Sermon: The Risky Shepherd

The Risky Shepherd
Psalm 23; John 10: 1-18
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
Fourth Sunday of Easter
May 7, 2017

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths
for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff—
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
my whole life long. - Psalm 23


‘Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit.

2The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.

5They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.’ 6Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

7 So again Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. 9I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

11 ‘I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

12The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep.

14I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. 18No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.’ - John 10: 1-18


Jesus was shaking things up. He had healed the man born blind so that others may see God’s glory (John 9). The Pharisees, however, saw a threat to their leadership. They were at odds with Jesus’ power to heal, forgive, and teach disciples.

So they drew the circle a little tighter around the synagogue. There was no room for the healed man; the newest disciple. There was no room for Jesus; the rabbi who didn’t follow the religious rules. The Pharisees were not bad guys. They were trying to faithfully preserve the Law of Moses. But in doing so they had become rigid gatekeepers.

Jesus spoke to the Pharisees in the only parable of John’s Gospel. He not only claimed his authority but he gave a picture of his ministry. He said: “The gatekeeper opens the gate for [the shepherd]…I am the gate for the sheep.” (John 10:3, 7).

You see the Pharisees misunderstood their role in the life of faith. They found themselves opening the gate for God the Good Shepherd (Old Testament image) to be revealed to God’s sheep. But Jesus drew the boundaries and the roles differently.

God alone is the gatekeeper. Jesus is the gate. It is by Jesus Christ alone that God opens the way for abundant life. God does not need any of us to serve as a mediator of grace. God does not need any of us to decide who is in or outside of the gates of grace. That job is already taken by God alone.

And yet Jesus gives a picture of comfort and challenge for the working of his ministry. He continued with that language of shepherd and sheep: “The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for [the shepherd] and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out; he goes ahead of them and the sheep follow him because they know his voice” (John 10: 2-4).

We know this Good Shepherd. The Lord is our shepherd and he leads us to trust in God’s provision. He makes us lie down in green pastures to play in the wonders of Creation. He leads us beside still waters to drink from babbling brooks of peace. He restores our souls like no shopping trip, quick fix, or human relationship can. It fills our hearts with joy to know the blessed assurance of God’s intimate relationship and never ending care.

But the voice of the Good Shepherd also leads us to risk stepping outside of the boundaries of comfort. The Shepherd calls us to follow him with a sense of urgency and purpose. The Shepherd leads us out to walk in right paths for his name’s sake. We must leave the sheepfold, go past the rich green pastures and go into fields of hurt, suffering, and injustice.

The Shepherd goes ahead of us in order to bring in other sheep and add to the fold. The ministry of Jesus Christ is at work to bring together one flock to dwell in God’s abundant life through the one shepherd. (John 10:16). It is always worth the risk for Jesus because that is what sacrificial love looks like.

Two weeks ago a recreation youth basketball game was being played at ‘Hope on the Hill’ Community Center[1]. ‘Hope on the Hill’ is just miles down the road in downtown Lancaster. They have been ministering to youth through community outreach for thirteen years. It has been a safe and nurturing space for many youth and young adults. It is an outreach to keep kids off the streets.

But the sheepfold of the community center was threatened with fear and violence at a basketball game that Wednesday night.

Allen Jerome Cooper, Jr., a star basketball player for Lancaster High School, was playing on the rec team. After the game Allen was the target of gang violence. Allen was well loved by his family, his team mates at Hope, and at high school. He was known as a hard worker and a good friend [2]. And his death has shaken our greater community.

It would be easy for our neighborhoods to become gatekeepers and stay behind locked doors. But members of the Lancaster community are reacting differently. They truly feel they are being led out to respond to violence with loving action.

A grass roots effort is coming together to organize “Save the Streetz.” This effort is uniting various experiences, connections, skills, and intervention resources to impact violence, gang activity, and drug use. The group feels called to risk being out in the community to come alongside those in need of positive change.

‘Save the Streetz’ is building on Jesus’ shepherding model of mentoring. Their vision is to reach out to students from middle through high school to open doors to abundant life. The program opened yesterday (Saturday May 6) with an event at the same location where Allen Cooper died. What an intentional way to demonstrate resurrection hope.

The event introduced the youth to explore career and job opportunities. Mentors opened the teens’ eyes to wonder about their God-given gifts and the importance to give back to the community. Wider groups of families and participants were also engaging with community building games and activities to feel the strength of unity.

‘Save the Streetz’ will even go as far as helping gang members who want to leave circles of violence to find a productive and hope-filled life. This outreach is seeking out volunteers who have connections in every neighborhood to speak directly to gang members.

The response from the Lancaster community has been well received so far. Youth and families want to make a difference here at home to bring empowerment, resiliency, and peace. They want to bring a love that reveals the unity of community.

The church is a safe and nurturing space for our community too; a sheepfold where Christ’s sheep find rest and provision to strengthen our weary souls. It pleases the Good Shepherd to care for the body of Christ in this way.

But the ministry of Jesus Christ presents us with opportunities to go out of the sheepfold with him. We follow his voice and trust his guidance. The Lord is our mentor to shape our whole way of living and being in the world. The Lord is teaching us there is a risk involved to follow him in order to walk in right paths for his name’s sake.

Right paths means to follow in the Shepherd’s steps of restoring right relationships as “Save the Steetz” is doing. The Good Shepherd needs the help of the sheep – you and me - to do this. The journey will at times take us beyond the comfortable green pastures to see the Valley of the Shadow of Death.

The journey of faith does not keep us from the fields of hurt, suffering, and injustice. In fact it draws us to these places just as Jesus was led to the suffering and injustice of the cross. These are the places where God seeks to bring new life. These are the places where God seeks to bring resurrection hope!

We go with our Risky Shepherd to these fields and valleys to find those who are not here yet. Together sheep and Shepherd search out those who belong to other flocks; those who have wandered from the community; those who are losing hope; those who need a way home.

The other flocks, the wanderers, the hopeless, and those needing a place to belong – they all begin to hear the voice of the Good Shepherd as he draws near. No matter where the sheep are, they hear the Shepherd’s voice. Sheep may not always respond to the Shepherd but they do hear his voice.

