Numerous studies have been done on the effects of over-worrying. Excessive worrying brings on sleeplessness, over or undereating, digestive problems, depression, and the list goes on. Fewer studies have been done on opposite – those who live thankfully, or gratefully. But there are some studies out there – In an experimental comparison, those who kept gratitude journals on a weekly basis exercised more regularly, reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives as a whole, and were more optimistic about the upcoming week compared to those who recorded hassles or neutral life events (Emmons & Crumpler, 2000).

Which side of the issue do you find yourself on more often? I would have to say in many instances I am a worrier … even to the point of finding things to worry about. As a parent, I think that is especially true when it comes to my children. I'm not sure where I read this but I do remember a line from a new parent in a novel saying that all of the sudden she was finding there were more worries than she ever thought possible. Ever thought, however illogically, that if you worried enough you could prevent bad things from happening? George MacDonald, Scottish theologian and novelist says: "No man ever sank under the burden of the day. It is when tomorrow's burden is added to the burden of today that the weight is more than a man can bear. Never load yourselves so. If you find yourselves so loaded, at least remember this: It is your doing, not God's. He begs you to leave the future to Him, and mind the present."

The liturgical calendar weighs in on the issue of worry in two ways this morning. The first comes in the celebration of this day as Christ the King Sunday. The day is a relative newcomer to the Christian Year. It was brought into being by Pope Pius the XI in 1925 as he looked over a world that seemed to slipping into madness and evil. It was his declaration that God was still God, and that in Christ, God's kingdom would triumph over the powers of evil and death. We celebrate this on the last day of the Christian year as a "summing" up of all the celebration of the liturgical calendar. In Christ, we have the promise that God's worry … God's care is enough. Paul puts it this way in Romans: If God is for us, who can be against us? Or, in my paraphrase – If God is for us, what does it matter who is against us?

The issue of worry also appears in the lectionary texts we read today, which are the texts designation for Thanksgiving Day. We read in this day's gospel text a portion from the Sermon on the Mount: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? "So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today." Thanks to Disney most of us know a bit of Swahili. Hakuna Matata – don't worry. It is literally translated as "there are no problems here." It serves as a reminder to us that while we might deal with very really and very difficulties … there are no ultimate problems or worries … because we deal with all of them in the context of God's love for us in Jesus Christ. When I hear these words, I am mindful of the many audiences that listened to Jesus that day. We have the disciples … those who had left all they knew to follow Jesus and were beginning to face the reality of the risks their choice involved. There are the ordinary folk, the people who lived under the oppression of Roman rule, and the oppression of their own religious system. Also listening were the oppressors themselves. Each group hearing the words of Jesus in a different light – some as words of comfort and hope, others as words of threat and warning. "Don't worry."

In a few days we will be celebrating the Day of Thanksgiving … the day that has been comes with presidential proclamations, family gatherings and traditions, over-eating, football games and resting up for the big shopping day. It is also a time of reaching out to provide meals for those who would otherwise go without, giving to food pantries and for some serving at soup kitchens. Again, there was a myriad of audiences listening to Jesus talking about worry … finding in his words hope and challenge. Thanksgiving Day gives us the same – hope and challenge. We find hope for our days as we gather to give thanks for all that God has worked in our lives. What do you give thanks for? This Advent season we are going to invite people to testify to love. Each week there will be someone sharing about how God's love has been evident in their life. We're going to have a chance to practice that here this morning. What are you thankful for today? There is our hope.

Our challenge is in following the example of Christ in bringing to reality the kingdom of God – a place where all know the love of God, where all have enough … where none are oppressed. When the first Thanksgivings were celebrated, they were governed by the table manners of the 17th century. Then a person's social standing determined what he or she ate. The best food was placed next to the most important people. You didn't pass around the food as we do today. You only ate what was closest to you. At God's table all are equal and all are welcome. In the Biblical tradition when farmers harvested their fields, they deliberately left the edges unharvested so that the poor and strangers could glean food. As we gather to give thanks for all that God has worked in our lives it is connected with participating in the generosity of God towards others. There is the challenge in our thanksgiving.

Someone once said: "Before it was a noun, 'thanksgiving' was a verb. The difference matters." We are called to live a thankful lifestyle, not just a thankful day. We face the world in the context of God's great love for us … a love birthed into reality in Jesus Christ. In that love, how dare we become obsessed with worry? God is for us … what can possibly defeat that?