Sermon; Collect for Proper 20C

Sermon
Collect for Proper 20C

Grant us, Lord, not to be anxious about earthly things, but to love things heavenly; and even now, while we are placed among things that are passing away, to hold fast to those that shall endure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

It's not often I preach on the Collect; I may have done so one other time, but I can't remember exactly.  As I was going through the readings for today, nothing was jumping out at me.  And, to be honest, with all my books packed away, the activity around the new chancel project, making final visitations to shut-ins, and a myriad of other things going on last week, I really didn't have the time to sit and work on a sermon like I normally do.

Packing the office.  Packing the house.  A family spat as the deadline gets closer and the stress increases.  Closing out accounts.  Filing paperwork for a new house.  Sending deposit checks.  Changing addresses.  Yes, there's a little anxiety in the Young household.

There is also a little anxiety around here.  There was the building project.  There are issues around supply clergy.  There is the attempt to locate an interim priest.  The pledge campaign is upon us.  Advent and Christmas are fast approaching.  Vestry positions need to be filled.  And the list goes on.

But as I was being pressed upon from all sides, as I was beginning to feel the pressure and anxiety levels increase, I read the Collect for today.  Grant us, Lord, not to be anxious about earthly things.

Grant us to not be anxious.  To not be anxious about packing.  To not be anxious about moving 3000 miles with two cats.  To not be anxious about who will fill in on Sundays.  To not be anxious about where we go from here.

Don't get me wrong – this isn't about not having a care in the world.  This isn't about happily floating downstream letting the current take you where it will.  This isn't about not planning.  This is about being non-anxious.  One way for me to be non-anxious is to plan.

I have a list of things I need to accomplish before the move.  Utilities to discontinue.  Hotels to find.  Friends to contact.  What needs to be packed and what needs to stay.  Having that list and working through it helps keep me on track and helps cut down the level of anxiety.

Likewise John Barnard is also planning for the future and he has his own list.  He has been inundated by calls, e-mails, and conversations from people offering to be on the Search Team.  And while it's great to know that people want to be involved, that's not where you start.  John is putting together a list of supply clergy.  He, the Vestry, and the Bishop are working on the details of calling an interim.  St. Luke's needs to spend some time in evaluating where you are and where you think you need to be.  An accurate profile needs to be developed.  A lot needs to be done.  There's a list.  And hopefully that list will help ease the anxiety.

Love things heavenly and hold fast to that which shall endure.

All this will pass away.  Our anxieties and stress will all pass away.  What will not pass away is God.  What will remain is love.
How might we, in the midst of our anxieties, become un-anxious?  How might we, while living in the midst of things that are passing away, hold fast to that which endures?  One way is to make a list to keep things straight and manageable.

Another way is to pray and worship.

How often do you sit and intentionally pray?  And I’m not talking about a quick grace at meals or a parking lot prayer, but intentionally praying.  How often do you sit in silence to focus on and listen to God?

How often do you read Scripture?  Not just the good parts, not just what you get on Sunday, but how often do you read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest?  Pray the Psalms through the month.  Pray one Psalm for a month.  Find one verse that quickly centers you.  Learn what verses are saying in context.

Can you commit to participating in worship regularly or more often?  Sunday Eucharist is obviously the main worship service, but there are other opportunities.  Morning Prayer will continue; can you commit to getting up a little earlier once a week?  Can you expand that to three or five times a week?  Would the choir host a monthly Evensong service?

Prayer and worship can draw us closer to God if we let them, and if we participate in them.  Prayer and worship draw us into the holy presence of God.  Prayer and worship allow us to see what will not pass away and what will remain.  Prayer and worship allow us to hold fast to that which endures.

These are anxious times for everyone.  May I suggest making this Collect not just the Collect for today, but the Collect of our lives – or at least the Collect of the next few months.

Grant us, Lord, not to be anxious about earthly things, but to love things heavenly; and even now, while we are placed among things that are passing away, to hold fast to those that shall endure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.