September 11, 2016 ~ Fearless Faith – Change Is Hard, But It’s All We Have from John Knox Kirk on Vimeo.
Fearless Faith: Change is Hard, But It’s All We Have.
A sermon preached at The Kirk of Kansas City, Missouri, on September 11, 2016.
The fifth in a sermon series on Facing our Fears through a Life of Faith.
I’m not sure how I could make it through life
without having some good friends.
People who are your people, you know.
The ones who you can be honest with, open with
who you can tell what actually happened when you messed up at work
yes, even pastors do that
those whom can look you in the eye and tell you you’re acting a fool
or, on the other hand, that maybe you’re not
and you might actually have your head screwed on right
and maybe you should stick with it, the other voices notwithstanding.
Your people.
Times without friends are difficult times,
and having close friends is an important factor, scientists tell us,
in our long-term physical and emotional wellbeing.
If we’re lucky, our friends are good people
helping us get through life with strength and with faith and with hope.
I was thinking this week about this reality,
about my closest friends and how important they are to me.
Maybe the unique thing about my particular circle of friends
is how late in life they came to me.
I’ve had friends all my life, don’t get me wrong.
I can look at pictures of childhood birthday parties and
point out the best friends of my younger days
Chris and Topher and Jenny.
I think back about high-school, and college, and even seminary
I look at facebook photo albums of what those people are doing today
and I remember the good people who were my people then
but who now have drifted away,
due to time, or circumstance.
Sometimes life does this.
If you’re the sort of person who has been seamlessly close with your best friend
from elementary school, I marvel at that sort of gift.
For my part, I wonder how Greg is doing these days,
divorced and remarried now, I hear,
with a daughter, living on the East Coast
I’ve not spoken with him in 15 years.
or what about Ray,
who finally moved away from Saint Louis and now lives somewhere
in Pennsylvania, I think.
I see them from time to time on social media
but not others, those who have all-but disappeared
and there are some who have passed away.
And I miss them, these friends, these good people
even as I thank God for the times we were close
where they helped me and I helped them navigate life better.
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I’m not sure how I could make it through life
without having some good friends. [Read more…]
