Possible ECM (Episcopal Campus Ministry) Sermon
College is many things. It is the beginning of the next level of education, a stepping-stone to bigger and better things, and it is the start of independence. A chance to break the ties that bind. A chance to start life without parents without being told what to do, what to wear, or what to believe.
As we sever these ties from our parents we enter into defining our own identity, separate from the identity given to us by our parents. There’s nobody to tell us to go to class, or even to clean our room. For all intents and purposes we are on our own. It is up to us to take control and become the person we want to be. But in this time, in this world, in this society we can get lost and confused. We can take 1 step forward and 3 steps back. We can lose sight of what’s really important and of who we really are. In the lesson today the Lord says “I have summoned you by name; you are mine”. He wasn’t just talking to the people of Israel. He is also talking to us, today, in this time, in this room right now. This is what we tend to lose sight of. The thing that we should hang on to the most is what we lose most often. God does not ask us to be perfect, He does not force us to be someone we’re not, He asks us to be His. To remember that no matter what happens He is with us always, because we are His. So I ask you tonight as you go home, and you worry about what test comes up tomorrow, or if all your work is done let all those cares and worries drift away and think about who you are.
Are you who your parents wanted you to be?
Are you who you want to be?
But most importantly are you who God wants you to be?
Are you His?
As we sever these ties from our parents we enter into defining our own identity, separate from the identity given to us by our parents. There’s nobody to tell us to go to class, or even to clean our room. For all intents and purposes we are on our own. It is up to us to take control and become the person we want to be. But in this time, in this world, in this society we can get lost and confused. We can take 1 step forward and 3 steps back. We can lose sight of what’s really important and of who we really are. In the lesson today the Lord says “I have summoned you by name; you are mine”. He wasn’t just talking to the people of Israel. He is also talking to us, today, in this time, in this room right now. This is what we tend to lose sight of. The thing that we should hang on to the most is what we lose most often. God does not ask us to be perfect, He does not force us to be someone we’re not, He asks us to be His. To remember that no matter what happens He is with us always, because we are His. So I ask you tonight as you go home, and you worry about what test comes up tomorrow, or if all your work is done let all those cares and worries drift away and think about who you are.
Are you who your parents wanted you to be?
Are you who you want to be?
But most importantly are you who God wants you to be?
Are you His?