Growing in Grace

Every Sunday night Sewanee hosts an informal worship service called "Growing in Grace" in All Saint's Chapel.  Growing in Grace is a "come as you are" service of the Word and Sacrament.  The tradition of inviting guest speakers from around the country (as well as from the student body and faculty) offers a variety of voices proclaiming the significance of faith in their lives.

This past Sunday, I was invited to speak at Sewanee on behalf of Mountain T.O.P.  They asked me to share Mountain T.O.P.'s story and my personal story as it relates to the gospel.  And by no coincidence their theme for the semester is "light of the world" (also part of our theme for 2011!  Matt 5:13-16).

It is always exciting to speak to a group of people about Mountain T.O.P.  There were an even mix of students and community members, some of which already knew about Mountain T.O.P.'s work.  The service, rooted in Episcopal tradition, had music, teaching, collective prayers and holy communion.

In preparing for the service, I really tried to listen for what God wanted me to say to that specific group of people.  It's easy to share about Mountain T.O.P. and my own faith because the two are intertwined.  They could not be separated, as is true for most of you reading.  When I was thinking about how God got me here and how he's kept me here, it was enlightening.  It's not something I sit down and do (look at my life in relation to my mtop experience which started back in 2000 as a camper).  I reflect often, almost daily/weekly on what God is teaching me, but not in such a "big picture" way.  The passage that came to mind was the transfiguration.  In Matthew 17 we read,

"After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.  There he was transfigured before them.  His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light.  Just then appeared before them Moses and Elijah.  Peter said to Jesus, 'Lord, it is good for us to be here.  If you wish, I will put up three shelters - one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.'  While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to him!'" 


I thought about how this relates to my life on the mountain.  For one, God brought me to the mountain with Him ... while on this mountain, I have seen Him in a new light.. I have seen Him in ways in which I never saw Him before.. also true for these three disciples and for those of you who God has brought to this mountain before.  Secondly, even in times when it doesn't "feel" good, I can say to God, "Lord, it is good for me to be here!"  And lastly, God has said to me, "This is my Son, whom I love ... LISTEN to him!"

From there, I honed in on two specific lessons I have learned through listening.

1.  "Nothing is impossible with God."  We've all found ourselves in darkness at some point in our lives.  We've had feelings of anger, bitterness, hurt, loneliness, jealousy, greed, selfishness, hopelessness... But what God has taught me is that forgiveness and redemption are possible.  In fact, they're imperative.  What was once lost can be restored.  Maybe not in the way you were hoping it would be, but in a way that is good for you and the other person.  Likewise, God has taught me what it means to have a heavenly Father.  We can never underestimate listening to God for our worth and value.  He alone is trustworthy and He says to each of us, "You are enough."

(For those fighting the abyss... hold on.  "After the suffering of your soul, you will see the light of life and be satisfied."  Not you might, not maybe, but you will.)

2.  Healthy Living.  Being a young adult, having left college almost three years ago now, I've learned how to have better balance in my life.  I struggled as a summer staffer when I tried to assimilate back into college life.  I remember many conversations with my mother about living one life versus living a dualistic one.  Somewhere in my head there was life with God and there was "other" life.  The struggle then became how to live one life ... for God ... with God ... listening to God ... and make changes to my lifestyle accordingly.  What God has done over the past three years is redefine.  I had to stop listening to everything around me and sit down with the Bible and search for truth.  Through doing that, I developed my own convictions on what it means to live life with God in a healthy way.  I discovered I could be fully alive, fully awake and fully engaged in the here and now if I would just allow Him to direct the ways in which I live.  Based on this relearning, I turned back to the sermon on the mount and those things Jesus teaches... not gossiping, not judging, giving to the needy ... So whatever struggle comes to mind for you, God says, "You're better than that."


Amen.