Leading a Life Worth Living

Leading a Life Worth Living

A sermon for Graduate Sunday.

Ephesians 3:14-4:6

 Up until this point, you three seniors have been saying “once I graduate” or “when I’m a senior” or “when I grow up, I’m going to be” or “I just have to make it to senior year and then…” 

And Now? You’re Here! Congratulations on making it to this milestone achievement for which your parents have tirelessly prayed for and your mentors have known was possible all along. The end is often just the beginning, and you are about to step out into the next adventures that await you and they truly are some of the best years of your life. 

I have been to many a graduation myself and I try my hardest to always remember one take away. I think “this is the year where I’ll really remember what the speaker wants me to hear.” And ya know what. I can’t tell you a thing any of them said, but I remember the feeling. 

Soak in this moment. Here me when I say you are never alone. You may sometimes feel alone, and sometimes you sort of want to be on your own, but you’re never truly alone. You may or may not have a solid idea of what the next few years will hold, shoot if we’ve learned anything from 2020 it’s that everything is in pencil these days so that’s true for all of us, and that’s okay! Plans shift and as you journey things become clearer and the road opens up in ways you never could have imagined. 

In the midst of all of the celebration that has been happening around you I’m going to ask you to take a step back with me and see the gifts that you bring to the table and lives you impact by bringing your whole self to the world. 

I want you to think of your passions and everything that makes you light up inside and relish in those things. 

I want you to think of your friends and family who stand by you today or have stood by you near and far to help you get to this point and bring your gratitude and humility to those faces. 

I want you to ponder the vastness of our Creator and the One who made the stars instilled in you a purpose, a calling, a joy that is solely unique to you and recognize your place in this world as worthy and necessary. You bring your whole created self to the table, and you are needed.  

Paul tells the Ephesians that there is bold and confident access to God through faith in Christ. Paul is no stranger to prison and suffering. This text comes from a place of experiencing hardship which is why it’s all the more encouraging. 

There will no doubt be hurdles you haven’t faced yet, but like I said, you’re never alone. 
So, what does it take to lead a life worth living? First step? Have fun. That bold and confident access we have to God through Christ? That God is the one who gave you those passions and I want you to run with them. Explore them and dive deep into the things that bring you joy. Part of leading a life worth living is living life the fullest! We have access to the fullness of God through the life we lead. There is time for making the hard decisions about which path to pursue, just make sure you’re giving it your all because that passion is what will sustain you when things get hard. It’s that passion that will sustain you when you momentarily forget why you’re doing what you’re doing. Let those passions drive you and fuel you to live life to the fullest. 

I wore my chucks just for you today. Preaching in sneakers brings me joy. You bring your whole self to your calling, and you need that joy to sustain the path you’re on. 

Joy and passion are key components of leading a life worth living and you can do so confidently because you have access to God’s unending joy within you. 

Mister Rogers was one of my favorites growing up and still is to this day. Just a wise man with a passion for educating children about their feelings and relationships with others. He says that “there are three ways to ultimate success: Be Kind. Be Kind. Be Kind.”

Paul prays that you would be strengthened in your inner being and that Christ would dwell within you through faith and be rooted and grounded in love. Because Christ dwells within you, you have the ability to be rooted and grounded in love and everything you do flows from this love. This love allows us to be kind always. Be kind when you disagree with someone. Practice listening and having a conversation with kindness at the center. Whether it’s in class, the workplace, at home with the people who are closest to us-which is sometimes the hardest to keep kindness at the center- be rooted and grounded in love always. Kindness will surely follow. I recently went back and watched the episode of Mister Rogers neighborhood where he invites Officer Clemmons to sit down and put his feet in the pool with him. After they take a rest Mr. Rogers bends down and he dries Officer Clemmons feet off. This was simply not something that was done, especially not on a children’s tv broadcast. Rogers knew his influence and wanted to use if for good. It was worth the risk, and he did so with kindness at the center. I listened to Clemmons recall what that moment was like years later. He said that when Mr. Rogers asked him to play a police officer he was taken by surprise and didn’t think it was a good idea. He’d never seen anyone that looked like him be a police officer. To so boldly confront racial inequality in a children’s tv broadcast was wild. And they did it. Clemmons said that show after show Rogers always ended by saying “You make every day a special day just by being you, and I like you just the way you are.” After one particular show Clemmons felt like Rogers was looking right at him when he said this and so afterwards, he asked “Were you talking to me?” “Yes,” Mister Rogers said, “I have been talking to you for two years; and you finally heard me today.” Kindness. Being Rooted and Grounded in Love. Kindness will surely follow. 

Not only will kindness follow, but Paul urges that leading a life worthy of the calling to which we all have been called, to do so with humility, and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love. All SUPER simple tasks am I right?! And why should we do such things? The hope is that we’ll maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. We’re agents of God’s peace. We have access to God’s peace. We are little Christ followers who like John are always to be pointing to Christ and we do so with kindness and humility, with gentleness and an effort to maintain unity. Unity is not the same as uniformity. It does not mean that we only sit with likeminded people or that we only hang out with people who believe exactly as we do, it means when we disagree, we do so in a spirit that maintains the unity and integrity of one another. Because there is one body, and one Spirit. Just as you have been called by God to bring your unique gifts and talents to the world, it is for one purpose, to bring God glory in all that you do, who is in all and through all. We cannot go at this life thing all alone. We’re not meant to. We’re built for community and if you cast your unity net far and wide, with kindness at the center, the amount of joy in your life will be far greater than if you keep it small and quarrel over every little thing. Maintain the spirit of unity as you live out your passions. Maintain the spirit of unity as you are grounded and rooted in love. Your church is so proud of you and they feel a deep sense of pride watching who you’ve become and who you’ll continue to grow up to be. Like Paul, we pray for you and one another. 

We pray that you’ll be confidant in the call that God has given you, that you’ll know within yourselves the indwelling of Christ, and that you’ll maintain this spirit of unity because of your shared confession of one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God. And because of this shared confession, you are never alone.

Pray with me. 

God, 

We lift up our high school graduates. You’ve called them from birth, and they are spreading new wings. We know that they don’t go alone, and you are always with them. As they begin to figure out a new season of life and take new paths to live into who You’ve called them to be, may they do so in a spirit of unity, rooted and grounded in Your Love. You have gifted each of them with purpose and passion and a support system. We pray your blessings over them, that no matter where this journey takes them, they have full access to your peace and promises. May their lives be marked with kindness. May we all lead a life worth living because of your great love for each of us. Amen.