Anxiety

Second Sunday before Lent

St Mary’s, Barnes, 8 am

Matthew 6. 25-end

Anxiety is part of life, and there is no one who has not felt anxious about someone or something. We get anxious about our own health or that of someone we love; Children -  and their parents -  get anxious about exams. We get anxious about arriving on time, or about going to a special event. Today’s reading from the Sermon on the Mount, one of the most famous passages in the bible, addresses the issue directly.

When the gospel writers came to put their material together they often clustered several sayings on the same theme in one passage, even though they might have had different original contexts. So in this passage there are a couple of pieces of  what we might call worldly practical wisdom included.

One is ‘Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit to his stature’. In short there are some things you simply cannot change and you have to put up with. There is no point in being anxious. You  simply have to  accept that things are as they are.

The other worldly advice is:

‘Take therefore no thought for the morrow…sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.’ In short, concentrate on the present and stop worrying about the future.

The heart of the message however is much more positive and theological than these two sayings. Jesus tells us to look around and see God’s providence at work in nature. As we walk about  Barnes we see the berries ripe and red for the birds winter feed. They have their food . You are of more worth than the birds, says Jesus. Then we are brought up short by great sheets of crocuses coming up on the green or in Church Road. Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. They are glorious even though they last such a short time -  so how much more will God clothe you. He knows what you need. And so Jesus comes to the heart of the matter. ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God’ or as the Revised English Bible puts its:

Set your mind on God’s kingdom and his justice before everything else, and all the rest will come to you as well.

It is a saying that asks us to look at the priorities of our life. Get that right and be trustful, not anxious.

Yet all get anxious at times, and some people suffer from hyper anxiety. What practically can we do at such times? Many have found the prayer of St Teresa of Avila helpful.

Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing away:
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things.
Whoever has God lacks nothing;
God alone suffices.

Said slowly in times of anxiety this prayer is of proven value.