Sermon: Sphere of Influence

"Sphere of Influence"
Sixth Sunday of Easter
Psalm 67; Acts 16: 9-15 by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
May 1, 2016


May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to shine upon us,
Selah
that your way may be known upon earth,
your saving power among all nations.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you judge the peoples with equity
and guide the nations upon earth.
Selah
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.

The earth has yielded its increase;
God, our God, has blessed us.
May God continue to bless us;
let all the ends of the earth revere him. - Psalm 67


In our New Testament reading, the good physician, Luke, tells us that Paul had been traveling with apostles and elders. They had mapped out an itinerary to backtrack and check on believers they had previously encountered and influenced. Paul wanted to see how his sisters and brothers in the faith were doing. Those pockets of relationships were like family to him.

But Paul divides off from the original group with only Luke, Silas and a new follower Timothy. God had led Paul and Timothy to cross paths. This intersection created an opportunity for Paul to become a mentor to young Timothy. As these four set out, the Spirit redirected them yet again for God had particular plans.

Listen for the movement of the Spirit in our story of Acts 16: 9-15 as told by Luke.

During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’ When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.

We set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city for some days.

On the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. A certain woman named Lydia, a worshipper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul.

When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, ‘If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.’ And she prevailed upon us.

God redirected Paul’s small group to Philippi. That place would forever be connected to Paul’s heart. The people Paul met there gave him great joy because of the special ways they shared in the gospel from that first day (Philippians 1:5). That first day Paul remembers started when his small group walked out of the city gates of Philippi to the river. They walked to a quiet space on the Sabbath to rest in God’s grace. They went down to the river to pray.

It seems the Spirit had intentionally redirected Paul’s steps to this space that was set apart. I can imagine the path leading to the river bank was well worn by many who sought a personal connection to God in quiet solitude. The large rocks along the bank were smoothed over the years as small gatherings of sisters and brothers in the faith sat seeking support from the strength of community. The babbling water of the river calms the busyness of any sojourner with the whispers of the Spirit. Sitting by the river has a way of restoring the soul.

I find it so interesting that God chose this space to intersect Paul and Lydia. Paul was open to the Spirit’s leading and even redirection so that he may continue to pursue his sphere of influence to share the gospel. People knew Paul’s story and his passion for Christ. And Paul had a way of meeting others where they were in life.

And there was Lydia. She also was a woman of influence. She was a prominent business woman who rubbed shoulders with many different people across the socio-economic spectrum. She also had a passion for living the life of faith. She was a worshipper of God.

In that intersection the Spirit had opened Lydia to listen to the conversation between Paul, his small group and with the women gathered along the river bank. I would love to know exactly what was said that moved her so much. Whatever the conversation or even the prayer that was shared – Pauls’ sphere of influence opened Lydia’s soul and deepened her desire to learn. The Spirit moved Lydia to eagerly attend to her faith.

Lydia’s encounter by the river had an internal and an external effect on her. She sensed God’s influence – God’s loving presence claiming her life. She responded to God’s grace by receiving the waters of baptism. This was the internal.

Then Lydia let that moment flow out from her into these newly formed relationships. Lydia did not just invite but she persuaded Paul and his small group to come to her home just like family. This was the external. The blessings Lydia received were not just for her alone. She was blessed to continue being a blessing to others. I have no doubt this intersection flowed into her faith, family, and work ethics.

It was within this personal encounter that a small interaction created a tipping point by someone’s influence. Tipping points are small things that have great moving effects. God opened a heart and soul to really listen and to attend to what the Spirit was teaching through a mentor. And this encounter did not happen by the way of a sermon or even in a church. It happened out beyond the city gates and off the beaten path. It happened where ordinary life intersects the holiness of God in a simple interaction.

The greatest sphere of influence in our lives is God’s. Any given day the Spirit is whispering to us to walk off the beaten path and find a place to sit beside the river bank of life. It may seem like idle time but we need to be surrounded by God’s grace. We need opportunities for God to open us and let God pour grace-filled influence into us. We need the Spirit’s guidance to discern what we should be attending to each day.

You and I have a deep longing to sense God’s graciousness to us, to know God’s blessing, and to be in God’s presence that the light of the Divine would shine upon us. All good and praiseworthy things in our efforts to grow in faith flow from the sphere of God’s influence.

As we leave the river bank and return to the ordinary spaces and responsibilities of life, we encounter surrounding circles of influence. Just think of the individuals in the span of your years who you have looked up to as a mentor in life and faith.

They are teachers at school or church who open our imaginations and wonder. They are friends who inspire us to hope for the best of God’s ability when life seems like one disappointment after another. They are colleagues whose work ethics and integrity move us to be godly people and not seek our work as a means to an end. All of these individuals share a personal connection with us and demonstrate Christ’s example in real ways that are meaningful to us.

When I think about spheres of influence I think about those mentors who God has intersected in my own life. They make such an impression upon me that I find myself saying, “I want to live like that. I want faith like that. I want God to work through me like that.” Before I entered into church leadership and ordained ministry I never thought I had a personal sphere of influence. Others who had influenced me came to my mind first.

When we walk outside of the church doors today and enter into the fullness of this week, I want you to consider something.

God desires to work through your life so that you may be a sphere of influence to others. Each of us has a sphere of influence. We have influence in our homes, with the friends we associate with, and in the workplace. And within all these pockets of relationships, they are mostly established relationships. But there is more to our sphere of influence than this.

There may be a day in the near future – it may be this very afternoon – where God redirects the plans you have made. God’s Spirit may lead you to purposefully intersect with someone new. And this may be an opportunity where God takes your unique talents, gifts, and personality to open up another’s heart and soul. It may not even be with your words. God may use your actions or deeds. But God will take some gem of your faith and inspire another person to attend to something of their growing faith. Be open to these intersections God is creating and meet others where they are. Life is hard and we all need genuine encouragement along the way.

As you and I consider our personal spheres of influence we do not need to be concerned about leaving a legacy of faith. We don’t need to have letters and books written about us like Paul had. What is worthy of remembering is the ways we are being faithful in the small things.

Find some place off the beaten path on a regular basis: an outdoor sanctuary of a walking trail, an inner room that surrounds you in peace, a space set apart that calls to you alone. Allow God’s grace to calm the busyness of your day - whether the day is just beginning, or you are pausing at lunchtime, or you are reflecting upon the day's end. Listen for the Spirit whispering to you as your heart is opened to what needs tending. Allow these quiet encounters with God to build tipping points within your spirit in order to be a part of God’s great plans. Situate yourself in God’s sphere of influence and see where it might flow into the lives of others through small interactions.

You and I each have a circle – a sphere - of influence and God wants to shine upon us and bless us that we might be a blessing to others. We are created in circles of relationships with God at the very center. May you and I consider the spheres of influence we are standing in and waiting to be led towards. It is from these interconnected circles of relationships that we praise God from whom all blessings flow.

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