From a June 2024 sermon.
Following this worship service, there will be a Teddy Bear Picnic for children ages 3-6 and their families. There will be Teddy Bear themed activities, games, and a picnic. And there will be a Teddy Bear Talk about “Hiding God’s Word in our Hearts.” I will say something about that later, but first I want to talk about Teddy Bears.
Teddy Bears have been around since 1903. They were named after one of our most colorful presidents, Theodore Roosevelt, who was a big game hunter. There was a story about him having a clear shot at a bear on a hunt in 1902, but he refused to take it, and the bear lived. Somehow that led to a political cartoon that was in all the papers, and somehow that led to the name Teddy Bear being attached to a whole line of stuffed animals. And children have been loving their Teddy Bears and taking comfort in their companionship ever since.
The children were asked to bring their favorite Teddy Bear or other stuffed animal this morning, so I would imagine there are quite a few here today. I am glad it said “or other favorite stuffy,” because we do want to be inclusive here, and not everyone has a bear. Some have a favorite doll, or stuffed lion, or big bird, or something else. I had a chimpanzee, and I still have him, and I did bring him along today. My mother, like many in her generation, saved everything, and my old friend “Muggs” is still around. Here he is… meet Muggs (pictured above).
Now, there is a story behind this particular stuffed animal, just like there is a story behind the teddy bear. I never knew this story until just this week when I did a google photo search of old Muggs. I always thought I gave Muggs his name, but actually in the 1950’s there was a whole line of stuffed animals based on a real chimpanzee who was a television celebrity. His full name was J. Fred Muggs, he was born in 1952, and in the middle 1950’s he was the co-host of the Today Show.
That’s a long and crazy story, but this is not the time for it. Anyway, Muggs turned the struggling Today Show around, improved ratings, became a huge celebrity, inspired a line of merchandise (like this), and even went on a world-wide tour to promote NBC. In some countries, Muggs was second only to Marilyn Monroe in name recognition and popularity.
Proverbs 3:5 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.” TRUST, it says, TRUST in the LORD. Well, I used to trust in Muggs. I have had Muggs for as long as I can remember. In fact, one of my earliest memories is of dragging Muggs along wherever I went—around the house, outside playing, in the car, and to bed. In the crazy way little kids get attached to certain things, I was attached to Muggs.
This was a long time ago for me, and I don’t remember much about it; but apparently, I felt better when Muggs was with me. I would guess that at least some of the children who brought their stuffed animals this morning might have a similar attachment. Muggs was my security; something for me to hold on to. That is what is behind the phrase ‘security blanket.’ A child feels more secure with the item in hand, be it a blanket, or a Teddy Bear, or favorite doll, or Muggs. And that’s irrational, isn’t it? How can anyone trust in, or rely on, something like that? What did Muggs ever really do for me? Nothing. He can’t even stand up on his own.
We all quickly grow out of depending on such silly little things as that for our security, but we all do go on to put our trust in other things, some almost as silly. These other things can perhaps do a bit more for us than a teddy bear or a stuffed chimpanzee. But they are still not worthy of our complete trust, and will still not give us the ultimate security that we really want and so desperately need.
Teenagers, for example, well trained by the advertising industry, learn to put their trust in outward appearances. Therefore, some will spend all kinds of time and money on clothes, makeup, tattoos, or their hair, so they can look just right, in order to fit in with whatever group they want to fit into. Others will focus on their athletic ability, and they trust in sports to make themselves feel important and special and make life happen for them. And of course, everyone wants money. But it is usually later in life, in adulthood when you are paying your own bills, that money becomes that which is most craved and trusted in for security. That can happen when one gets a little older and has more money; along with having a decline in one’s athletic or appearance attributes. Appearances, athletics, money, along with other things like jobs, popularity, position and authority, travel, entertainment, health, houses, and hobbies are all fine in and of themselves. But any of those things can become an all-consuming passion that we begin to focus on, trust in, and rely on more than anything else in life for our meaning and self-worth and direction and security—and that can become a problem. What do you trust in, rely on, depend on, and focus on most of all, in your life?
The Bible says, ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.’ The verse doesn’t say anything about all that other stuff. (continued…)
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