Loading...Trust is very difficult some days—
to trust yourself or someone else
to be trustworthy, or
to trust God.
We all have good intentions, of course,
but sometimes, it is really difficult to actually do the trusting part.
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The truth is, we have all the reasons in the world to trust God:
life
health (even if we ARE a little creaky or ailing....)
family (of origin or of choice)
opportunities
challenges
joy
food
Long before Joshua gathered the people of Israel together to give them this choice to put their whole trust in God,
God had shown up for the people.
The verses in Deuteronomy which we skip in this morning’s first reading recount the ways of our trustworthy God:
calling, blessing, and leading Abraham and his family from Ur to all kinds of new places,
the rescue of the Hebrew people (Abraham descendants, of which there were MANY!) from slavery in Egypt
sweet water gushing from the rock – not just in one place, but many
manna raining down from heaven, and quail covering the camp
directions from where to go in a pillar of fire or smoke
God’s own presence with them in the form of the tabernacle –
the tent that housed the ark of the covenant.
Joshua reminded the people of God’s trustworthiness and told them that he and his household will serve the Lord,
And the people say, “Yes! We will trust God, we will follow God, and we will be God’s people!”
Joshua, smart guy that he was,
reminded them of the difficulties that they were going to face.
The people still promised that they would be faithful.
Joshua told them that they would turn away from and even against God.
(For all their promises, Joshua knew that it was going to be REALLY hard to trust, and especially to trust God).
He asked them three times if they would do this difficult thing,
and three times they said that they would.
We know how the story unfolded:
they do turn away from God,
they do turn against God.
Yet God remains faithful to them
not without painful consequences
not without grief and loss,
and what turns out to be a difficult journey for them.
But God remains faithful to the people
with life and hope and constancy, no matter what.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Trust.
In the midst of difficulty, loss, pain, grief, and painful consequences,
do we continue to trust God?
After all, this is exactly what Jesus has called us to as we follow him.
It is easy to identify as Christian when all is well in our own lives,
and when the congregation is thriving
with lots of Sunday School kids in class
with oodles of small group options
with plenty of money coming in
with multiple staff members
with a beautiful and comprehensive music program.
But, who or what do we trust when things are broken
when the systems do not work right
when the income does not come near enough to meeting expenses
when we can count the number of children in Sunday School on one hand – and when we hope that they all come so that we DO have a Sunday School program?
Who or what do we trust when we have experienced betrayal
when we live with food insecurity
when our bodies do not work right despite eating well and exercising?
What or who do we trust when fear and anxiety creep into all the corners of our lives?
What or who do we trust when we are confused and nothing makes sense –
and it is just too hard to follow Jesus?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”
Peter declares it for us. He asks that rhetorical question.
We may be like those early Israelites who said that OF COURSE they chose God and God’s way, and then drop the ball.
Truth is, God has chosen us.
God has chosen you.
God has given you the way of eternal life.
Difficult and challenging as it may be,
this way, this path of life, is full of the presence and joy of God.
It has, or is, the gift of the Holy Spirit who encourages and strengthens you –
the Holy Spirit who is that voice of courage and hope
that comes to you when you listen to the voice in your mind,
or as the voice of a friends or stranger.
The way of eternal life is the way of Jesus,
the way of service, compassion, and love;
the way of advocating and working for justice for the peoples of the world
and for the earth itself.
The way of eternal life is the way of Jesus, the bread of life.
It is the way of living in the world where you give of yourself so that others may know forgiveness, hope, and kindness.
The way of eternal life is with the words of eternal life from Jesus:
I am the bread of life
I am the resurrection and the life
I am the living water
I am the good shepherd
I am the life for the world:
Come and eat, come and be fed
Come and trust in this life I give to you.
Amen
