I know a husband and wife, and they shall remain nameless, and no one in this congregation knows them. They are shopaholics. They can’t resist shopping. They do it every day. They can’t resist buying stuff. Their habit is fueled especially by gadgets and tools. Their tool collection would put the carpenters, roofers, electricians and plumbers of This Old House to shame. They have every gadget known to mankind especially electronics and kitchen gadgets.
They used to live in a large house filled to the gills with stuff. And, on that property they had four sheds to store their tools and gadgets. A few years ago they downsized to a smaller home. It was quite a feat. They had to rent four storage units to house the stuff they just couldn’t part with. They entered their new and smaller home and it was relatively empty and clear of clutter. But by now the whole house, including the double garage, is stuffed with stuff.
When they go on a trip they take as many of their gadgets with them as possible. It’s not enough that they take their Garmin GPS, they each need their cell phones. In addition each takes their laptop computers and a printer as well. This is just for an overnight trip. They have their iPods and scores of cables and chargers. Beyond that they have many duffel bags and suitcases stuffed with stuff.
They may seem like strange characters. But their behavior is not all that unusual. As a matter of fact they may remind us of ourselves.
In this morning’s gospel lesson we read that Jesus ordered the twelve disciples to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics.
That’s what the message is for today. We are told by our Lord to travel light, to be unencumbered. We are told by our Lord that it is enough to travel the journey of life with our Lord’s blessing and the good news of God’s love. That is enough.
In the name of the Lord who wants us to be free, I greet you with God’s grace, God’s mercy, and God’s love.
Jesus ordered the twelve disciples to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics.
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.
Mary and I are getting ready to go on a journey. We’ll be leaving early this week to go and visit our family in Canada. There’s a special reason for this visit. My sister’s grandson, Jeremy is getting married to Jesse. And I have the privilege of conducting their wedding ceremony.
We’ve been planning what it is that we need to take with us. I’ve been reminded that when I return home to Bayville not to forget to pack my best suit. Not to forget to bring my clergy robe and appropriate stole for the occasion. Please, let me remember to take my liturgy for the marriage service. We’ll be spending a couple of days at my sister’s lakeside cottage. We better bring swimming gear. And, oh yes, the weather can be cold up in cottage country, so we better bring sweaters, and rain gear, just in case.
Talk about traveling light. We are a far cry from taking nothing but a staff and sandals. We can do without the staff, but we certainly want sandals, and sneakers, and shoes. We wouldn’t dream of traveling without money, and at least one credit card… just in case.
Last month I went to attend a conference in Michigan and as I was waiting to board the airplane at Newark I noticed my fellow travelers. There were those with mountains of suitcases and others who were embarking with nothing but a backpack or carryon. And the difference between them, I believe had nothing to do with the distance they were traveling or the duration of their journey. It was the seasoned, experienced traveler who traveled light. It was the nervous novice who needed all the stuff.
Jesus tells his disciples that they are to take nothing, no stuff, no money, no extra clothes for their mission trip. He tells them to travel lightly. But Jesus is saying much more than that, He is not just talking about a mission trip.
I think Jesus is talking about the journey of life. Don’t carry so much stuff.
Most of us are overburdened with too much stuff, and I don’t mean the stuff we carry in our suitcases or in our cars. I’m talking about stuff in general. We belong to an acquisitive society. We acquire and collect all our lives. I wonder though. How many shoes do we need in our closets? How many shirts do we need to hang there? How many sweaters do we need in our bureaus? How many cars do we need in our garages? How many sets of dishes do we need in our cupboards? How many books do we need to keep in our libraries?
All of these things burden us. They overburden us. We have to take care of all those things. If we don’t take care of them, they rot and rust and we feel guilty about it.
And it not just the stuff that we store in our houses, it’s also the stuff that we store in banks and investment houses. How many dollars do I need to have in my wallet? How many CD’s do I need to have in the bank? How big does my stock portfolio need to be before I feel secure?
I, like most of you, have sometimes thought of what I would do if I won millions of dollars in a lottery. I hope that the first thing I would do would be to pray to God. It wouldn’t be a prayer of thanksgiving. It would be a plea for help. “Lord, give me wisdom to be a good steward of what has been placed in my hands that I may do your will.”
Money, like property, can be a huge burden.
Peter O’Toole played the role of Thomas Becket in two different productions: the Play Becket, and the movie Lion in Winter. Thomas Becket was the Archbishop of Canterbury appointed by King Henry II. Over time there developed a great rivalry between the power of the throne and the power of the church. King Henry II nurtured such a hatred for Thomas Becket that he asked, “Who will rid me of this meddlesome priest?” Several knights interpreted this to mean that they should eliminate Thomas Becket, and they did so by murdering him in the cathedral. Thomas Becker is revered as a martyr and a saint by both the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Church.
I think it is in the film, Lion in Winter when Becket becomes archbishop he takes a vow of poverty and gives away all of his possessions. We see him with a big smile on his face as he gives away his clothes and his possession joyfully, and he says something to the effect: I didn’t know what freedom was until I was free of the burden of my possessions.
Sadly, it’s a truth and a joy that most of us rarely experience.
Jesus says that we are to travel lightly, that we are not to be overburdened by our possessions. But Jesus may be speaking in a metaphor. Our possessions may be a metaphor for other unnecessary burdens we carry.
Many of us carry unnecessary burdens in our hearts and minds.
There are all kinds of burdens. Jesus tells us to travel light. But he’s saying more than that.
Jesus told his disciples to travel light, not to take extra stuff. But he was also saying to them you have what you need for the journey. You have my blessing. You have my word. You have my confidence.
So it is with us. We have what we need. We have everything that we need for our journey. We have the Lord’s confidence. We have the Lord’s word. We have the Lord’s blessing. We have the Lord’s love.
Travel light. The Lord is with you. That’s all you need.