"From Darkness to Light"

(from the book Let Your Life Speak, by Parker Palmer)

Ephesians 5:8-17

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Introduction: As we continue in our series from the book “Let Your Life Speak,” by Parker Palmer, I think about our church: its place in the community, in my life, in the Kingdom of God. There are times in our lives where we begin to evaluate what is going on, and we can become frustrated. I think about how our attendance has dropped in the last year, and wonder where our church is heading. I wonder if my efforts are making a difference. Don’t we all have those periods in life?

When we come to this crossroads, we can choose to give in to the frustration and let it engulf us, or we can realize that there is always more that God has for us; for this church. At the end of last year we received several generous financial gifts that again helped us to overcome our deficit! This has held true all 12 years that I have been here. If this is true financially, I know it is true spiritually. And if it is true spiritually, then it can be true in our attendance, and our membership, and our Kingdom efforts!

This morning, as we think about letting our life speak, I want to focus on becoming people who are grounded in our faith, leading causes that we care about, and understanding that life is a cycle of seasons.

I. All the Way Down- (Deuteronomy 30:19)

a. Withdraw into the self- Sometimes to overcome the down times of life,

we have to acknowledge the pain, the hurt, the heartache that has occurred. In his book, The Wounded Healer, Henri Nouwen says this about people of our generation: “It is the generation which gives absolute priority to the personal and which tends in a remarkable way to withdraw into the self.” (p. 27) As I think about this description, it reminds me of how difficult it is for people to be in community with each other. Because of this, they feel isolated in their troubles, because they are isolated. They feel there is no hope, because they feel overwhelmed at having to deal with their troubles on their own.

While withdrawing into your self can have some benefits (a time of reflection, a time to put things into perspective, a time to make a plan), when drawn out it, leads to depression. We should not withdraw into our selves so much that we forget we have been created to be in relationship with others. To be in this relationship, we have to learn to let go of the self, and to have a sense of openness and vulnerability.

Too often we don’t want to let ourselves be open and vulnerable for fear of being judged, and so we withdraw. If we can understand that God will not judge us when we come with sincerity and confession, then we are given strength to begin to share our struggles. At this point it is good to pray that God would bring others into our lives with whom we can open up and share our lives with; share our stories.

In the midst of our being down, we need to share the truth of how we feel, and why we feel that way. We also need to understand that there are not “easy” answers to solve what we feel, but once we open ourselves up, we have the hope of having others walk with us in our struggle.

Now understand also that not everyone who you try and share with will receive you as you are. They might try and cheer you up and pretend that things are not bad. However, there will be those who just are there for you without trying to solve your issues, and these are the ones who will bring you strength. Sometimes, just being present in another person’s pain, without trying to fix things, is the most powerful and profound solution! It really is what grace is all about: being loved even when you don’t feel you can be loved; loving even when the love is not fully received.

b. The Way to God is Down- We all face these down times, from time to

time, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you need therapy (although for some therapy can be very helpful). But we do all need to have people in our lives with whom we can open up, and share what we are really feeling; what we are really dealing with.

For me, right now it is my Spiritual Counselor. I can share the joys and frustrations of ministry. I can share the joys and struggles of my life. Where she helps bring strength to my life is to make sure that I am spiritually healthy. If I am spiritually healthy, then I will have a good and right relationship with God, and with others, that will help me get through my frustrations and struggles.

Parker Palmer talks about a helpful picture that can lead us to reclaim our life: He says, “Do you think you could see [the depression] .. as the hand of a friend, pressing you down to the ground on which it is safe to stand?” (p. 66) The truth is, depression, frustration, stress, and so on… are not fatal. We can get back up. As God became flesh, in Jesus Christ, so we have a Savior who is there for us in times such as this!

More often than not, the “oughts” (what I ought to do) is the driving force in our lives. These oughts put pressure on us to “live up” to what is expected, and so inevitably when we don’t live up to them, we see ourselves as a failure, and this leads us to get angry, or frustrated, or depressed. Instead of being overwhelmed by the “oughts,” we need to find the truth of God and the true nature of who we were created to be. We need to understand that God has given us gifts, and as we live out our lives using these gifts, we will move from darkness to light.

It really is about a journey toward God. Even the discovering of our true self is a journey toward God. When we focus too much on self, we forget this truth. To focus on self should only be about understanding that our self is not set apart, or more special, or superior, to anyone else. It really is a mix of good and evil, darkness and light, at conflict with each other.

Deuteronomy 30:19 says: “I set before you life or death, blessing or curse. Therefore, choose life.” Why is it that we choose death over life? Why do we sometimes choose evil over good? It is because we get caught up in self, and don’t allow ourselves to “seek God,” and don’t allow ourselves to be in authentic relationships with others. To say “yes” to life means that we let God direct our way, especially in those down times.

II. Leading from Within- (1 Corinthians 12:7; Ephesians 5:8-11)

a. Everyone follows and everyone leads- It has been said: “Go past ego

toward true self—and you end up not lost in narcissism but returning to the world, bearing more gracefully the responsibilities that come with being human.” (p. 73) Instead of being caught up in our ego, of trying to prove we are worthy and capable, we should be more concerned with being in leadership in regards to the causes we care about.

Leadership is a concept we often resist. But the truth is, in true community, everyone’s vocation is to be a leader. When we live in a close-knit ecosystem called community, everyone follows and everyone leads.

Illus. Tyler has been doing an extra credit project that requires him to watch different movies. The theme of the movies is “a utopia that is not a utopia.” Five movies were chosen by the teacher for him to watch: Logan’s Run; Minority Report; The Truman Show; Pleasantville; and Fahrenheit 451. In each movie, a utopian society was established for the benefit of the people. But in each case, as we watched the movie, we saw that the issue was really, control. The communities were established in a way that was believed to be the best life for all, but in reality, the people were being controlled in their living. Someone else was telling them how they had to live to be happy. Once they discovered this control, they wanted to break free. It wasn’t really a utopia, because in the end they were not happy with their life!

