A sermon preached December 22, 2019 at Peace Mennonite Church by Joanna Harader.

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There was an article making the rounds on Facebook this week. It named one politician in particular, but for the sake of a non-partisan sermon—and also because there’s certainly more than one politician this applies to, I’m going to generalize: “How to stay sane if [politicians are] driving you insane: advice from a therapist.” Between all of the impeachment news and the county commission discussing the price tag and timeline for a jail expansion, this was a good week for me to read this advice.

It’s also been a good week for me to hold and contemplate the story of Mary and these words from her famous song. “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my savior.”

There are two basic pieces of advice the therapist, Robin Chancer, gives in her article. The first is to practice radical acceptance. That doesn’t mean we condone or support what is going on, but that we accept that what is, is. There are families being separated at the border. Environmental regulations have been rolled back. Congress votes almost exclusively along party lines. It does nobody any good for us to be surprised by this state of reality, to exclaim, with each new revelation: “I can’t believe it! This is ridiculous! This can’t be happening!”

It is happening. It has happened. And our energy is better spent figuring out how to move forward than in expressing disbelief and outrage over past and current reality.

Radical acceptance. That’s also a good phrase for how Mary responds to the circumstances of her life. When the angel shows up and announces that she will bear the “son of the Most High,” she responds, “Let it be with me according to your word.”

She doesn’t say, “What? I can’t believe it!”
She doesn’t say, “But I’m supposed to get married soon, and then I can have a baby. Things have to happen in the proper order here!”

Mary demonstrates radical acceptance. She accepts the good news of new life and of favor with God, along with the difficult reality of being unmarried and pregnant.

What was, was. And what is, is. Practicing radical acceptance is one thing we can do to help ourselves stay sane in the midst of difficult times—political or otherwise.

The second key piece of advice from the therapist is that “attention is everything.”

It’s tempting to focus on the negative—and on the people creating the negativity: the troubling tweets, the harmful policies, the general bad behavior. And it’s tempting to focus on our own frustration, anger, and despair. But we should resist these temptations to let other people direct our attention. Because where we put our attention is one thing we can control, no matter how bad the situation is.

Again, this doesn’t mean we ignore people and groups who are causing harm in the world—that we let them “get away with it.” It doesn’t mean we deny our valid feelings of grief and anger.

But it means we put our focus on helping those being harmed rather than on hating those doing the harm. We focus on the work of dismantling oppressive systems rather than on complaining about them. We acknowledge the bad, then shift our focus and energy back to the good.

Mary begins her song: “My soul magnifies the Lord!” Magnifies. In the midst of her personal hardships, in the midst of living under an oppressive political regime, Mary chooses to magnify, not the negative aspects of her life, but to magnify God. To give her focus and attention to God and the justice that God brings: “God has brought down the powerful from their thrones, / and lifted up the lowly; / God has filled the hungry with good things, / and sent the rich away empty.”

Attention is everything. And, thanks be to God, there are good things happening that deserve our attention.

Did you hear the story on NPR about “Parents for Peace”? It’s a national group for former extremists and their relatives. Former jihadists. Former KKK members. Former neo-nazis. And their parents, their spouses, their children. They gather together for support. They educate people about the realities of extremist groups. They are advocate for extremism to be treated as a public health crisis—not merely a national security threat. I heard the story of one wife and mother who told her white supremacist husband that he had to leave behind his hateful ideology or she was leaving him. And then, together, with the help of someone connected with Parents for Peace, they got him out.

Attention is everything.

Last week, we prayed for Wendsler Nosie Sr., an Apache elder who had taken up residence at his ancestral homeland in Oak Flat, Arizona. He went to pray for the land and protest the planned transfer of the land from National Forest status to private ownership by a mining company. He is currently traveling, and will return to the land after Christmas. Many people have joined Wendsler in prayer, and some have even travelled to be with him at Oak Flat.

Attention is everything.

