I shall not want

Acts 2:42-47; Psalm 23; John 10:1-10

Some TV commercials are entertaining. I’m not talking about the annoying ones that make you change channels or hit the mute button! I’m talking about the ones that are fun or heartwarming to watch. What are your favorite commercials? … Publix family meals. Flo, for Progressive Insurance. Clydesdales for Budweiser. E-Trade, with the talking toddlers. Allstate Mayhem.

What is the purpose of commercials? … To make you want something new, something better than what you already have. To make you think, along with the sheep, that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence.

… Often, maybe even usually, when we read Psalm 23, we are reminded that God, our Shepherd, provides us with everything we need. And when we look around at our homes and in our refrigerators and garages we see plenty of stuff to be grateful for. God provides us with everything we need and almost everything we want.

So, I was struck this week by a comment that this line also relates to the commandments: Do not covet! Do not want what you don’t already have.

·       Our hymnal, so our bulletin, says it this way: The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

·       The King James Bible and the New Revised Standard (NRSV) say: The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

·       The Common English Bible says: The Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing.  

But we seem to always want more, just like the latest ad for Morgan and Morgan, injury attorneys. Jane always wanted more, and more, and more, until she called on “More-gan and More-gan” and they got her enough justice. We seldom feel like we have enough, even though we have plenty. Our students could be exceptions to this, of course. They truly seldom have enough.

… According to Acts, the earliest Christians tried communal living, with everyone sharing what they had with the community. And it may have worked for a month or two. But human nature made sure it wouldn’t last long. Three chapters after this story from Acts 2, there is a story of Ananias and Saphira who intentionally concealed some of their belongings. They were struck dead because of their deceit. This story demonstrates how hard it is for us to not own something. We need to lay claim to our own belongings, no matter how few they are.

Francis of Assisi began his life as a leader in the church by doing Bible Bingo – where you flip pages and let your finger land on a verse. Each verse said to him, go and share the good news but take nothing with you. He took this command to take nothing literally, and insisted that no brother in the Order own anything.

Even so, there is a story of one brother asking Francis if he could have his own prayer book. Francis flatly denied him the request, because when we own anything, we focus on taking care of it, maintaining it, using it for ourselves. This was totally against everything Francis taught. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

I have joked regularly, and bemoaned, the way I am addicted to buying books. I have given away lots of them, but I still have two bookcases filled with books. It is hard to part with them, even though I know I will not read them, or reread them. I am sure I will need to look something up in them, and will not find it on the internet. It seems the books own me, instead of me owning them. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

… Jesus’ way of telling us we have enough is by offering us abundant life. When we allow him to guide us in and out of the sheepfold, when we follow only his voice, we will have all we need and more.

Abundant life means having a relationship with God, with Jesus, with Spirit, that assures us we are loved, accepted for who we are, forgiven. Abundant life means trusting God to provide what we need, though not necessarily what we want.

We discover we are living an abundant life by surveying what we have; by realizing that we have enough, that we don’t really need more, even if we think we do.

We discover that we have an abundant life by spending time in prayer, listening for God. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want, except to connect better with the Divine.

… This week, I encourage you to remember you have enough, that you don’t want much. Or, at least that you don’t need what is being advertised. Try to live generously, because you know you have more than enough. The Lord is your shepherd; you shall not want. Amen