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Psalm 24 1 The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, 2 For it is he who founded it upon the seas and 3 “Who can ascend the hill of the Lord? 4 “Those who have clean hands and a pure heart, 5 They shall receive a blessing from the Lord 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, 7 Lift up your heads, O gates; lift them high, O everlasting doors; 8 “Who is this King of glory?” 9 Lift up your heads, O gates; lift them high, 10 “Who is he, this King of glory?” |
In God We Trust
The story is told of Dr. Karl Barth, amazing theologian of the 20th century, who wrote volumes on just about any topic related to faith. He apparently never had an unexpressed written thought, though I wish he was still around so we could get his take on current events.
Once when he was teaching a theology class, a snarky seminarian challenged Dr. Barth to sum up all of his theology, thousands and thousands of pages, in one sentence. The subtext: No way the good doctor could do such a thing. Dr. Barth took up the challenge, and responded with this succinct summation: Jesus loves me. This I know. For the Bible tells me so.
Like many songs we teach our children, there is depth in these ditties. I have in mind this week the song about the whole world in God’s hands. It came to mind as I reflected on Psalm 24, which if your church observed the Feast of All Saints yesterday, you might have heard in worship. It begins by saying: The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it.
In case you didn’t notice, we are on the eve of an election with the potential to affect our common life for many years to come, an election where anxiety is unusually high. I think it’s safe to say that about half the population is not going to be happy on Wednesday (or whenever all votes are counted.) It’s worth thinking about how we, as people of faith, navigate days ahead. It comes down to a matter of trust, confidence that the earth is the Lord’s, that God is watching over us, that God has the whole world in his hands.
A call to trust does not mean passive acceptance of whatever comes our way. It does not mean blinders or muzzles. As Christ’s hands and feet in the world, we will respond to events as they unfold by living into the promises we make in baptism, to proclaim good news in word and action, to seek and serve Christ in all persons, to strive for justice and peace and respect the dignity of every human being. It will take trust to do that.
That may not always be easy. One bit of help comes by looking at others who have figured out trust. There are biblical icons to help. Abraham leaving a country of comfort. He went not knowing where he was going. Peter stepping out of a boat to walk on water. Speaking of saints, we have examples like Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela who meet oppression with irrepressible joy that signaled their trust in God’s provision. John Lewis battled for civil rights, joyfully willing to get in good trouble. As I cited last week, Alexei Navalny brought humor to his prison community based on the confidence that Jesus would take care of it. Who else comes to mind for you?
Back in my seminary days, as one day I was wandering through the library stacks, I found a book called “Bird Walk through the Bible.” It made me realize you can write a book about just about anything. It cited all the places where birds are mentioned in scripture. We’re talking owls, sparrows, doves, vultures, ostriches, and eagles, to name a few. No penguins, as far as I can tell. I took it as a challenge to include some citations of this book in the footnotes of every single paper I wrote. No teacher ever commented, which, of course, made me wonder how much was actually read.
I remembered this bit of scholastic mischief in reading what Howard Thurman had to say about trust. He prayed: Teach me, O God, the simple lesson of trust. Bring into my sorely pressed spirit the sure confidence of birds floating in the sky with nothing to support them but the automatic trust of wings.
In the challenges that come our way, as we have no idea what the future holds, may we count on that automatic trust of wings and remember who holds the future. And this week, as we make our way to the polling place, or wait on line, or wait for exit polls or early results, or take in the results, or face any kind of anxiety-producing uncertainty, may we be given grace to let this song go through our heads: He’s got the whole world in his hands.
-Jay Sidebotham
Footnote: If you’re feeling anxious about the upcoming election, I recommend meditation on Psalm 37:1-18.
