seek: inside/outside

One of the unexpected, wonderful thing about our view is the powerlines that dissect the overlook we have of the valley. It's not so much the lines that we enjoy, but the birds that sit on them. Comic relief is just glance away.

The thing about these doves is that they're super-chill. They just sit and watch -- never facing us; they know where the view is.

I don't know what doves eat. I know the hawks that circle the field close to our house eat mice; I've see them dive for them and fight with each other mid-air over a catch. I know the sparrows go crazy over the tiny seeds that grow on the yet-unidentified evergreen bush that grows on the west side of our house. The pheasants meander through our garden in the summer, the robins munch on spring-time worms. But the doves? Short of the three times a year we remember to toss out birdseed, I don't think I've noticed them eating. But they must.

Maybe it was the doves that Jesus was talking about in Matthew 6 when he said:

Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?

We don't know if doves were the birds Jesus refers to in these verses, but historical botanists believe that this was the flower that is mentioned later in the passage, anenome coronaria:

And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?

These flowers grow wild on the rugged hillsides and just burst into bloom one day, an impromptu fashion show. Have you noticed how immaculately designed gardens have nothing on these wildflower displays?

So Jesus compares the concerns of our life to those of the birds and the flowers, asking "Isn't life more than food, and the body more than clothing?"

Jesus probably picked these things -- birds and food, flowers and clothes -- because everyone could identify with them. But those of us who've studied literature can be counted upon to find so many more reasons Jesus might have picked these examples. Fortunately, you will not be disappointed in this regard.

Food is a basic need, required for anyone who wants to remain alive. Not getting enough of it results in diminished physical ability. It is something we need on the inside; it is an internal need.

Clothes are also a basic need, most particularly for those in colder climates. In the most basic sense, they shelter us from the elements of nature -- those in harsh conditions with insufficient clothing can encounter illness or even death. On another level, one no less significant, clothes help us create an identity, they tell "who we are". Men dress differently from women, Americans dress differently than Afghanis, old people dress differently from young people. Throughout the Bible, clothes embody the identity of a person. Clothes are something we need on the outside; it is an external need.

Then we get to the part of the passage that says "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." I admit that I got stuck. I've heard the verse a million times and I'd always only heard "seek first the kingdom of God". It was the second part of the command that confused me "seek...his righteousness". And had righteousness stood alone, it would've made sense, but the pronoun threw me. His righteousness?

Then it clicked. Food. Clothes. Inside. Outside. Seek the kingdom -- seek God's presence and reign on the inside. Seek his righteousness -- seek the garments, the identity, of honor and goodness on the outside.

God's presence is our sustenance. He is our breath. Without adequate intake of him, we are nothing, our ability to live is limited. We partake of Him and He powers all that takes place in our day, from serving someone to singing in the car to running down the stairs to get a load of laundry. Seeking God is the inside part.

God's righteousness is the outside part. It is two-fold. In one sense, it is us accepting His perfection for us instead of trying to make our own perfection. In another sense, it is seeking to do what he defines as being right or best instead of what we define as being right. It is seeking to be as we ought to be in feeling, thought and action.

If we seek these two things -- God's presence and reign in our life and God's righteousness -- we will be free from a divided heart that worries itself with the things the world chases after.