Between Sundays for Week of June 26, 2023
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are more value than many sparrows. (Matthew 10:29-31)
Even Jesus sometimes spoke using hyperbole or exaggerated speech. It’s possible that the hairs on our head are counted, but it’s also possible that Jesus was making a point to his disciples who he was sending into the world. Jesus knew they would face trials. Not everyone would welcome them and their proclamation of the kingdom of heaven and so Jesus sends them with this reminder: You are valued. You are treasured. Your life matters to our creator.
When we are living in fear, when we are trapped in self-destructive behaviors, when we face uncertainty about a path forward, when we come face-to-face with the impact of our sin and the sin of the world around us, when we face the inevitability of death, it’s easy to lose sight of our value in God’s eyes. And so Jesus reminds us – “you are of more value than many sparrows.”
Pastor Amy told us on Sunday about a whole ministry that has grown from sharing this reminder with people who lose sight of their worth. Comfort Birds, made by wood carvers, serve as tangible and tactile reminders of our value to God. They’re given to those who need a token of support and an act of kindness.
Our culture tells us about the importance of being held in esteem, being liked, being successful, creating the lives we want, following our dreams. Jesus tells those who follow him that that no matter what we face as we live as his disciples in the world – whether it be conflict, division, rejection, estrangement, violence, even death – we are valued. Deeply valued. Eternally valued.
P.S. Don’t forget to send us pictures of your marigolds! Alive, wilted, or dead!
Following Jesus is hard. It was hard for the first disciples, hard for the early church, and it’s hard for us too. While Jesus’ admonition to “take up the cross and follow me,” may be a literal reality for some in our world today; it is also a metaphorical reality for all of us who follow Jesus. As we travel this hard journey, we follow Jesus who leads the way, who never wants us to forget that we are eternally valued.
Ponderings
The Prayer of the Day for the 4th Sunday after Pentecost (June 25, 2023) was based on the famous prayer of Ignatius of Loyola, the sixteenth-century founder of the Jesuits. In it, we ask God to enable us to live as disciples, no matter the hardships and losses we encounter.
Teach us, good Lord God, to serve you as you deserve, to give and not to count the cost, to fight and not to heed the wounds, to toil and not to seek for rest, to labor and not to ask for reward, except that of knowing that we do your will, though Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen
