Another thing about being part of the kingdom of Jesus is that if he is the creator and the generous leader of the kingdom, if he is the king of kings, then our power and our gifts and our aptitudes and our relationships and our opportunities are made possible more by his graciousness than by our hard work.

And so we can learn to be grateful instead of working so hard to be impressive.

If Jesus is forever, then the questions we have and the worries that overtake us and the questions we struggle with happen in the context of someone who has authority to act and to expect and to assure and to care.

But what does this mean?

That before I walk into a hospital room I can turn to Jesus and say, “you are already in conversations with the person in this room. You are already providing wisdom and offering compassion. And you are inviting me to join in that, not to force your presence or insist on your way. So help me to think your thoughts and offer your words and live in your silence.”

It means that as you are worrying about someone you love, you can turn to Jesus and say, “you are the king of everything that matters, of my loved one and of me. So help me, God, to listen for you and respond to you and stop trying to measure up.”

People will do foolish and smart things. You will, I will.

But the kingdom of Jesus doesn’t depend on our smartness and will not be destroyed by our foolishness.

It is lived in our faithfulness to the king.

On the Sunday we call Christ the King Sunday, on the day we call thanksgiving, our invitation and opportunity is to turn our hearts to the king, turn our hands and thoughts and time and questions and relationships and worries and … well, everything…to the king.

Who loves us deeply.