Why "Behold the Lilies"?

I was raised in the United Methodist Church, though in my twenties I was an apostate Christian resting just shy of being an atheist, and in my thirties I had a "born again" experience and gave the Foursquare and Calvary Chapel churches a go before making a full circle back to the United Methodist Church.

Just before I returned to "the church," a really good friend of mine was lined up to be the lay preacher at the Foursquare church he attended on the following Sunday (this was before I had ever darkened the doorstep). He knew that I had been a "Bible-totin', scripture-quotin' Christian" in my youth, and asked me if I could think of anything he might be able to preach on the following Sunday. The first verses to pop into my head were Matthew 6:25-34:

25 Therefore I say to you, don't be anxious for your life, what you'll eat, or what you'll drink; nor for your body, what you'll put on. Isn't the life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

26 Behold the birds in the sky, they don't plant seeds, nor do they reap a harvest, nor gather their crop into barns; God feeds them. Aren't you more valuable than they are? 27 And how many people do you know who have added a single moment to their lives by worrying? 28 And why are you worried about what you will wear? Behold the lilies of the field, how they grow without doing any work, and without running around in circles, 29 yet I tell you that even King Solomon in all of his glory was never dressed as beautifully as these flowers.

30 If God clothes the grass of the field, which today is here, and tomorrow goes under the lawnmower blade, doesn't it make sense that he'll clothe you even more beautifully? Where's your faith? 31 So stop worrying, saying, "What will we eat?" or "What will we drink?" or "Where will I get the money to buy new clothes?"

32 Worrying is what people who don't have faith in God do; but God knows what you need, so put your faith in God. 33 If you are grateful for what God has already given you, for what you have now, living abundantly with joy and gratitude, and sharing these gifts with others, then you will receive even more to be grateful for.

34 So stop worrying about things that haven't happened yet, because there's plenty to worry about without creating even more by worrying before it happens. (BHTL Version)

He asked me why I chose that scripture and I had to think about it. The first reason was that it was springtime. In Montana springtime is just the muddy waiting room between winter and summer, and is usually snowy or rainy. My first thought about why that verse came to me so quickly was that I would love to see some sunshine and flowers about now. My second thought was that my experience with Christianity as a child was so oppressive and full of "hellfire and damnation," but that verse always reminded me that God is friendly, and wants me to be happy.

I have no idea what my friend preached on that Sunday because I didn't go to church for another five years or so (more on that later). But to this day, that remains my favorite verse in the entire Bible, for the second reason that I gave my friend: "God is friendly, and wants me to be happy."

What an important thing to remember when we are so frequently reminded (inaccurately, I believe) that God is a vengeful God.

I have read the Bible many times, and have come to believe that we can find whatever version of God that we want to find in the Bible. But mostly I believe that so much of the vengeance that can be found in those pages is the result of human manipulation for political purposes. Look around you, watch the news, read the newspapers, pay attention to advertising--do you need any more confirmation of my theory than this? All kinds of people use God as the reason that we should not do the very things that Jesus taught us that we should do. Why? Because they understand that the average person is more motivated by fear than s/he is by love.

That's the dark side of humanity. It is so easy to believe that we are unworthy, not enough. There are so many people willing to help us believe that we are afraid that we're too [fill in the blank with the problem that the product they want to sell you will solve] .

I do not believe that God intended for us to live in fear. Jesus taught us over and over to allow love and compassion to guide our every move. This message from the Bible is reinforced by the beauty in the world and the universe around us. I believe that God intends for us to live hope-filled lives of joy, and to share that hope and joy with as many people as possible.

This blog is my attempt to do that on a daily basis, focusing on the teachings of Jesus, and supporting those teachings with observations of God's great creation.

My first observation is this: "Behold the lilies of the field, how they grow without doing any work, and without running around in circles, 29 yet I tell you that even King Solomon in all of his glory was never dressed as beautifully as these flowers." At this time of year when we are surrounded by Easter Lilies, how appropriate that we should remember to stop worrying! These beautiful flowers, and all of the budding, blooming creation of spring, are evidence that God is friendly and he wants us to be happy. So be happy.