But the sheep also hear something else that I do not want you to miss. It matters immensely. The sheep being sought out need to see other sheep; they are social creatures. They also need to hear your voice and mine.

As you and I follow the Good Shepherd our voices bleat that once we, too, have all been like lost sheep who have gone astray. The Good Shepherd needs you and me to help share the good news of this abundant life through actions of faith and love.

Each time another sheep is invited to follow the Good Shepherd a door is opened to find home where there is goodness and mercy; cups overflow in God’s abundance; and we are anointed as a beloved child of God.

May the voice of our Risky Shepherd give us courage to come in and go out of the church’s sheepfold to find the pastures of God’s amazing grace. To come in and go out of the sheepfold is to be our way of life because it is the Good Shepherd’s way of life. The Shepherd’s way led him all the way to the cross and empty tomb to give each of us God’s promise of new life. Our Shepherd is seeking to unite us all in God’s resurrection hope.

Jesus calls us to do one thing – follow him. May it be so for you and for me.

In the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

[1]Reece Murphy, “New Group Taking Action to ‘Save the Streetz,’” The Lancaster News, April 30, 2017.

[2]Andrew Dys and John Marks, “Neighbors Lament Kids Killing After Lancaster High Teen, 17, Dies in Shooting,” The Herald (Lancaster, SC), April 27, 2017.

Hannah Strong, "Gang Related gun Fight Killed Teen," The Lancaster News, April 30, 2017.
http://www.thelancasternews.com/content/gang-related-%E2%80%98gunfight%E2%80%99-killed-teen

Sermon: Is Jesus Coming?

"Is Jesus Coming?"
Luke 24: 13-35; 1 Peter 1: 17-25
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
Third Sunday of Easter
April 30, 2017

Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened.

While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, ‘What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?’

They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, ‘Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?’ He asked them, ‘What things?’

They replied, ‘The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.’

Then he said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.

As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, ‘Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.’

So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.

Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’

That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, ‘The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!’ Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread. - Luke 24: 13-35


If you invoke as Father the one who judges all people impartially according to their deeds, live in reverent fear during the time of your exile. You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. He was destined before the foundation of the world, but was revealed at the end of the ages for your sake. Through him you have come to trust in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are set on God.

Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart. You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God. - 1 Peter 1: 17-23

She was sitting in the sanctuary. Glennon Doyle Melton was sharing Chapel Time with a preschool class. This sweet group of four year olds waddled down the aisle in single file like geese. Their faces looked up and around at the bigness of God’s house. Their eyes were wide with curiosity and wonder.

The class sat down with legs criss-crossed like applesauce. One little boy happened to make eye contact with Glennon. His name was Ryan. Glennon gave Ryan that wink – saying I’m glad you’re here. And Ryan just gave her back a shy smile.

The children, teachers and Glennon sang songs and did a little dance to the tune of Jesus loves me. And then Ryan looked at Glennon again but this time nudged his head with that “Come sit next to me” nudge.

After she sat down Ryan tapped her on the shoulder and asked, “Miss Glennon, is God coming?” And then he looked over the pews and around the sanctuary again wondering what door God just might walk through.

I have always told my daughters since they were in preschool “If you have a question, chances are that a few others have that same question too.”

Sure enough the disciples had a similar question. They were having a hard time understanding what had happened to their Lord. Jesus’ life and ministry had changed their lives and countless others. They knew Jesus loved them. But Jesus’ death made no sense to them. It had ended all wrong. They had hoped Jesus was the one to redeem Israel (Luke 24:21).

The craziest part was the women. That very morning the women told the disciples the tomb was empty (Luke 24:10-11, 22-24). The disciples thought it was just an idle tale. It was now the third day since Jesus’ death and even though Peter verified the tomb, the question was there – Is Jesus coming? Will we see Jesus again?

Cleopas and another disciple took their question on a road trip. They picked a place from point A to B; they walked from Jerusalem to Emmaus. The Greek says they were not just chewing the fat, but they were debating and reasoning. They walked and talked to get a new perspective to their question.

I love Luke’s Emmaus story. Jesus did show up but in an unexpected way. Jesus came as a fellow traveler – a stranger – on the journey. At first the disciples saw the stranger’s difference. The disciples were stunned this stranger had no idea about the current talk of the town.

It is captivating that the Stranger in disguise was the One who opened a new perspective for the disciples. As they walked and talked, the Stranger opened God’s Word to them from His context and interpretation. This journey opened a door for the disciples to share table hospitality with the Stranger.

There is something about table fellowship that breaks down our barriers. When the bread was broken and the cup was shared then the disciples no longer saw a stranger or just a fellow traveler. They saw Jesus Christ and their eyes were opened and their hearts were burning.

Last Sunday evening we took a journey with Stuart, Jake, Camille, and Laine. Just weeks ago, these four traveled along their own Emmaus roads. The decision to participate on a mission trip comes about in funny ways; the Spirit nudges us all differently.

Whether we travel to another country, another state, or within our own community – our road to Emmaus leads us to walk and talk with those we might not ordinarily. We take this road trip with our question in hand – Is Jesus coming? Will Jesus show up?

Stuart’s mission team went to Honduras to build latrines and wash rooms for future homes for families in need.

Jake’s mission team went to Panama to work on a medical facility to finish a roof, a kitchen interior, and to paint window panels.

Laine’s and Camille’s mission team went to Beverly, Kentucky to build a handicap ramp and assess basic needs within homes that were without working stoves and toilets.

Mission trips open our eyes to economic and social hardships that communities endure daily. We struggle with the hardships that poverty brings. We even struggle with the differences that exist with our respective cultures and how we do things.

Each team worked alongside strangers - both the team members from various churches and the local residents receiving help. From Honduras, to Panama, to Kentucky - each team saw something amazing happen. These strangers began to see beyond their differences. Relationships began to form in all their walking, talking, and working together. Meal times became sacramental as food and lives were shared. And then eyes were opened and hearts were burning as Christ was seen in the stranger.

