Tim Krohn has been at the heart of LOL/LCM for nearly a decade as a Peer Minister, the Campus Ministry Coordinator
and currently, Director of Music Ministries.
Grace and Peace to you from the One who IS, who Was, and who is to come.
It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost ten years since I first walked through these doors as an eager young freshman, having no idea of what the ensuing decade would have in store for me. What a journey it has been to this point: Pursuing an undergraduate degree in Trumpet Performance, taking “a year off” that turned into three, and then getting the crazy idea to get two more degrees in three years.
I had no idea ten years ago that I would spend three years of my mid-twenties living in a church, working in campus ministry and nearly getting a noise violation on my birthday for singing “A Mighty Fortress is our God” from the garage roof of a church…… ok, maybe there was a bit more to the story than that……
I had no idea ten years ago that I would hold a masters in band conducting, have the opportunity to work with world class teachers, and be applying to be a high school instrumental music teacher.
I had no idea ten years ago that I would meet some of the most remarkable and inspiring people I have ever known, and certainly I had no idea that I would have to say goodbye to some of these very same people whose lives ended in ways that seemed unfairly premature.
Through all of the twists and turns, I would not be truthful if I told you that I had any idea of what my journey had in store for me. In fact, there were many moments where it seemed that the farther I went down a particular path the farther away I got from a sense of groundedness, a sense of identity, and at times even a sense of belongingness.
During these moments of insecurity and questioning, particularly in the past few months, I was continually reminded of the final verse of the sending hymn that we sang during the season of Lent:
I fear in the darkness and the doubt of my journey
But courage will come with the sound of your steps by my side.
And with all of the family you saved by your love
We’ll sing to your dawn at the end of our journey.
This hymn certainly grew and evolved with me as my understanding of God has been questioned, explored, and affirmed throughout these past few months. I first painfully sang this hymn at the close of a dear friend’s memorial service in January and as we traveled the road with Christ through Lent, the Love and Light of Christ that Ben (Larson) had so freely shared with all of us grew and blossomed with my own understanding of Christ’s love for us. And as I read our Gospel lesson for today, this hymn verse began to take on new meanings for me as one who is journeying and grappling with change, uncertainty, and attempting to meet new challenges. It is this reflective quality of this simple hymn that I hope will be meaningful to you, on your journeys as well:
I fear in the darkness and the doubt of my journey
The verse begins with two very, important words not to overlook: I fear. Not, you fear, we fear, he fears, she fears, but I FEAR. Singular. Alone. We feel that somehow, in our most vulnerable moments, we are alone. We are cut off from others and at times we feel that we are separated even from God. It is from this aloneness, this brokenness in our relationship with God and with one another, that we provide a space for fear to enter in. The world suddenly feels too large to make a difference, the task too insurmountable, the mountain too high, the road too long. We begin to doubt ourselves, our abilities, our intuitions, and wonder if we can survive the journey, finish what we’ve started, or whether we are even on the right path at all. But amidst our self doubt, our second guesses, our fear of the unknown and of being alone, GOD ENTERS IN. GOODNESS IS STRONGER THAN EVIL.
But courage will come with the sound of your steps by my side.
God does not come to us by our invitation, or by obligation, or by our own initiation. God comes to us, completely independent of who we are, what we do, or where we are going through the grace of Jesus Christ, because he LOVES US. God doesn’t love only you, or me, the saints, the sinners, Buckeyes, or Wolverines, God walks with each of us, accompanies us in our journey, in those moments that we feel most alone, those moments where we are most vulnerable, those moments that we fear the most. It is through God’s Love that we are renewed in Christ and are affirmed as children of God. It is through Love that we enter into communion with one another, it is where we find God. If God is present in Love, then the absence of (or the perceived absence of God) is where fear is present. It is through the Light and Love of Christ that darkness is dispelled and we are uplifted from our own fears to make a difference, to complete our goals, to climb the mountain, and to forge new paths. LIGHT IS STRONGER THAN DARKNESS
And with all of the family you saved by your love
It is through God, through LOVE, that we are able to enter into communion with one another. It is where we emerge from our darkness of fear and enter into the light of Christ who shines in each of us. We move from the singular “I” to “we”; from journeying alone to journeying “with.” For where LOVE resides, there also does God, and it is through Christ that we are joined together as children of God, as the Body of Christ.
It is through love that Christ meets us. It is through LOVE that the Holy Spirit works through us. It is through LOVE that we see Christ in others. LOVE is the vehicle that overcomes all things. LOVE IS STRONGER THAN HATE.
Therefore, it is Christ who calls us to share this Love with one another, this knowledge of God, this sense of communion with one another.
“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.”
Just as Christ has loved us, we, the body of Christ, should love one another. Just as the body of Christ has many parts, we have many ways of being beacons of Light to one another. There are those who show their love through doing, those who show their love by making, those who show their love by being present and listening. Whatever we do, and however we show it, we are all called to be Christ to one another, to Love one another, to be present in one another, through Christ, so that we may no longer experience the fear of being alone in darkness and that we may walk in accompaniment with God. A love that is so powerful that it “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” As our gathering hymn proclaimed earlier: “We are called to act with Justice, we are called to love tenderly, we are called to serve one another, to walk humbly with God.”
God indeed showed to us that his love for us is greater then anything else on this earth, even greater then death. As we celebrate Christ’s death and resurrection this Easter season we remember that LIFE IS STRONGER THAN DEATH
“See the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them as their God;
They will be his peoples,
And God himself will be with them:
He will wipe every tear from their eyes
Death will be no more:
Mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
For the first things have passed away.”
As someone standing before you today, supported DEEPLY by friends that I consider family and family that I consider close friends, I feel richly and wholly loved…. and it is through this love that you have generously shared with me and with one another that I have been able to know Christ, to LOVE Christ, and to be inspired to reflect Christ’s love, your love, to others throughout our journeys.
Victory is ours through God who loves us. Amen
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