My friend Hugh Howell runs a community farm/food ministry through Open Door Mennonite Church in Jackson, Mississippi. He recently took an abundance of produce to a nearby Latino community, attending a labor organizing meeting in a Spanish-speaking Pentecostal church. He shared about this experience on Facebook, writing: “The people in that room – more than 100 of them who work long, crappy hours in subpar conditions while in a constant state of harassment so that you and I can get boneless chicken breasts at the grocery store – those people, who are daring to organize and demand they be taken seriously and that their employer understand the power they bring to the table – . . . It was impressive . . . to see what they are pulling off. And to see their strength, their resilience, and their hope was life-giving.”

Attention is everything.

We should give attention to Parents for Peace, to Wendsler Noise, to the Latinx labor organizers, to the many others doing good and just and right things in the world. We can pay attention to and give thanks for the work God is doing with and through these people. We may even be moved to support some of this work through our prayers and our money.

Attention is everything.

It’s also worth paying attention to the good things happening right here. Things we can do more than notice and pray for and maybe send money to. Things we can actually be part of in substantial ways.

Every month, many of you make and/or serve food at LINK. Gwen coordinates. Patrice often helps shop for food. Carola is stepping in to help Gwen coordinate next year. Roberta Renz serves as their treasurer. Our youth are big supporters. And we go. We have joyful conversations with the guests. We serve people food. We often eat some food ourselves.

Attention is everything.

Just last week, some very concerned and dedicated people opened up a cold weather shelter at First United Methodist Church. Because the capacity has been cut at our local homeless shelter, people in our community are in danger of freezing at night when the temperatures drop. Now that is less likely to happen, because people have donated supplies and volunteer hours. Fortunately, the weather will be warmer these next few days and the shelter won’t need to open. But when it gets cold again, they will need more sleeping mats and definitely more volunteers. I posted some information on the church Facebook page and can email it to you if you like.

Attention is everything.

Some of our community’s dedicated advocates for people experiencing homelessness were at the county commission meeting on Wednesday voicing their opposition to spending $30 million on expanding our jail when we are not adequately funding services for the those in need of housing. You probably won’t be surprised that I was also there, as was Justice Matters newest staff person, Katie. It is easy to be discouraged and–dare I admit it as a Mennonite woman?–angry about the county’s actions and the prospect of a major jail expansion. But I found myself smiling a lot at that meeting, because people care and they showed up. Katie and I went to talk to commissioner Kelly at his community office hours yesterday morning and had a pretty good—and long—conversation. We don’t agree on everything, but I know that he also cares—and shows up.

Attention is everything.

Feeding the hungry; bringing down the powerful; lifting up the lowly—Mary sings about all of it. And of course, we can’t do all of it. But we can do something. And here is a shift that the article helps me to make: when I volunteer at Family Promise or go to a county commission meeting, it’s not just to help other people; it’s not just to fulfill some sort of “Christian obligation;” doing something is a way to keep myself spiritually and emotionally healthy during difficult times.

So, radical acceptance and focusing attention are important ways for us to stay sane in the midst of insanity. But for me, that’s not quite enough. Even with radical acceptance and focused attention I need this last insight from our scripture: we are not alone.

In Mary’s story and her song, there is a movement from “I” to “we.” The angel comes to Mary when she is alone; then Mary travels to share the experience with her relative Elizabeth. Her song begins with “My soul magnifies the Lord;” it ends with “according to the promises God made to our ancestors.” Our community—whether that is our family, our friends, our church, or beyond—the community that shares our vision of what God’s new creation will be is with us as a support when we are discouraged, as an encouragement when we need to act, and as an assurance that we, as individuals, don’t have to do everything—we each need only do our part, knowing that others are taking up the work we can’t.

We are not alone. Other people are with us. And—I realize this sounds really “churchy,” but it’s true and needs to be said—God is with us. According to Mary’s song, God is not only with us, but is the primary force doing the work: feeding the hungry, bringing down the powerful, lifting up the lowly. It’s work we participate in, to be sure. But it’s not our work; it is God’s work. That knowledge will go a long way to keep you sane when politicians are driving you insane.

So, my friends, if you are struggling with the political climate—or anything else—this season, I pray that you can have radical acceptance, positive attention, a deep connection to community, and faith in God’s good and active presence.

Amen.