Stuart saw Christ in the families and children of Honduras. God’s love allowed these families to rise above their hardships and find joy in the simple things. God’s love was central in families as they cared for one another in community. God’s love provided all they needed as well as hearts that poured out gratitude.

Jake saw Christ in a disabled young adult in Panama. This young man had the biggest smile as he helped paint window panels and anything else his paintbrush found. God’s mercy brought great joy in this young man. Jake discovered that when we show up - no matter what our abilities are - God shows up too. We each have a gift of faith to share in a way that no one else can share.

Camille and Laine saw Christ in their host who was the son of the local minister in Kentucky. This host offered the church to the mission team in such hospitality. Camille and Laine saw God’s generosity and abundance flourish in the midst of scarcity. They saw life-changing events where Christ was bringing new life through one another.

Not everyone has the opportunity to go on mission trips. Some will say they have never felt the call to go. Nevertheless we come to church on Sundays with a hopeful trust to see God by some mystery of grace. The bigness of God’s house is filled with songs, God’s Word, prayers, and sometimes a loud “Amen!” if the Spirit hits us just right.

We are then sent out into the world to pick up the journey between Sundays. We go back to school, back to work, back to our projects and back to our unfinished places. We walk along our own roads to Emmaus, the in-between places of life, and we wonder where Jesus might show up. The Gospel of Luke assures us that the risen Christ is our constant companion in faith.

Faith is God’s classroom to open our perspectives with curiosity and wonder; that classroom reaches from our hearts and homes to all the way across the world. We might get stuck on certain aspects of the exploration of faith, like the crucifixion and resurrection. But God is at work in mysterious ways to reveal a bigger picture to us.

The sacrificial love and resurrection of Jesus Christ has brought redemption and salvation to creation and humanity. And yet God chooses to work through each of us to continue reconciling the world. The risen Christ is on the move to work through you and me to bring new life.

The fact that the risen Christ was revealed as one of us is an act of God’s mercy. Anne Lamott says it like this in her new book, “Hallelujah Anyway”: “Mercy means compassion, empathy, a heart for someone’s troubles. It’s not something you do – it is something in you, accessed, revealed, or cultivated through use, like a muscle. We find mercy in the most unlikely places.”[1]

Jesus’ faithful presence and mercy bless friends, neighbors, and strangers alike with a tie that binds our hearts in Christian love. Blessed be the tie that binds because we need each other. We need each other’s differing cultures, interpretations, and uniqueness. We need one another’s mercy and compassion. We need to see Christ in one another to gain God’s perspective on our journeys of life and faith. God’s perspective connects the dots of our lives and moves us to take the next right step.

As we continue on the journey between Sundays, may the Spirit move us to see the stranger as our companion in faith in unexpected places. As we work together and see Christ in one another our eyes are opened more and our spirits are moved in life-giving ways.

The writer of Hebrews says, “Let mutual love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers for by doing so some have entertained angels without knowing it” (Hebrews 13: 1-2).

This week someone will be asking “Is God coming? Is Jesus going to show up?” And they just might see the risen Christ through you.
In the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

[1] Anne Lamott, “Hallelujah Anyway: Rediscovering Mercy” (New York: Riverhead Books, 2017), p. 51.

Prayer: Shine Upon Me

"Shine Upon Me"

Let Your face shine upon me.
I feel Your everlasting Love radiant
upon the skin of my soul.

Your continued faithfulness
washes over me
encircles and enfolds me
like the curling waves.

Your radiant love sparkles
upon those waters
that wash over my feet.

The waters of baptism are
dancing joyfully in your creation
and in what You are creating in me.

Wash away anything that hinders me
from being built up in Your faithfulness.

Fill me with life-giving strength
that I may dance in Your holy mystery.
Amen.
CMO/ 4-19-2017

Sermon: Blindfold Faith

"Blindfold Faith"
John 20: 19-31; 1 Peter 1: 3-9
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
Second Sunday of Easter
April 23, 2017


When it was evening on that [Easter] day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’

But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’

A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
- John 20: 19-31


Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith—being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. - 1 Peter 1: 3-9

Every year this congregation celebrates the gift of God’s love with the Valentine’s Dinner. One of the games our children play on that night is “Pin the Lips on the Face.” It is a spin-off of that childhood favorite “Pin the Tail on the Donkey.”

Each player must have a blind fold covering their eyes. The handkerchief is tied snugly with no spaces to peek. The children are turned around a few times. And then they are instructed to take a step forward to pin a mark of love.

We love to cheer on the children as they fumble and blindly reach towards the target. There is always plenty of encouragement and applause given to every player. And of course the winner gets the prize. I am always amazed at a child’s intuition to trust their instincts in the game.

Faith is like walking around with a blind fold covering our eyes. Just like the children’s game, we try to resist relying on our sight alone. Walking by faith and not by sight is hard.

God was teaching the disciples how to do this. As Easter Sunday faded into twilight, the disciples were unsettled. Easter interrupted their lives and met them in their unfinished faith, as I preached last Sunday. The disciples hid in the upper room with all their uncertainties.

According to John’s Gospel only Peter and John had seen the empty tomb. The disciples feared what all this resurrection business meant going forward. How would it actually affect them? Would they see resurrection in their lives?

And yet the Risen Christ walked through their locked doors. The peace of Christ embraced the disciples’. Our Savior breathed calm into their internal chaos of questions and fears. The Lord appeared and showed the disciples his marks of love.

The marks on his hands and his side proclaimed the promise of Emmanuel – God with us – in the highs and lows of humanity. For it is by his wounds that we know the joy of God’s salvation.

It was in the upper room that Christ created a space for the disciples to experience all this. And they rejoiced in the miracle of Easter as we did last Sunday.

But Thomas was the odd man out. He was not there when the Risen Christ first appeared. Thomas said, “Unless I see I will not believe” (John 19:25). Thomas was saying - Unless I see with my eyes the marks of love I will not be able to walk by faith.

Thomas did not have a sense of peace and he did not hesitate to voice it. Thomas gives us permission to wrestle with the blindfold of faith.