Leadership is not about control. When we try and control others, we are not leading them, but enslaving them. God does not seek to control us, but to lead us to a life that is meaningful, and purposeful, and interactive; a life of love, and joy, and peace.

God has made us creative beings, and given us great abilities to bless one another. As we are told in 1 Corinthians 12:7 by the apostle Paul: “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” When people kill off creativity by creating absolute constraints, then leadership is not happening, and life is not being lived as it should be.

b. Inner Life and Leadership- I hope you see that what is best, and most

important, is that we seek God in our inner lives, and this leads us to develop a deep bond, a deep relationship with God. In this relationship God helps us to discover our giftedness and our passions. We are then to seek to lead others by our passions, not to control, but to work together.

We often fail to see what is important in our world, until someone reminds us of it. Those who have sought out God, have been led to discover the darkness that dwells within them. In understanding this enemy within, we then can let God liberate us from it. This liberation is what fuels our passion, and enables us to lead others in similar ways. As the apostle Paul says, in Ephesians 5:8-11, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light ⁹ (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) ¹⁰ and find out what pleases the Lord. ¹¹ Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.”

Good leadership comes from people who have penetrated their own inner darkness and arrived at the place where they are at one with others; people who can lead the rest of us to a place of “hidden wholeness” because they have been there and know the way. You cannot speak with your life until you understand your life, and this can only happen through this inward spiritual journey.

Often times our insecurity can keep us from leading others. We don’t have the self-worth we need to believe we can lead others. But if we understand that we are ALL made in God’s image, and that God has gifted us ALL, and that God can give us ALL a passion, then we begin to realize that we lead simply by our living. Another issue that can keep us from leading is the thinking that ultimate responsibility for everything rests with us. Of course, if we understand that God has not gifted us to be in total control, but rather shared control, then we can overcome this thinking. Our leadership is simply being the one who initiates the process and keeps the energy going forward.

One last issue is that of chaos. We fear chaos in life. But chaos is actually quite natural. Even what has been created needs to be returned to chaos from time to time. “When a leader fears chaos so as to try and eliminate it, the shadow of death will fall across everything that leader approaches.” Sometimes things must die in its time so that new life can emerge in its place.

III. Overcoming Fear- (Ephesians 5:15-17)

a. Understanding Fear- I believe underlying so many of our problems,

stresses, and concerns is FEAR. Fear is a very powerful and universal emotion.

Ex. I think I’ve lost my keys, my immediate fear is that someone will find them and break into my house. This is even before I KNOW whether I’ve lost them or not. An athlete steps up to the free throw line, or to attempt a putt on the golf course, and fears he will miss it. Consequently, the attempt is made more difficult. We fear we won’t find a job, or get married, or have enough money. And on and on it goes. We can fear so many things.

If we can understand our fear, then it can be the gateway to spiritual growth, and to letting our life speak out for God. Fear is really tied to the desire for pleasure. The opposite of pleasure is pain. When we think we won’t get the pleasure we desire, we believe that what comes in its place is pain. The more we love a person, the more we fear losing them. The more we love life, the more we fear death.

Carl Jung once said that all neuroses were the result of avoiding legitimate suffering. While we cannot control other people’s behavior or the circumstances life gives us, we can decide to not let fear overwhelm our minds. Death will surely come, but that doesn’t mean we have to dwell on it. We can still enjoy life while we have it! We might lose our jobs tomorrow, but all we can do is be the best employee we can be, living for God in and through our work. If we give fear a foothold, it will certainly control us, and keep us from letting our life speak.

b. Living as wise- So what can we do? Let’s go back to our scripture

passage, and read from Ephesians 5:15-17: “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶ making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.”

1. Be careful how you live- First we are told to be careful how

we live. You cannot let your life speak for God if you are unwise in how you live. God did not create us to be carefree and foolish, but rather to live according to the design of this world and our lives. Why do so many people put Christianity down? Because they think so many Christians are hypocrites. They preach one thing but then don’t live it out!! Our lives will not speak for the Lord if we are gossips, or drunkards, or liars, or cheats. NO, we must be loving, and forgiving, and kind, and encouraging. We must live the life Christ has called us to live; the life He lived.

2. Make the most of every opportunity- Second, Paul tells us to

make the most of every opportunity. At the end of each day, that day is done. You cannot get the time back. When you were at work, did you work as though you were working for the Lord? When you were at home with your family, did you give yourself to them as you have committed yourself to doing? Did you make some time for yourself? When the conversation turned to God, did you take advantage of the opportunity to talk about what God is doing in and through your life? Did you make the most of every opportunity for the Lord?

3. Understand what the Lord’s will is- Ultimately, understand-

ing what the Lord’s will for our lives is will help us to live carefully and wisely. God has a will for your life and my life. Last week we talked about letting God unveil His will for your life a little at a time, and resting in the Lord in what you know. The more you seek God, the more you will understand God’s will for your life, and the more you will be able to live it out. In this way we will move from darkness, to light.

Conclusion: We really have a choice in life: we can choose to let the darkness of the world engulf us, and let it bring us down. OR, we can choose to live with joy. As Paul said: “Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS, again I will say, rejoice.” As the saying goes, “See the world with rose colored glasses.” In the Lord we can have a perspective that rises above all the fears, and doubts, and sadness. In the Lord we can lead others to walk with us in the passion we have for life. In the Lord, we can live without fear, because we know that God will make all things good for those who trust the Lord. Let us Seek to live this way, and by doing so LET OUR LIVES SPEAK. Amen.