Saying goodbye is never an easy thing, not even if the leave taking is for a happy reason. For both the ones being left and the ones leaving, the future is uncertain and there are mixed emotions. But the thing to help us all through such transitions is trusting the Lord and following where He leads.
Today is the last day, at least for a while, that we will be blessed with the incredible gifts that Kevin has brought to this church as Music Director. But it is so much more than that. Kevin’s gifts go far beyond simply directing and playing music. He has been my right hand on more than one occasion, offering ideas, keeping me out of musical trouble, finding exactly the right pieces to go with what I actually ended up preaching on when I’ve seemed to change direction a little from the plans set out, creating concerts, improving the sound system, keeping an eye on the look of things as well as the sound, offering his own voice and working far more hours than he was actually paid. And that doesn’t begin to touch on his composing songs to go with Scriptures or serving on Session or the myriad of other things he has done to help us. And we need to make sure we don’t overlook the gifts and talents that he brought to us when he brought us April, as well. Her musical talents, her willingness to pitch in, her humor and infectious enthusiasm – all without any compensation but the love of a congregation. She has folded more bulletins than anyone knows, labeled offering envelope boxes, helped with VBS, participated on the Music and Worship Committee, changed the sign, and done countless other Smarmy the Dwarf magic behind the scenes. It is so hard to let them both go and we would selfishly hold on if we could.
But holding on is not what we are called to do any more than staying here is what they are called to do. We need to open our hands and let these amazing young people forge ahead into the life and call God has placed on them. We need to not be like Mary trying to hold onto Jesus in the Garden. We need to not interfere with what God has planned for them and for us.
Our first Scripture reading today is a reminder that we need to listen to the call of God, recognize His voice, and be willing to go as He directs. We all asked God for Kevin and April to be able to stay, but God’s clear response was to take them all the way to California to start their new life as a married couple and to continue in the path He has set before them. They were far more willing to listen than any of us, myself included. When Kevin and April came back from their visit to check out the school, Kevin told me that he’d been reluctant at first, but was completely convinced after having gone out there – as they made the decision they even got a sign from God, a rainbow. Kevin’s openness and awareness just demonstrated his willingness to go where He is called. He has heard God’s voice and has answered, as did Samuel, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” Kevin not only listened to God’s call, but has altered his own plans and trusted the Lord’s guidance. He leaves a familiar place with lifelong friends and close family along with gainful employment to go to a place the Lord has shown him, just as so many did before. Kevin and April are following where they have been led without knowing the future, putting them in the company of such Biblical greats as Abraham, Moses, Joseph, all the prophets, the disciples, and Paul, to name a few. The Lord took care of all those who did as He commanded, and He will take care of Kevin and April, too, so we need not worry about them. The Lord promises His care in our second reading from Psalm 139. Psalm 139 promises that God will go with His servants where ever they go. God knows all His children, each move they make, each place they go, each thought they have. God’s hand is on His servants and He knows everything He has planned from beginning to end.
No servant of the Lord can go so far as to be lost. From the heavens to the earth to the depths of Sheol (the dark place) God is with His servants. From the dawn to the far side of the sea or of the country, God’s hand will guide. Even darkness cannot separate God’s servants from Him for darkness is like day to Him. So Kevin and April, you can run, but you cannot hide. And what’s more, you don’t want to, for you know the Lord’s influence and care for your lives. And you, perhaps more than we, know that God’s care extends to all of us you are leaving behind. You know we mourn your loss, but you, perhaps more than most since you’ve left before, know that we will survive and even flourish. You know we will be keeping you in our thoughts and prayers, but I know you will be keeping all of us in your prayers, as well.
I cannot pretend to know what the future holds for you. Prophecy is not one of the spiritual gifts God has given me. But I can promise you this: God’s Word always has been, is now, and always will be true. God knows your needs and will take care of you. He has known you both since He knit you together in your mothers’ wombs. Nothing of you has ever or will ever be hidden from Him. He already knows the plan for your lives and, though it seems impossible for us to believe, you are even more precious to Him than to any of us. He loved you both first and loves you best.
God has brought you together and has guided you to this point, this great change that goes far beyond relocating. He has been the driving force creating one from two, and He alone knows what the future holds for you. In His infinite wisdom, He has taken you from the comfort of your family and familiar surroundings, causing you to start the new life you will have as a married couple reliant on Him and on each other. He has dictated that you will make discoveries together not only about being married, which you will soon be, but also about the place He has called you. Since the beginning, God has sent people out in twos – from the Garden of Eden, when the outgoing was sad, to the sending of the disciples to preach the Good News when the sending was glad, God has sent people in pairs. And so now He sends you out from your home and your church and your family, but He does not send you alone. Our love goes with you, but more than that, the Lord Himself goes with you.
But the Lord stays here with us as well and He will take care of those you leave behind. You need not worry about us, though I hope you will think of us with fondness. Start your new life with joy and excitement. Send back stories, even as the disciples did, of your adventures. When you have the chance, come back and visit and know that you will always have a home here if God directs you back.
As for those of us who must stand at the edge of the community and watch you go, know that we will be okay. The same God who watches over Kevin and April, who has dictated that this is their time to go out, is also watching over us. His plans are never just for one, but are connected like the individual strands of a spider’s web. His plans for Kevin and April to start anew are also His plans for us to start something new. He has blessed us with others who have the ability to step up and fill at least some of the spaces Kevin and April have occupied. Though we know from experience there is only one Kevin, God has given us other talented musicians whose passions for leading have been rekindled and inflamed by the leadership Kevin has given over the last two years. Though Kevin’s unique insight and perspective and dedication brought a uniquely blessed perspective to church leadership on the Session, his legacy of energy and creativity and passion for the Lord will continue to bless us into the future. Though we will deeply miss the beauty of the love that Kevin and April have shared with us, their joy and zest for life that grows exponentially when they are together, God has already planned other reasons, other great loves for us to celebrate together.
The nature of life is that young ones grow up, a man leaves his home and becomes united with his wife and the two become one and travel on together. God has ordained that since the beginning and we must not stand in the way. Many of us have done that, many other will do that someday – usually much too soon for the family’s comfort. But it is part of the plan God set in motion and it will all work out as He has ordained.
As we try to find a way to let go, we need to also remember that we still have Kingdom work to do here. Some workers now go forth to new fields, to a new area of harvest, but there is more than enough ripening right here for us to harvest. We must rejoice with Kevin and April in their new life and be open to where God is leading us. We need to take seriously that God speaks through the young and that we are to learn from them that our response must always, always be, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” Just as Kevin and April cannot go so far that God cannot find them and go with them, neither can we. What is true for them is also true for us: We can run, but we cannot hide.
It is a time to mourn the loss of the close proximity of these wonderful and faithful young people, but it is also a time to rejoice in their happiness and pray for their future. It is a time to thank God for the blessing He gave us in sending them to be with us for a time and to make ready for what God has planned next. He knows all our needs, He knows all our thoughts and prayers, He knows His plans for all of us. We must all trust in Him to lead the way. And amen.