Many of us are like Thomas. In this season of Eater many of us feel like the odd man out too. Our situations seem bigger than the work God can do in them, especially when we feel we have not personally seen Jesus’ marks of love. The refrain of Easter Hallelujahs begins to fade into the places of our lives that are still restless and weary for new life.

It is hard to walk by faith and not by sight.

It is hard for our children and youth to overcome the peer pressures of school, social media and the push to academically perform. They long to be accepted for who they are; to know they are more than a snapchat thread or test score.

It is hard for our young adults to face uncertainties the future holds. They long to know the right decision to develop their talents in a sea of choices; to know who God is creating them to be.

It is hard for our families whose loved ones are tangled in situations where prayers have not yet been answered. They long to know that God is intervening; to know God will calm the chaos.

It is hard for our aging members to gracefully adapt to the changes life brings in the normal wear and tear of our bodies. They long to know their contributions are still valued; to know others still see their vibrancy and not their limitations.

Telling the truth about ourselves honors the footsteps of our faith. We all stumble and fumble to take the next right step forward. When we do not have a sense of peace then it can be hard to trust God.

But peace is not the absence of conflict or struggle. Peace is a faithful response to our unfinished places. The Risen Christ empowers and equips us with this response of peace. Jesus breathes the peace of the Holy Spirit into our lives. God’s Spirit promises to guide us into all truth (John 16:13).

Walking by faith and not by sight is hard but God is teaching us how to do this. Jesus says “Blessed are those who have not seen with their own eyes and yet have come to believe – to trust” God is at work (John 20:29). God shows us the way, the truth, and the life of believing when we have not seen.

Jesus Christ is the way. He embodies the journey of faith that is created by growing relationships with God and one another.

The Risen Lord is the truth. His ministry, death, and new life hold the spiritual reality that all things work together for the good of God’s purposes.

Our Savior is the life. He breaks through the closed doors of our faith to open our hearts and minds to experience God’s abundant mercy and grace.

As the trials of life spin us around, our faith is stretched to become more genuine (1 Peter 1:6-7). That happens in the spiritual reality of community. Just as Thomas had to come back into the fold of the disciples to see the marks of Jesus’ love in his life, so it is for us.

We need to hear the community of faith encourage our faith instincts to navigate through our unfinished places. The community helps us to spiritually see Jesus’ marks of love.

That youth who struggles to know acceptance was approached by a member after worship with the words, “You are such an amazing child of child and I am proud of you.” That youth saw Jesus’ marks of love.

That young adult who is searching for the right decision took a risk to trust another with the details of a new opportunity. Together they began to discern the nudges of the Holy Spirit. That young adult saw Jesus’ marks of love.

That family who questions if God is intervening received the gift of a friend who was willing to sit in the silence. No pat answers were given; just a shoulder to lean on and prayers that did not cease. That family saw Jesus’ marks of love.

That saint of the church who is struggling to age gracefully experienced a surprise visit from a youth. Together they sat sharing stories about the crazy teenage years. They laughed at their common bonds. They saw a wild and precious life in one another. That saint saw Jesus’ marks of love.

The marks of Jesus’ love reorient us in the affirmation that God will bring to completion the work he lovingly began in us. The scars on Jesus’ hands and side proclaim God is with us in the highest of highs and the lowest of lows in life. It is by his wounds that we are receiving the joy of God’s salvation. Each step of faith is an act of resistance to rely on human sight alone.

Walking by faith and not by sight is hard but God is teaching us how to do it.

The outcome of our faith brings a growing peace as Christ marks us with genuine love. In turn God creates opportunities for us to see Jesus’ marks of love through others. This increases our trust of seeing God at work in the world and in the more intimate places of our lives. And it moves us to extend the peace of Christ to another.

Peace allows our blindfold faith to hold fast to what is good, to care for one another with mutual affection, to rejoice in hope, to be patient in suffering, to persevere in prayer, and to serve the Lord (Romans 12:-9-12). May it be so for you and for me, for we are Easter people.

In the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Easter Sermon: Go Quickly!

Psalm 118: 1-2, 14-24 ; Matthew 28: 1-10
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
Easter Sunday
April 16, 2017


O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his steadfast love endures for ever!

Let Israel say,
‘His steadfast love endures for ever.’
The Lord is my strength and my might;
he has become my salvation.

There are glad songs of victory in the tents of the righteous:
‘The right hand of the Lord does valiantly;
the right hand of the Lord is exalted;
the right hand of the Lord does valiantly.’
I shall not die, but I shall live,
and recount the deeds of the Lord.
The Lord has punished me severely,
but he did not give me over to death.

Open to me the gates of righteousness,
that I may enter through them
and give thanks to the Lord.

This is the gate of the Lord;
the righteous shall enter through it.

I thank you that you have answered me
and have become my salvation.
The stone that the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone.
This is the Lord’s doing;
it is marvellous in our eyes.
This is the day that the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it. - Psalm 118: 1-2, 14-24

After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.

And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men.

But the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.

Then go quickly and tell his disciples, “He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.” This is my message for you.’ So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples.

Suddenly Jesus met them and said, ‘Greetings!’ And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshipped him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.’ - Matthew 28: 1-10


They were relieved to see the coming of the dawn in light of all they had experienced. The past three days had been haunting. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, the mother of Jesus, had watched Jesus suffer on the cross of Good Friday from a distance.

The intensity grew. Creation had been eagerly waiting for that very moment of liberation; the earth quaked in response as Jesus gave up his spirit (Romans 8:20-21). The temple curtain tore in half and God’s presence could no longer be contained. The prophesied life of Emmanuel, “God With Us,” was being fulfilled and now God was let loose into the world (Matthew 1:23; 27: 50-51, 55-56).

These two women had lovingly sat opposite the tomb and watched Jesus’ burial (Matthew 27: 61). It must have been overwhelming to process everything that had happened to Jesus – their Rabbi, their Lord, and Mary’s promised Son who was to save the people from our sins (Matthew 1: 21). They must have left the tomb with so many questions, so much grief, so much in life that seemed unfinished.

