I spent last week with two two-year-olds. They are not infants, but this message from Jesus is not lost on me after attempting to corral my twin nephews for a week at Disney World. They did not have a care in the world, and yet, everything they needed was provided for them.
My family and I were busily attempting to plan out the best way to spend each day, where we would eat, what rides we would go on, and when we would attend what shows. The twins and even their older sister were able to avoid all of the minutiae of plotting everything out, and somehow enjoy everything even more than I did (if that is possible). How did this happen? They trusted!
We are missing the beginning of the story in today’s good news. Jesus sent out 70 (or 72) of his disciples like lambs to the slaughter without purse, without bag, and without any spare underwear. Try doing that at Disney World! And yet, not only did everything go well. The disciples (all seventy of them) not only came back without blemish, but they also came back having casted out demons and not even needing an extra tunic to accomplish it.
The thought of not going even on vacation with an overnight bag and all my things makes me go a little crazy. I can make even simple trips way too complicated! As I observe my tendency to always be prepared, I notice that I like to be in control. Putting myself in control means so often that I miss opportunities to trust God and to trust my neighbors. We all have probably heard it said, “If you want to hear God laugh tell God your plans.” Somehow though I, and maybe you too, still manage to try and plan out everything according to my own will.
The story of sending out the pairs of disciples provides the perfect opening for us control freaks to wonder what it might look like not to rely so much upon what we think is best, but instead to expect that the Holy Spirit and our neighbors will provide care for us. My nephews did not worry about what they would eat or what they would drink or what they would wear. They believed in those around them to provide. What if we did like the disciples and like infants?
Sometimes we hear sensationalist stories of gunfights, riots, murders, and disasters on the news. These reports create a fear-filled perception of the world. We may think that it is best to stay in our own little bubble. Maybe this is true. On some level the newscasters base their accounts in reality. Bad things do in fact happen in our world. Jesus even acknowledged as much when he sent out his disciples in Matthew’s account of this story, “See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” And yet, what happens when we no longer rely upon those around us?
Trusting God and trusting our neighbor cannot just happen. We must remember this ability to believe in others with which we were born. Sometimes though this is difficult. Perhaps what we need is the opportunity to build up this “trust muscle” within us like we any other part of ourselves. One does not hop off a couch and run a marathon, nor does one hop on stage and perform on Broadway, and no one makes a career out of something one has never studied. The same is true of our ability to trust. So what are we to do?
The Church at its best can be that place to try out trusting others. Churches are not perfect, for they are made up of imperfect people; however, my hope remains that we can practice trusting in one another here at St. John’s. When Jesus sent out the seventy they stayed in strangers’ homes, they ate what was provided, they healed others, and all of this showed their ability to let go of the details, the planning, and the control. Instead, they trusted in God and their fellow human. Let us too practice believing in one another. Be like infants who do not worry, but trust!
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