God will not forget you

God has not forgotten
8th Sunday after Epiphany
February 27, 2011
Isaiah 49:8-16
1 Corinthians 4:1-5
Year A

Erma Bombeck said that the only thing that she ever listened to from the Bible was the command to consider the lilies of the field… she missed the whole point of the text. Jesus did not tell us to consider the lilies, but to consider their situation. If God takes care of them in all of their beauty, then surely God will take care of us also. Even though it is a good idea to consider the lilies.
If God takes care of nature, then God will surely take care of us.

We tend to think that our problems are too big for God to really understand. We tend to think that we have to come up with our own solutions to our problems. In reality, there is nothing going on in our lives that is too big for God. We would prefer worry and strife in solving the world problems, instead of relying on the true source.

The world has changed a lot. There was a time when you were planning a trip, you could call AAA and they would map out your whole trip for you. They would give you a map of how to get there, where to stop, where to eat, and what to see.

The Bible, God’s word is the same. Every day the holy spirit gives us a sense of direction, and the holy spirit gives us an answer.

The theme of the scriptures for today is to trust and obey.

Isaiah 43 – there are three different writers for the book of Isaiah. They were addressing three times in the history of the Israelites, but it seems that they seemed to have the same old problem. They were discouraged, they felt that nothing was going their way, they felt that God must have forgotten about them.

When we worry, we come to all sorts of conclusions. We think our problems are God’s fault, leaders, fault, neighbors fault, or someone else’s fault.

I got an email from a former parishioner, who go t so mad at me that he left the church for some reason he recently sent me an email talking about what would happen if Obama’s health bill passes. He was a republican and knows I am a democrat, so he thought I would have cared.

The problem is that blaming leads to judging. And judging stands in the way of us being what God called us to be.

Paul says that we are servants of Christ, and stewards of God’s mysteries. We are to live for Christ’ hope for the world – to take care of the things that God cares about.

That goes back to the need to trust and obey. Worry is a sign that we need to step back and ask God.

In keeping with the journey theme – we are all on a trip from here to there, to who we need to be.

The parishioner that I talked about earlier, went on a yearly trip to Hawaii. He and his air force buddies would always join together in February.

There was a couple who was taking a trip to Hawaii. The husband was intentional about renting cars ahead of time, so that when they arrived at each island, all of the details would be taken care of. When he got to the first island, their car was not ready. To help out, the company gave them an upgrade from a Ford Escort to a Ford mustang. It seems the same thing happen at the next island – the car was not ready. Instead of the car they ordered, they were given a Lincoln town car. The same thing happened at the next island and they were given a BMW. At the next island they drove a Mercedes. After the trip was over, the wife asked her husband how he liked the trip. His response was the it would have been a wonderful trip if only the rental car had had their cars ready for them when they came….
That’s how we are – always complaining when God does not do what we ask – never paying attention to the fact that God does not give us what we ask for, because God has so much more in store for us.

With discouragement comes the old friends of hopelessness and blame.

God’s plans are so much better than our plans.

In Isaiah 43 God says…
I answered you
I kept you
I helped you
I have given you

We need to stop worrying and listen. It is not what you expect, but it is what you need. Just trust and obey.

Can a mother forget her child? How much more I will not forget you.

When I was a child, if I was not prepared for a test, I used to write the answers on my hand. But by the time I got to school, the answers had worn off, because they were written in pen.

God says that not just your name, but YOU are engraved on God’s hand. God cannot forget you!

Let us pray…..