\ntree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream.\u201d \u00a0
\n(Jeremiah 17:8a)<\/p>\n
![\"image\"](\"https:\/\/64.media.tumblr.com\/37c9c4b0593ae35c7cdc6fa39652f253\/b2cdd25d487168dd-af\/s540x810\/3eb2fbc303695daa6be5615f566b4cd21e11e99f.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/p>\n
I want to spend a moment
\nwith those trees, and think about what it might be like to be like
\none of those trees. \u00a0To have constant, easy access to water. \u00a0To be
\nable to grow strong. \u00a0To know the world as dependable place. \u00a0To be
\nable to BE dependable because of having constant access to needs
\nbeing met. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jeremiah speaks to people
\nwho know and live in a desert. \u00a0Sun is abundant. \u00a0Air is abundant.
\nWater is not. \u00a0To be a tree planted by streams of water in a desert
\nis to be: safe.\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
To have deep roots. \u00a0To be
\nable with withstand whatever comes.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The tree, \u201cshall not
\nfear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of
\ndrought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit.\u201d \u00a0
\n(Jeremiah 17:8b)<\/p>\n
Oh my! \u00a0\u201cIt is not
\nanxious!\u201d \u00a0What a delight to think about!<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jeremiah presents these
\ntrees as being like those who trust in and depend on God, in contrast
\nto those who put their trust in their own powers or in the ways of
\nthe world. \u00a0Jeremiah urges us to seek God, to trust God, to be lifted
\nup and fed by the Holy, and to seek the WAYS of God rather than the
\nWAYS of the world. \u00a0(To make that difference overly simple, the ways
\nof the world are competitive, hierarchical, violent, and value some
\nlives and not others. \u00a0The ways of God are cooperative, un-ranked,
\nnonviolent, and values all.)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Now, I’m going to say
\nsomething pastors don’t say much: \u00a0this metaphor shouldn’t be
\nextended TOO far. \u00a0If God is like water that keeps a tree alive and
\nenables it go strong and bear fruit, great. \u00a0But, water is not the
\nneed of a tree. \u00a0And, with a few possible exceptions, God is not the
\nONLY need of humans.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I mention this because
\neven before the pandemic we were living in a society with a crisis of
\nloneliness, and the pandemic has deepened the crisis. \u00a0A tree needs
\nwater. \u00a0Yes. \u00a0We need God. \u00a0YES! \u00a0AND, a tree needs air and sunlight.
\n And we need each other, and we need REST. \u00a0Jeremiah warns people not
\nto depend on our own strength or on \u201cmere mortals\u201d but I’m going
\nto remind you that as a human being you need God, and people, and
\nrest.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
If you are lonely, that
\ndoesn’t mean you are unfaithful.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
If you are tired, that
\ndoesn’t mean you are unfaithful.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In fact, those warnings
\nJeremiah offered about what NOT to trust \u00a0may apply here. \u00a0We cannot
\ndepend on our own strength in a system that demands more of us than a
\nhuman can give without getting tired. \u00a0Tired comes because human
\nsystems are set up WRONG. \u00a0Likewise with lonely. \u00a0Our society is set
\nup to keep us distanced and displeased so we’ll BUY more things, and
\nthe forces that keep us distanced are POWERFUL. \u00a0Being lonely\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
is a part of living in our
\nworld today, which is set up wrong. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Part of what we dream
\ntogether as a Body of Christ seeking to build the kindom of God \u00a0is
\nwhat a world would look like where people are able to SURVIVE and
\nTHRIVE. \u00a0We are seeking to use our lives to build a world where
\npeople have dependable access to God, to live-giving relationships,
\nand to sustainable patterns of rest.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
We dream of a time when
\npeople are like trees planted by streams of water, with plenty of
\nfresh air, and sunlight, so that they can grow up strong and bold,
\ncourageous and loving, whole and able to provide healing for others.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
(As was recently mentioned
\nafter I went off on another ramble about trees, you see very clearly
\nhow passionate I am about trees when I am given the chance to talk
\nabout them.)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Now, perhaps you thought
\nthat if I was given one of the most famous texts in all of
\nChristianity to preach on, I might focus on that, and you aren’t
\nWRONG. \u00a0I’m getting there. \u00a0Except, that interestingly enough, Luke’s
\nversion of this particular story is NOT the famous one. \u00a0Matthew’s
\nis, because Matthew’s is a lot easier to stomach. \u00a0Matthew gives only
\nblessings. \u00a0Luke includes woes. \u00a0Matthew talks about the \u201cpoor in
\nspirit\u201d and \u201cthose who hunger and thirst for righteousness.\u201d
\nLuke talks about the \u201cpoor\u201d and the \u201chungry.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Right from the get-go,
\nLuke’s story isn’t Matthew’s. \u00a0Matthew tells of the \u201cSermon on the
