"Don't Worry, Be Happy"

A sermon preached by the Rev. Chrsitopher E. Yopp at Edgemont Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) based on Matthew 6:24-34.

I can remember as a child loving Bobby McFerrin’s song; “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.” The lyrics to the song read:

“Here's a little song I wrote
You might want to sing it note for note
Don't worry, be happy.
In every life we have some trouble
But when you worry you make it double
Don't worry, be happy.
Ain't got no place to lay your head
Somebody came and took your bed
Don't worry, be happy.
The landlord says your rent is late
He may have to litigate
Don't worry, be happy.
Ain't got no cash, ain't got no style
Ain't got no gal to make you smile
Don't worry, be happy.
'Cause when you worry your face will frown
And that will bring everybody down
Don't worry, be happy.
Don't worry. It will soon pass, whatever it is.
Just don't worry, be happy!”

As a child I listened to that record often. And not only did I have the record, but I also had a t-shirt with that inscription; “Don’t Worry, be Happy!” As a child, I can remember not having a care in the world, and if I did, it was insignificant, at least, now when I look back on it. I am sure, there were many worries in our family, but my parents made sure that those worries and cares didn’t become my worries or cares. Life was good and I was happy!
But as we grow older our lives change. They become more demanding and stressful. We take on more responsibility and obligations. And soon our happiness is overcome by worry and fear. But Jesus tells us in our Gospel Lesson this morning, like Bobby McFerrin, “Don’t worry, be happy.”
Author and Pastor, Leonard Sweet points out that of all the living things that God created, we human beings are the only ones that worry. And we worry about everything – from gas prices, to the economy, to taxes, to jobs, to marriages, and it doesn’t stop there, we take on other people’s problems – parents worry about their children, children worry about their parents, we worry about our friends. Where does it end? Our lives are consumed by worry.
The best selling non-fiction hardback books on Amazon.com usually reveal the subjects we worry about - health, change, relationships, and money. Jesus says we ought not to worry. In fact, he says; “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” And sure we are quick to respond with “easier said than done.” But, as usual, what Jesus says makes sense. You see, Jesus knew the consequences of worry on our lives.
The British born movie actor David Niven was a worrier and a habitual nail-biter. Once he received a postcard from a friend of his who was traveling through Italy. The card showed a picture of the Venus de Milo, for those of you who are not familiar with this sculpture, it is an ancient Greek sculpture which depicts the goddess of love and beauty, but her arms have been lost, the sculpture is armless. Niven’s friend wrote an inscription on postcard, just below the picture, which read; “You see what will happen if you keep on biting those nails?” Now I am not a nail-bitter, but I do pick my nails, to the point that my cuticles are in horrible condition.
A book written by a noted physician entitled, Stop Worrying and Get Well, called attention to the fact that worry causes a host of health problems such as: heart trouble, high blood pressure, some forms of asthma, rheumatism, ulcers, colds, thyroid malfunction, arthritis, migraine headaches, blindness, and a host of stomach disorders. Doctors today are quite candid in admitting that more than half of the patients in hospitals are there as much because of the accumulated effects of mental problems as anything else. The pressures of modern life, and the worries those pressures bring, have had a devastating effect on every one of us. And, friends, worry and stress are not new ailments. The crowd that sat listening to Jesus on that Judean hillside knew the pressures and worries, the stress and concerns of life.
And as was typical with Jesus’ teaching, he put the problem into perspective by using simple illustrations. He pointed toward the sky and said, “Look at the birds of the air (those little insignificant sparrows); they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet God feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” I mean it makes sense, doesn’t it? God is the Creator, the Redeemer and the Sustainer of all life. God does provide.
Now, of course, the point is not that birds or animals are taken care of without work; that is obviously not true - it has been said that no one works harder than the average sparrow to make a living. But the message is clear, they do not worry about that living. And if they, who are so much lower than we in God’s scheme of creation, do not have to worry, why should we?
At Eastern University, where Tony Campollo taught for a number of years, he would constantly encounter students who would ask the simple, yet complicated question of, “How can I know what God wants me to do with my life?” What a question! But Campollo says; “I could never answer that question because I’m not so sure that God wants us to look that far ahead.” He goes on to say; “I'm convinced that what God calls us to ask ourselves instead is; ‘What should I be doing today?’” And indeed that is the question we must seek to answer.
Anyone who has spent much time traveling along the road of faith has bumped into questions that feel insurmountable, cries that are devastating, and situations where God seems painfully absent. It is in these times that our trust is worn thin and our attention is drawn away to the ever-present “cares of the world.”
We look around our world and see pain and suffering, we see war and injustice, we see disaster and crime, and we find ourselves asking how those things are possible in a world created by a good and benevolent God. We are often consumed by questions and fears, doubts and concerns, all of which can paralyze us. But, if we are to offer a humble prayer of trust along with the psalmist, we must make a humble assessment of our ability to understand and then loosen our grasp on those questions. Only then can we redirect our attention toward the God who loves us with an unconditional love.
Perhaps the reason the Book of Psalms is such a popular and beloved book, is because it addresses all of these different emotions and questions we have. Psalm 131 is a special prayer of humbling trust that addresses us and our care-filled lives. This psalm seems almost too brief to have any significance, yet it was included in a collection of psalms, from Psalm 120 to 134 that pilgrims used when approaching Jerusalem and the temple during the great festivals. It is a psalm which expresses a humility and quietness of mind that places complete trust in God. Now, obviously, this was not the psalmist’s original state of mind. Once he had much wealth and pleasure in his material possessions. His mind was set on earthly things which did not satisfy his soul. But all this changed and we can only guestimate as to the circumstances for this change, but now he has found rest in a deeper trust in God’s providential love and grace.
Once we have undergone the difficult work of stilling ourselves and redirecting our gaze toward the God who loves us simply, we are able to be with God in peace, as a weaned child and its mother. Unlike the newborn who weeps in response to every perceived need, the weaned child has learned to trust its mother’s loving provision and becomes content.
This is why Jesus commands; “do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear,” because, when we are overrun by our cares and desires, crying like newborns, we cannot experience the peace and joy of being at rest with the one who loves us as only God can and does, nor can we become focused on the needs of others.
C. William Nichols tells a story in his book; Day by Day through the New Testament: The Gospels, of a revival meeting many years ago in which an evangelist sought to involve everyone present in the point he was making, so he asked; “Will everyone who has a soul please stand up?” Immediately everyone stood up, except for one man toward the back of the room. “Sir,” the evangelist asked, “don’t you have a soul?” The man replied; “I AM a soul; I HAVE a body.” Once we accept that we are primarily spiritual beings, made in the image and likeness of God, will we realize how important it is for us to be connected to God. Like the astronaut who leaves the spacecraft to take a “space walk,” and could not possibly live without being connected to the source of life by an “umbilical cord,” which supplies oxygen to breathe, and a link of communication with home base, and a guarantee of safety; so, we must have some sort of “umbilical cord,” linking us to the source of our spiritual life.
Jesus does not deny our need for the material resources that will keep our bodies alive and functioning well. Our bodies, too, are creations of God. But Jesus reminds us, as the Psalmist learned, that our first priority must be our spiritual beings and our relationship with God, because it is then that our lives become prioritized and we learn to truly “seek first the kingdom of God and God’s righteousness.” It is in this kind of living that we become God-centered and other’s-centered, verses self-centered.