I want to emphasize 3 of the 10 commandments as an antitoxin to anxiety.
NO OTHER GODS
It is the first commandment, but it is interesting how quickly people pass it by. It is so easy to make other gods, golden calves, when we are anxious because our leaders have let us down. Wasn’t that what the people did when Moses was gone too long and the people thought they were abandoned. Whether it is a cult, a politician, a get rich quick scheme, or some famous person, we keep looking for someone to save us.
REMEMBER THE SABBATH DAY
Far too often we think of the Sabbath commandment as having to do with going to church or blue laws that have been mostly abolished in our society. Businesses brag that they are a 24/7 business, as if that has merit.
The sabbath commandment was a command to stop depending on other gods for our happiness. Once a week, we were to stop trying to produce, achieve, or build ourselves up. We were to take time out to relate to God and neighbor. We were to stop and reflect on what life was about. We were to set aside anxiety for a day, trust God, and enjoy life.
HONOR YOUR FATHER AND YOUR MOTHER
Our parents and our ancestors were not perfect. In fact when you reflect on some of the history that brought us to this point, there are a number of factors for which we should be ashamed. However, from a faith perspective, it is significant to recall that God worked through these imperfect people to achieve the Divine purpose. Whether we begin with Adam and Eve or with Abraham and Sarah, as we follow the faith story, we recognize that God tends to choose to work with imperfect people. They were not people who had all the answers, were always ethically perfect, or were clear about how to relate to their neighbors. When we honor them, we recognize that imperfect people accomplish incredible things.
So if we trust in one God to act as faithfully as God has done in the past, regularly interrupt our anxious pursuit of survival long enough to reflect on and reconnect with God and with the others on the journey with us, and acknowledge the shame but recognize the redemptive faith of our ancestors, then there is reason not to be anxious.
THREE PRACTICES FOR THE PASTOR
In the next blog, I’m going to suggest three practical steps a pastor can take to minister to an anxious congregation.
- A new form of Sabbath for the Imperfect.
- Liturgy that Creates New Worlds
- Comedy that Punctures Piety and Reveals our Humanity.
We are not alone and we have reason to hope.