\nMount\u201d \u00a0– a pragmatic choice as a mountain would help with
\nacoustics. \u00a0Luke tells of the \u201cSermon on the Plain,\u201d making
\nemphatically clear that Luke is telling a story of God’s interest in
\nLEVELING.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Debie Thomas, an
\nincredible theologian, on the incredible blog \u201cJourney with Jesus\u201d
\nsummarizes well:\n<\/p>\n
\nThen,
\nstanding \u201con a level place\u201d with the crowd, he tells his would-be
\nfollowers what life in God\u2019s upside-down kingdom looks like.\u00a0
\nThose who are destitute, unfed, grieving, and marginalized can \u201cleap
\nfor joy,\u201d because they have God\u2019s ear and God\u2019s blessing.\u00a0
\nBut those who are wealthy, full-bellied, carefree, and well-liked
\nshould watch out, because their condition is precarious, not
\nenviable.\u00a0 The material \u201cblessings\u201d they cherish most, the
\nvery possessions and attributes they consider signs of God\u2019s favor,
\nare in fact liabilities that might do them spiritual harm.1<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/p>\n
Ms. Thomas reflects deeply
\nabout the material blessings she has, and how they may in fact get in
\nthe way of her awareness of her dependence on God. \u00a0She points out
\nthough, that this text isn’t about celebrating misery or hardship,
\nbecause immediately before this teaching, Jesus heals and eliminates
\nsuffering. \u00a0We aren’t told to seek hardship. \u00a0Rather, we’re invited
\nto see the world as it is. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Ms. Thomas reflects:<\/p>\n
\nNotice also that Jesus
\ndoesn\u2019t offer four blessings to one audience, and four woes to
\nanother.\u00a0 His sermon is not a sorting exercise between the good
\nfolks and the bad folks; he addresses every
\nblessing and every
\nwoe to every
\nperson.\u00a0 As if to say: this is the human pattern. \u00a0This is
\nwhere all of us live. \u00a0We move from blessing to woe over and
\nover again in the course of our lives.\u00a0We
\ninvite blessing every time we find ourselves empty and yearning for
\nGod, and we invite woe every time we retreat into smug and
\nthoughtless self-satisfaction. \u00a0…I think what Jesus is saying in
\nthis Gospel is that I have something to learn about discipleship that
\nmy life circumstances will not teach me.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\nShe
\nuses this as an invitation to humility for learning from those who
\nhave learned discipleship from a different place. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\nI’ll
\nadmit, that when I think about those metaphorical trees planted by
\nstreams of water, with their healthy fruit, their strong trunks, and
\ntheir sense of dependability in the world, \u00a0– a place I’d like
\neveryone to get to,I currently worry a little bit that they may look
\nat the trees whose access to water is less dependable and think them
\nunproductive. \u00a0Or, the trees planted near air polluting factories,
\nand think them weak. \u00a0 Or, the \u201cfull light\u201d trees planted in the
\nshade, and think them \u00a0not trying hard enough.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
(Our
\nyard doesn’t ever have \u201cfull sun\u201d and we keep trying to plant
\nveggies anyway, and they always seem less productive and less healthy
\nthan, say, those planted where they get what they actually need. \u00a0And
\nthe perfect amount of water doesn’t actually overcome the lack of
\nsun.)<\/p>\n<\/p>\nWorse,
\nyet, I fear that the trees planted far from the streams of water may
\njudge THEMSELVES in the ways that the trees near the stream do,
\nwithout taking into account the differences in access.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nI
\nthink, as well, about tree line. \u00a0About the point on the mountain
\nwhen it is too high, too cold, too oxygen deprived, too windy for
\ntrees to keep growing. \u00a0And I think about the trees JUST BELOW \u201ctree
\nline\u201d that look short, sickly, and quite often bent by the wind. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\nJeremiah
\nis encouraging us to be dependent on God and focused on God’s will.
\nI agree, AND I think what Debie Thomas is saying is that the trees
\njust before tree line, and the shrubs in the desert, as well as the
\nones influenced by pollution have a whole lot to teach the trees by
\nstreams of water about scrappy survival, resilience, trust, and
\nfaith.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nSo,
\ndear ones, where ever you feel planted, may you thrive as much as it
\nis possible. \u00a0AND may you take note of where you are planted, and
\nwhere others are planted, and make sure to learn from those whose
\nlocation is different from yours. \u00a0After all, God is with us
\neverywhere, and each of us are therefore able to glean the wisdom of
\nthe Divine from exactly where we are. \u00a0Thanks be to God. \u00a0Amen\n<\/p>\n1<\/a>Debie
\n\tThomas, Journey with Jesus (webzine), Lectionary Essay for 2\/13\/2022
\n\tentitled \u201cLeveled\u201d
\n\thttps:\/\/www.journeywithjesus.net\/essays\/3319-leveled<\/a>. <\/p>\nRev. Sara E. Baron
First United Methodist Church of Schenectady
603 State St. Schenectady, NY 12305
Pronouns: she\/her\/hers
http:\/\/fumcschenectady.org\/<\/a>
https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/FUMCSchenectady<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
February 20, 2022<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"