They returned to the tomb on that Sunday morning as the rays of sun pierced through the night’s dark veil. And then they were disturbed again to their very core as the earth quaked once more; for God’s unconditional and sacrificial love had conquered sin and death when the angel rolled away the stone (Matthew 28:2). God’s steadfast love could no longer be contained for it had a story to proclaim to all the earth.

Matthew tells us that the very first Easter was not comforting. It was not warm and fuzzy like the yellow down of a baby chick or the soft fur of a bunny. That first Easter brought Mary Magdalene, Jesus’ mother, and the guards to their undoing. The finished work in Jesus Christ for God’s salvation came face to face with humanity’s unfinished faith. They were all so alarmed that they could do nothing. Caution seized them.

Arthur Gordan, a writer and journalist, once said:
One of the most insidious maladies of our time [is] the tendency in most of us to observe rather than act; avoid rather than participate; not do rather than do. [We have a] tendency to give in to the sly, negative, cautionary voices that constantly counsel us to be careful, to be controlled, to be wary and prudent and hesitant and guarded in our approach of this complicated thing called living.[1]

You see, Easter is not a holy day to observe. Easter is a day for us to act and to participate in. God has been let loose into the world and this glorious power of LOVE interrupts our lives. And just as it disturbed the ones who gathered around the empty tomb on that first Easter it should interrupt something in you and in me too.

When God disturbs our hearts and minds it moves our spirits to be re-awakened. The pulse of our faith reawakens not from being comfortable, prudent, hesitant, and guarded. Easter reawakens us when we allow ourselves to stand in that space where the risen Christ comes face to face with all that is unresolved in our lives. Grace begins to weave together our tattered and loose ends.
We may not fully comprehend what it all means. What we do know is that we are never the same when we encounter Jesus Christ. Our hearts are filled in ways they never have been before.

Michael Yaconelli was a pastor for forty-two years. I am drawn to Yaconelli because he never sugar coats faith; he is honest and real. In doing so he encouraged the faint-hearted, helped the weak, and cared for those who suffered. In his book “Messy Spirituality,” he shares:

Spiritual people admit their unfinishedness. Unfinished means incomplete, imperfect, in process, under construction. The construction site of our souls exposes our flaws, the rough-hewn, not-finished faith clearly visible in our hearts. When we seek God, Jesus begins to take shape in our lives. He begins a good work in us, he starts changing us, but the finishing process is a more-than-a-lifetime-process.

I’ll never forget the day Eric stood up in our church during [prayer concerns.] Eric’s lifelong battle with alcohol had been mostly unsuccessful. He had been in and out of jail, and his [addiction] was taking a toll on his marriage [and family].

[Yaconelli and the congregation loved and cared for Eric and his family. And Eric knew the church to be a save space.]

That day Eric said, “I need prayer. My wife has given me an ultimatum – my [addiction] or her. She asked me to decide today, and I just wanted to tell you all what I have decided…”

[In that long pause of silence] every person in the church was on the edge of their seat with their face turned toward Eric, encouraging him, pleading with him to make the right decision. You could have heard a pin drop.

Finally, he stumbled on, tears in his eyes: “I’ve decided to choose my wife!”

Applause and cheering broke out. [In that moment I saw that] Eric was not afraid to tell the truth; he was not afraid to reveal to all of us how difficult [his decision was]. Eric is a spiritual man. Troubled? Yes. Unfinished? Absolutely.

Eric refused to pretend life is clean and neat and he knew he had to tell [God and] us the way things were, not the way we wished they were. [2]

We all have unfinished places in our lives. Easter empowers us to be real with God and to be embraced by a beloved community we know as the body of Christ. Easter moves us to share with God and one another that we still have a need for a Savior. The power of God’s Love enters into our family dynamics, our fears, our hurts, and our questions.

It is the mystery of grace that allows us to give God whatever is unresolved in our lives and to trust God with it. God, in Jesus Christ, leads the way for us to experience deliverance, healing, and wholeness.

God’s finished work in the Risen Christ comes face to face with our need for mercy that God desires to bring about within us. We all need God’s mercy to weave the unraveling parts of lives with forgiveness; mending us with faith, hope, and love. We all struggle with past regrets, those times we were too cautious to speak out or ask for help, that broken relationship now calloused with hurt.

Frederick Beuchner once said, “Christ’s love sees us with terrible clarity and [also] sees us whole.”[3] This is where we see the hands of our Creator and the redeeming love of the cross reshaping us into a new creation, a new resurrected life.

We cannot explain it, we can only experience it. If God’s Love can make the earth quake, tear the temple curtain, and raise Jesus Christ from the dead, what can God not do to bring the glory and praise of our Savior Jesus Christ in your life and mine? Nothing is impossible with God.

On this Easter Sunday, we are to stand boldly in the presence of our Risen Lord and Savior. God’s amazing grace has a story to proclaim to us where second chances and new life are abundant.

So today we do not hide our unfinishedness. Today is Easter and we give all that is still unresolved to God and we say “Hallelujah!”

As we experience the power of God’s Love, Scripture reminds us we cannot keep the joy of God’s promises to ourselves. We too must follow the angel’s charge and the word of our Lord as well: “Do not fear but go quickly! Take your unfinished faith and tell everyone you meet - our Lord has been raised from the dead!

The glorious power of God’s redeeming love will always go ahead and meet us on the journey of faith – wherever we are. It is there in the messy parts of our spirituality that we will rise up and truly see the holy work of Easter.

The costly grace and mercy of Jesus Christ assures us of God’s faithfulness in our lives. The good work that Christ began in you and in me will be brought to completion through this wondrous love that we celebrate.

This is what the journey of faith is all about! Experiencing the hope of resurrection not just today on the holiest of days, but every day!

Let us say the joyous refrain together once again!

Hallelujah! Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed!

In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

[1]Quoted from Michael Yaconelli, Messy Spirituality (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007), p. 137.
[2] Michael Yaconelli, Messy Spirituality (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007), p. 41-42.
[3]Quoted from Anne Lamott, “Hallelujah Anyway” (New York: Riverhead Books, 2017), p. 40.

