Location, Location, Location – Sixth Sunday after Epiphany (Jeremiah 17: 5-10)
Perhaps, at some point in your life, you were part of a group that did the trust fall exercise. If you and your coworkers or classmates were never asked to do this exercise a trust fall is when you turn around, cross your arms over your chest so you can’t reach out to catch yourself, and you let yourself fall backwards, trusting that your partner will catch you. The risk, of course, is that they won’t catch you and you’ll fall and hit your head. Its stressful. Especially those moments right before you let yourself fall back, when you are standing there anxious and anticipating what is about to happen. The stress comes from not knowing if you can really trust the person behind you to catch you. That’s why the trust building exercise is done with groups that are just getting to know one another. It could be considered a quick way to build trust with people you don’t really know but soon may have to rely on for work. Otherwise, it is very difficult to go through life carrying that kind of stress.
This past week a woman pulled into our parking lot just as her car stopped working. She needed help, first getting a jump for her car, and then finding a place to plug in and charge for a while so she could be on her way home. I did my best to help her out because I know how frustrating that situation can be, and it’s nice to have helpful and patient people around to assist when you are having car trouble. It is still frustrating though, when you have car trouble, or your computer gets a virus and stops working, or your snow blower breaks during the snowiest week of the year. In fact, if there is one thing that can get me upset it is when things -technology- that is supposed to help and make my life easier suddenly don’t work right. When I just need something to work, and it just won’t. It can be very stressful because we put a lot of trust in our vehicles and equipment and our devices to do the jobs we need them to do. And the jobs they do are all kinds of things that help us get through the day. When they don’t work, we can get angry, we can get scared, we can get stressed.
This is one of the things that the prophet Jeremiah is warning against in our scripture reading this morning. He doesn’t mention stress specifically, but he does tell us to put our trust in God. If we do not, we are life a plant in the middle of the desert who “will not see prosperity when it comes.” The other option is to trust in God, and in that way be like a plant near the water, whose roots reach the stream. According to Jeremiah this plant will “not fear when heat comes…[have] no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” Sounds like a stress-free existence to me.
So, having trust in God is like being the tree by the river. There is water and all the things needed for life and for thriving. When we know that we have what we need and that we are being provided for, we do not experience the same kind of fear and anxiety as when we are scared or uncertain about if our needs will be met or not. In situations like that, when we feel that we are on the edge of trouble, it can be difficult to find trust that things will work out, and sadly, it is true that things may not work out as we would like. That can be tough to wrestle with, but in situations like that it is still important to consider that God’s trustworthiness, and the love for us that it represents, can be like the water in Jeremiah’s illustration. Like the water, God’s love is a gift, born of God’s grace. It is a provision for our life that nourishes us and sustains us, even in times of doubt and stress. In this way, trust in God can sustain us in difficult times. Which is why it is important to make sur that we plant ourselves in a good location, so to speak. Live in a way that gets you closer to that water.
On the other hand, the tree in the desert represents those who do not put trust in God. Those who instead put their trust in the things of humankinds making, such as the powers and principalities. This tree is in a place distant from the water and the nourishment needed to live well and thrive. This tree bears no fruit. In this illustration we see that putting our trust in things outside of God can be isolating, and it can leave us vulnerable to the whims of others. It opens us up to feelings of stress and anxiety because we do not have faith that we will be sustained. With humans, death is always in the picture. The things of this world are temporary and so we agonize over the possibility of loss.
Jeremiah also talks about people who turn their hearts away from God as a way of putting trust in something else. The heart represents who we really are, so turning it away is an attempt to hide from God. Turning our hearts away from God could be an attempt to protect ourselves. However, God can probe to see what we are deep down inside. In that way God is continually testing the human heart and calling us to put our trust with God.
When we put our trust in human strength or wealth or power, we are turning our hearts away from God, but when we do that, we are also, in a way, turning away from trust in ourselves. We are putting our trust in things that are outside of ourselves. Things that we do not control, or maybe not even possess, and at best we aspire for them. It is important that you trust in yourself, though. That is just another way to trust in God. To trust in God is to trust in oneself. To trust in the one who lovingly created you, and who calls you even now into new life, is to trust in yourself as the wonderfully made and called creation of God. So, to trust in ourselves, and to surround us with people and circumstances that encourage that belief in ourselves, is another way to plant ourselves near that water, giving ourselves access to the life changing and sustaining love of God. But, trusting in ourselves is not the only way to demonstrate our trust in God. We are not alone in this after all.
In Mark 9: 33-35, Jesus makes the well-known statement that “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.” The disciples believe that location matters. Not location as in Jeremiah’s metaphor; located in the desert versus located near the water. Location in proximity to Christ is their concern. They think that being Jesus’ right-hand man, being always at his side, is something to be desired. They think it is a place of prominence, and maybe a way to access power. As usual, however, Jesus turns this notion upside down for them. He tells them that the most important place to be is not the front of the line, next to him, but being last in line and serving others. They were putting their trust in the power of Jesus and the prestige of being close to that power. However, Jesus is telling them that putting trust in him is not about putting trust in power. Trust in power is putting trust in the way of the world, and the things that the men of the world concern themselves with.
That kind of power and prestige can be temporary. It can come and go due to the whims of someone with more power, or just by accident. In our celebrity focused culture, we put a lot of trust in people who are well-known. Doesn’t matter what they are famous for, if they are famous the public at large will put trust in them. Over the past decade we have seen the rise of the social media influencer. These are people who make content for different apps and sites on the internet. Its possible that all an influencer does is post pictures of themselves or make video diaries about their everyday life, but once they become big enough and gain a large following in the hundreds of thousands to millions, sponsors start to take notice. So, these people make their money modeling and advertising products. Advertisers see this as a good investment because they know these influencers are trusted, simply because they project a certain image to the public. People see that image on their phones everyday and so trust develops. This isn’t a new phenomenon, and it isn’t just a problem in secular culture. Christianity has a long history of this, the most prominent and scandalous examples being televangelists like Jim and Tammy Faye Baker. People trusted them not just because they were religious, but because they appeared rich and successful. The easiest way to gain a lot of people’s trust in America? Be rich.
And yet, Jerimiah tells us that life is not about success or power. It is about durability, freshness, and living in the world without fear and anxiety. Putting trust in God can provides this if we would just be like the tree by the water. Located ourselves where we can find awareness of God’s presence and plant ourselves there. And as Jesus tells his disciples, that place may not be at the front of the line, but in the back, serving others. Putting ourselves in a position to be the reason someone learns to trust in God. Taking our mind off those stresses and fears that move us farther away the water, that cloud our trust in God.
So, let us remember, that wealth is not shortcut to everlasting happiness. Celebrities, be they influencers, athletes, or politicians, are not our saviors. Power and control cannot last forever. Putting our trust in any of these things will not sustain us in times of trouble. Instead, we must put our trust in God and in those things that God has created, including you and the people around you. The people who are yours to love and care for. These are the things God has given us to remember the love that is always with us. That is where can put our trust, this is where we can plant ourselves near to the heart of God. Amen.