lord, make us instruments of loving kindness so that we may lift our eyes to see the abundance of your creation and the many ways we can help to provide for those whose lives may not have enough to sustain them. Be our wisdom for the choices of this day as we look to you alone for life and hope. Amen.
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