Birds and Flowers

Here are some thoughts on the gospel for the second Sunday of Creation, Animal Sunday, that were sent to the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church. What is your take on this passage? I'm inviting you into conversation with me about this. Feel free to comment.

Luke 12:22-31

²²He said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. ²³For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. ²⁴Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! ²⁵And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? ²⁶If then you are not able to do so small a thing as that, why do you worry about the rest? ²⁷Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. ²⁸But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! ²⁹And do not keep striving for what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. ³⁰For it is the nations of the world that strive after all these things, and your Father knows that you need them. ³¹Instead, strive for his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. 

This coming Sunday in the Season of Creation is Animal Sunday, when “we worship with the entire living family on Earth. We celebrate birds, animals, reptiles, and all living creatures” (letallcreationpraise.org). Here we see Jesus using the examples of ravens to teach his disciples the lesson of not being overly anxious about the day to day needs of our lives. I say “overly” because Jesus didn’t mean that we are to sit on our duffs and expect all of our needs to be met while we do absolutely nothing!

After all, what is the example of the ravens? They go after their prey. They don’t expect it to come to them. Jesus teaches that “God feeds them” (v. 24). All the work they do and yet it’s all at the hands of a loving, caring God.

The everyday things of life that help us live are important. We need to take care of ourselves, but that isn’t the end-all and be all. We are not to be all-consumed with these tasks and with working endless hours in order to get the biggest, best and brightest of all earthly things. That is not what we are to strive for, but rather for God’s kingdom. That is what is really important in life is our relationship with our loving Lord. “…and these things will be given to you as well” (v. 31).

Let us pray:

Gracious God of abundance, you feed the hungry from your hand and visit us in our storms…May we know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that we may be filled with all the fullness of God. Amen.

Prayer from Re-worship.blogspot.com

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