Lenten Sermon Series - Spiritual Boot Camp: Hitting a Dead End

Spiritual Boot Camp: Hitting a Dead End
Psalm 130; Ezekiel 37: 1-14
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
April 2, 2017
Fifth Sunday in Lent

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord.
Lord, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
to the voice of my supplications!
If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,
Lord, who could stand?
But there is forgiveness with you,
so that you may be revered.

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the Lord
more than those who watch for the morning,
more than those who watch for the morning.

O Israel, hope in the Lord!
For with the Lord there is steadfast love,
and with him is great power to redeem.
It is he who will redeem Israel
from all its iniquities. Psalm 130

The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me all round them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry.

He said to me, ‘Mortal, can these bones live?’ I answered, ‘O Lord God, you know.’

Then he said to me, ‘Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord.’

So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, ‘Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.’ I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.

Then he said to me, ‘Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, “Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.” Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord.’ - Ezekiel 37: 1-14


It was not just an ordinary Tuesday morning. Many gathered at Olympic Stadium last summer in Rio de Janeiro to see the pinnacle of athletic performance. The starting pistol fired to begin the qualifying heat for the women’s 5000 meter track event (3.107 miles). These seventeen women had trained hard to compete on the world’s biggest stage. Only the fastest runners from the first two heats would go on to race the final event for the gold, silver or bronze medals.

As the women clocked the eighth lap with four and a half laps remaining, confusion exploded within the pack of athletes. Abbey D’Agostino (USA competitor) suddenly fell which clipped the competitor ahead of her, Nikki Hamblin (New Zealand competitor) also causing her to fall. They both incurred serious injuries. D’Agostino severely tore her knee ligaments and Hamblin had a badly banged up shoulder.

It looked like a dead end situation. Serious injuries usually bring the dreams of completing to a full stop. And even if they could tough out the pain, their chances to catch up to the pack and make up for lost time looked bleak.

Situations like this seem to make time move in slow motion as some mysterious gift intervenes. Somehow D’Agostino got up and instead of walking off the track or trying to salvage her own race, she stood next to Hamblin who was still on the ground. These two competitors did not know each other and had never spoken to each other before. But D’Agostino extended her hand to Hamblin saying, “Get up, get up. We have to finish!” Hamblin got up and they both began to run as best they could.

Hamblin ran on ahead of D’Agostino and after a few laps she looked behind and saw D’Agostino down on the ground again. Her face was grimacing with pain. Hamblin turned and ran back. She saw the tears in D’Agostino’s eyes and likewise, she extended a hand to her competitor saying “Get up, get up. We are going to finish this together.” For a while Hamblin had her arm around D’Agostino to give her extra support to complete the heat.

When they crossed the finish line, not only did the crowd cheer these two on, but also their competitors cheered and congratulated them. Their sportsmanship was unlike anything the Olympic judges had ever seen, therefore Hamblin and D’Agostino were rewarded entrance in the final 5000 meter event. Of course D’Agostino’s knee required surgery and she was unable to run the final.

These two runners were completely moved by the experience. D’Agostino said she remembers praying through her last laps as her knee became more misshapen and buckled underneath her. It is a mystery to her how she was able to continue and cross the finish line. After her initial fall D’Agostino simply tried to put aside her pain to help Hamblin in this tragic accident. As a result they had connected in a powerful way.

And Hamblin said, “Everyone wants to win and get a medal, but as disappointing as it is, there is so much more to this,” “It is just a mutual understanding of how much everyone puts into it. When someone asks me what happened in Rio in 20 years time, this is my story. She is my story. (USA Today)” “That girl, Abbey D’Agostino, is the Olympic spirit right there” (CBS).

God’s people experienced a similar tragedy. They too had fallen down. It was way beyond torn ligaments and battered shoulders. God’s people had fallen and had lost all hope to get back up. The people looked like a valley of dry bones.

Out of nowhere the hand of God appeared and rested on Ezekiel. At first God made Ezekiel sit down on that field to take in the scene. It looked like a dead end. And then God led Ezekiel all around to access the damage. God asked Ezekiel, “Can these bones live? (Ezekiel 37:3) Can these people get up and finish the race of faith with perseverance?” God's question warranted the answer, "No."

Ezekiel knew the people. He had been with them through thick and thin. And this prophet did not how the runners on God’s team could find the strength to stand up and persevere again. The weight of the Babylonian exile had caused too much confusion and pain for a possible recovery.

We all must be reminded time and again that nothing is impossible with God. God’s Spirit is always on the move, even when we have come to a full stop on the course of faith. God spoke to Ezekiel saying, “Prophecy to these bones… speak my divine instruction into these brittle and broken places. I will cause the breath of life to enter my people and you all shall live” (Ezekiel 37:4-5).

God’s Spirit breathes a word of hope into our weary souls to encourage us, saying: “Get up! Get up! We have to keep moving in this race of faith.” God will help us for in God there is steadfast love and with him is great power to redeem” (Psalm 130:7).

The Valley of Dry Bones is our story. Our Lenten journey has taken us through 40 tough days of Spiritual Boot Camp. We have certainly felt the excitement of training for a new spiritual adventure. We have also experienced the bleak valleys too.

We have looked to find the motivation for real change in our lives in order to gain new perspectives of spiritual health and God’s wholeness. We have been cultivating new and deeper spiritual disciplines to train our faith to move past the starting line and go the distance with God. We have been hydrating our spirits with God’s Living Water of Jesus Christ with Scripture and prayer. And we have been getting muddy to overcome the obstacle courses of faith in order to see God reshaping us by the grit of life.

Today you may notice that you feel the fatigue of Spiritual Boot Camp as we follow in Jesus’ footsteps. If we look back to that first Sunday in Lent Scripture told us that after Jesus had run the hills of spiritual discipline and completed his 40 days of training in the wilderness he was famished.

Maybe you were clear five weeks ago about your need for change but in your reflections you have discovered that you are just going through the motions. You wonder if you can make up for lost time to finish this race strong.

