July 24, 2005 Zumbro Lutheran Church, Rochester, MN

Pastor Gary E. Benson

1 Kings 3:5-12; Romans 8:26-39; Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

 

                              Bearing the Burdens – Yet Claiming the Treasure!

 

How many times have you heard it said, “Life is not about the destination, it is about the journey.”?  I have heard that said many times; I have repeated it myself. Why? Because often times we can become so emotionally, physically, spiritually, economically bound to some distant date, place, or time that we do not value and live today for the gift and potential it holds. Furthermore, mindful that we share the gift of life today, that no one is promised tomorrow, indeed the truth rings clear, “Life is not only about the destination, it is most specifically about the journey.”

 

I thought much about that a couple of weeks ago, as I traveled with our group to Holden Village. Thirty-five hundred miles on the seat of a motorcycle gives many hours to think about journeys, destinations, life, faith, family, and future.

 

In that regard, while at Holden most of those in our group took a hike (a journey if you will) four miles up a mountain path to Hart Lake. Along the way we talked, laughed, went over some easy terrain, and other more difficult. Finally, however, arriving at the shores of Hart Lake, excited to be there, we took out our cameras, but we were also most anxious to get in our packs to grab onto our trail lunch.

 

As I was sitting on the shore of this beautiful mountain lake, suddenly one of our members said, “WHO DID THIS?”  Looking over at Jerry, there he was pulling from his backpack three stones, and they were not small.  Instantly the accusing finger was being pointed at those who might have played such a trick.  No one ‘fessed up to “the incident,” until finally, days later, we found out no one from the group had given Jerry this extra burden of stones to carry. He had done it to himself; he played a trick on the group – he had done a good job. He fooled everyone! 

 

I thought about that incident often, and I knew there was a sermon in that little episode someplace, and isn’t it true? Oftentimes we face/bear difficulties, heavy burdens (stones), which because of circumstances we may hesitate or fail to admit/acknowledge where the difficulties have come from. Yet we simply bear the burden. In the meantime others (as in Job’s case in the Old Testament) try to point a finger of accusation, or give answers, consolation, instruction, or advice regarding such weight and burden and how to face and/or deal with it. Finally, however, when we are honest with our circumstance and situation, we know (in spite of, or in light of others) it is our life, our stone, our burden, our journey to deal with. But is that the end of the story for the people of God?  I don’t think so.

 

Now in the midst of our life journey, let’s be mindful of words which, as the People of God, ought to grip our soul every day and in all circumstances.  Words of assurance, conviction of faith, words of the Apostle Paul: “Who will separate us from the love of Christ?” Will (stones of) hardship, or distress, or persecution?  Will (stones of) cancer, disease, broken relationships, addictions, loneliness, separate us from the love of God? The good news is, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who love us.”  When the bottom has fallen out, when we are at the end of our road, when questions are many and answers few, when we wonder, “God, where are you?” it is then let us affirm, “God has not abandoned us, God is here, with us and within us – NOTHING can separate us from the love of God.”  No stone, no burden, no hurt or heartache breaks the bond that our God has promised – “nothing can separate us from the love of God.”  What a gift of grace – and, yes, we can know such in our head, but as is often said, “The greatest distance is moving from the head to the heart/ from the head to the soul of our being.”  Indeed, the distance between knowing and admitting/confessing can be a long hike.

 

In that regard, I think of the Old Testament Lesson – Solomon, who had opportunity to ask God for anything that he desired, he didn’t ask for long life, riches, or the life of his enemies, or to have life’s burdens erased. He asked for the gift of discernment – the ability and gift to make proper, right, and faithful choices amidst the opportunities and challenges, the burdens and blessings of life.

 

Recall the book years ago by Harold Kushner When Bad Things Happen to Good People. A main point of the book was not to answer the unanswerable question, “Why bad things happen,” but “When bad things occur, how we respond is key.”  The point being, it isn’t that stone/burden that defines our future, it is what we do with it.  How we discern our future through the darkness, in light of the stones, defines our future. To that end I remember clearly some 45 years ago, when I was taken out of elementary school class, told by my aunt that my father had died. When I got home, the first words of my mother were not, “Gary, what are we going to do?” rather “God will not let us go!”  Those six words would be a sermon for life – a lightening rod of hope. Indeed, “nothing can separate us from the love of God.” However, and it is a giant “however,” don’t we, as did Solomon, need to continually pray for that gift of discernment, the ability, the faith, the desire to seek/choose the light/strength of God’s grace as stones, burdens, difficult choices, complicate our journey?

 

That is to say, amidst all of the burdens/complexities which are a part of the human condition, the good news is God desires to gift us with a treasure, God’s promises, power, direction, and hopefulness to discern/know that “through it all “nothing can separate us from the love of God.” There are no stones, no cross or condition of life that can separate us from God’s claim on us. As we share in the baptismal service, “We have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the Cross of Christ forever.”

 

Indeed, stones may weigh heavy, but they need not define the entirety of our journey, our path, our future. May each of us be given the “gift of discernment” to claim and name our burden, but also to claim and treasure even more so (the Word of God/Bible) (stone in one hand, Bible in the other) the promises that “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Jesus Christ our Lord.”  Indeed, stones of burden are real, yet the words and promises of God are the building blocks for healing and hopefulness.

 

                             BEAR THE BURDEN --- CLAIM THE TREASURE

 

   “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Christ who loves us!”