Maybe you are reflecting on that lesser habit you have been trying to break. Maybe you are still struggling with it. It’s breaking your stride and causing you to limp along. You wonder how in the world will you truly be able to break through this?

Maybe you have been surprised to see the results of perseverance to experience God’s freedom and new life. And this is leading you to really question if you need to bring the lesser habit to a dead end or not. You wonder if it is worth picking up facebook again or that food or that feeling of resentment after fasting from it these past 40 days.

Today we look back to see how far we have come. God is leading us to the track and field of faith to take a good look at our “spiritual bones.”[1] What has motivated you to make it this far in Spiritual Boot Camp? What have you and I discovered about our spiritual perseverance to grow stronger muscles of faith? What has brought confusion and pain? What has made you trip up on the course?

Wherever we find ourselves on the track and field of faith, we only have a few laps remaining. And no matter how strong or weak we have felt, I know without a doubt that we all need the encouragement of receiving a hand up in order to cross the finish line of Lent strong.

Listen for our Coach, Teacher, and Savior Jesus Christ speaking into our lives with his faithful obedience. Look for the ways the Spirit is breathing new life into our dry bones, our weary muscles, and our broken places. Wait for the Lord and hope in God’s Word.

As we wait the gift of faith leads us to trust even when we cannot see the hope that lies ahead of us. The Apostle Paul says, “Hope that is seen is not hope, for who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see we wait for it with patience” (Romans 8:24-25).

Get up! Get up! We have to finish this together! We are connected to the Spirit of the Living God in the most powerful way! God will revive us with a second wind to finish our race strong. Our hope is not just to survive Spiritual Boot Camp and be revived to cross the finish line. It is way more than that.

Today we make the turn to run the last lap of Lent. Next Sunday we enter Holy Week. Palm Sunday foreshadows Jesus’ triumphant victory lap. But we also remember the last week of Jesus’ life looked like a dead end. We follow his steps to the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus prayed in anguish and sweat like drops of blood. We follow Jesus as he led his disciples to share the Last Supper on Maundy Thursday where he gave them a new commandment to love one another and yet Peter denied Jesus three times; Judas betrayed him which led to Jesus' arrest and trial. Jesus was led to carry his cross on Good Friday, suffer on our behalf and then gave up his spirit. What seemed like a dead end was actually a new beginning. God was there all the way to lift Christ up to be exalted as Savior.

Let us run this race of faith not in our own ability but in Jesus’ faithfulness. And as we do God’s Spirit will enter into our lives to breathe the incredible hope of a life transformed by the gravity of Jesus’ sacrificial love. Jesus Christ is the One who extends his hand and heart to us. He is the One who lifts us up to stand in the strength of God’s grace so that we may truly live in the hope of resurrection.

In the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

Sermon Theme and Title adapted from "A Preacher's Guide to Lectionary Sermon Series: Thematic Plans for Years A, B, and C (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2016), p. 21, Sermon Theme "Boot Camp for the Soul," by Winnie Varghese.

[1] Feasting on the Word: Year A, Volume 2 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press: 2010), Katherine Amos, Pastoral Perspective p. 126.

Lenten Sermon Series - Spiritual Boot Camp: A Redefined Heart

Spiritual Boot Camp: A Redefined Heart
1 Samuel 16: 1-13; John 9: 1-25
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
March 26, 2017
Fourth Sunday in Lent

The Lord said to Samuel, ‘How long will you grieve over Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.’ Samuel said, ‘How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me.’ And the Lord said, ‘Take a heifer with you, and say, “I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.” Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you shall anoint for me the one whom I name to you.’ Samuel did what the Lord commanded, and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said, ‘Do you come peaceably?’ He said, ‘Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord; sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.’ And he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.

When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, ‘Surely the Lord’s anointed is now before the Lord.’ But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.’ Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. He said, ‘Neither has the Lord chosen this one.’ Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, ‘Neither has the Lord chosen this one.’ Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, and Samuel said to Jesse, ‘The Lord has not chosen any of these.’ Samuel said to Jesse, ‘Are all your sons here?’ And he said, ‘There remains yet the youngest, but he is keeping the sheep.’ And Samuel said to Jesse, ‘Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here.’ He sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes, and was handsome. The Lord said, ‘Rise and anoint him; for this is the one.’ Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the presence of his brothers; and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward. Samuel then set out and went to Ramah. - 1 Samuel 16: 1-13

As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ Jesus answered, ‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him. We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.’ When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man’s eyes, saying to him, ‘Go, wash in the pool of Siloam’ (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see. The neighbours and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, ‘Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?’ Some were saying, ‘It is he.’ Others were saying, ‘No, but it is someone like him.’ He kept saying, ‘I am the man.’ But they kept asking him, ‘Then how were your eyes opened?’ He answered, ‘The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, “Go to Siloam and wash.” Then I went and washed and received my sight.’ They said to him, ‘Where is he?’ He said, ‘I do not know.’

They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, ‘He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see.’ Some of the Pharisees said, ‘This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath.’ But others said, ‘How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?’ And they were divided. So they said again to the blind man, ‘What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened.’ He said, ‘He is a prophet.’

The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight and asked them, ‘Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?’ His parents answered, ‘We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.’ His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. Therefore his parents said, ‘He is of age; ask him.’

So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, ‘Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.’ He answered, ‘I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.’ - John 9: 1-25

Alicia remembers that defining moment in her life. Her friend had invited her to compete in a Tough Mudder. It is a military style fitness course spanning with 10-12 miles of mud and 20+ obstacles designed to drag you out of your comfort zone. People compete solo or with a team. It’s a test of perseverance to endure and see what you are made of.

Alicia’s first obstacle was crawling on elbows and knees through a trenched pool of mud and then climbing a fifteen foot curved wall covered in mud and grease. Once she scaled the wall with help from new friends an exploration course of self-discovery was set before her. As soon as she came in contact with the mud she thought, “O Lord, what have I gotten myself into?”

What began as an uncomfortable and crazy situation has now helped to redefine Alicia’s sense of being. She has since competed in three Tough Mudders and they have completely changed her life. With every competition and challenge comes an opportunity for Alicia to overcome with a hidden strength she didn’t realize she had. Sometimes the hardest challenges bring her to tears. They remind her of the fears, trials, and failures she has endured in life and what it takes to overcome them.

Alicia says the Tough Mudder competitions train her mind to pay attention to her immediate surroundings in a way she never has before. They push her to focus on new ways her body, mind, and spirit need to respond in order to overcome the next obstacle. She even has a new motto that now guides her outlook: mud, sweat, and tears are the grit of life.

The disciples were given an opportunity to see a defining moment in another’s life. The twelve were following their Teacher’s lead in their community of Galilee. Jesus was opening their eyes to see and experience things they never had before.

As Jesus walked along, he saw a man who had been blind since birth. (Click the link to watch the dramatization of this scene from John's Gospel). Those in the community of Galilee simply saw the man as a beggar and probably walked past him day after day without much notice. But Jesus saw something different. He saw a fellow brother who needed an opportunity to receive the hidden power of God’s grace.

I can only imagine the look on the disciples’ faces as Jesus spat on the ground, made mud, and wiped it over the blind man’s eyelids. And not just the disciples, but also the man. Can you imagine what an uncomfortable and crazy situation this was for him? Up to this point his life experience had been either hearing coins clank into his Dimes for Hunger jar or hearing footsteps pass him by. His encounter with Christ was nothing less than messy and came as quite a surprise to say the least.

As Jesus’ hands touched the man’s face with mud, the very hands of the Creator were reshaping and redefining this man into God’s new creation. And as the man obeyed Jesus’ command to wash in the pool, his eyes were opened to a moment that forever changed his life. That man left the pool of Siloam and was sent to share his story of God’s amazing grace.

This man’s proclamation “I once was blind and now I see” (John 9:25) has become a refrain of faith passed down throughout the generations of our spiritual ancestors. As you and I encounter Christ, the eyes of our hearts become more opened to see in new and surprising ways too.

The gift of grace through faith opens us to see ourselves as more than what we have been before. We notice God taking the threads of our lives and weaving them into the fabric of community. With each stitch we feel the joy of acceptance and being connected to something bigger than ourselves. We experience the muscles of our faith growing stronger as we face each challenge in life. And as our hearts become redefined we struggle to articulate the ways in which Jesus has made a difference in our lives, just like the man who gained his sight.

Our encounters with Christ can certainly be reassuring as God draws near to us. But if we are really honest about it, we encounter Christ in really uncomfortable and messy ways too. And those are the times we recognize that the grit of life really does come from moments of mud, sweat, tears.

Jesus Christ takes us places that move us out of our comfort zones.

They may be places in our households where we are struggling to deal with the unexpected change that splatters in our faces.

Those zones may be the trampled down places in our own community that we have simply passed by. We either don’t want to get dirty or we have passed by the “other side of town” so many times that we never intersect a different experience of struggle from our own.

Those discomfort zones might even be places on a mission trip where a different culture or context begins a hard conversation to honestly struggle and expand our perceptions of poverty, ethnicity, race, and life experience. It challenges us to gain a new perspective to see past our differences and into what we hold in common. We are all sisters and brothers in the greater family of God.

One church member shared with me this week that he has encountered Christ in nudges. Even though those nudges make him uncomfortable, he keeps drawing close to God and coming to church because he knows God will truly open his eyes for him to see his greater purpose at just the right time.

Another church member shared with me that her encounters with Christ have been like drops that slowly fill a bucket to where it reaches a tipping point. As the bucket turns over and floods her heart, her eyes become a little more opened and it makes her go, “Aaaahhhhh! That’s what God needs me to see differently right now.”

Parker Palmer, an author and teacher of faith, says: “[Muddy ground] holds the seedbed for rebirth. I love the fact that the word ‘humus,’ the decayed organic matter that feeds the roots of plants, comes from the same word-root that gives rise to ‘humility.’ It is a [rich vocabulary] in which I find forgiveness, blessing, and grace. It reminds me that the humiliating events of life – events that leave ‘mud on my face’ or ‘make my name mud’ can create fertile soil that nourishes our growth.”

The season of Lent is training our hearts, minds and bodies to pay attention to our immediate surroundings in new ways. These immediate surroundings are the trenches and seed beds for rebirth. You and I are Jesus’ disciples and he is seeking to lead us into situations where our faith needs to be nourished.

In order to grow, nourishment often comes about in the mud and muck of life. As we follow in Jesus’ steps we might even hear ourselves saying, “O Lord, what are you getting me into?!?”But our hearts need opportunities to be humbled and to respond to trials and challenges with new found obedience and agility.

Jesus Christ is inviting you and me to follow in his steps so that our faith may seek understanding through life’s exploration course of self and communal discovery. God always looks past the surface levels of our lives that we want to look clean, untouched, and perfect by human standards.

But God is not interested in the way life appears or at least in the way we would rather life appear. God is more interested in looking on the heart. And sometimes we have to get neck deep in the muddy parts of life in order for God to redefine our being. After all, that is the heart of the matter.

Jesus Christ looks into our own hearts, our families, our communities, and the wider world and sees his fellow sisters and brothers who need opportunities to experience the hidden strength of God’s grace. And grace is God's love in action which moves through our lives to shape us more into the likeness and the example of Christ. As you and I experience Christ redefining our hearts, the hope is that our encounters with Christ will leave you and I changed – no matter how reassuring or uncomfortable they are.

What is at stake for Spiritual Boot Camp is that we cannot go through the tough mudders of faith with Jesus, wash the mud off, and just go on living the same way we did before.

What is the mud in your life? What uncomfortable situation is Jesus using to touch and change your life? What does Christ want to open the eyes of your heart and mine to see?

In the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sources Referenced:

Sermon Theme and Title adapted from "A Preacher's Guide to Lectionary Sermon Series: Thematic Plans for Years A, B, and C (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2016), p. 21, Sermon Theme "Boot Camp for the Soul," by Winnie Varghese.

[1] Parker Palmer, “Spring Is Mud and Miracle,” On Being Blog, March 29, 2016