Light On the Horizon

Brad Sullivan

Easter Sunday, Year A

Sunday, April 20, 2014

St. Mark’s, Bay City, TX

Jeremiah 31:1-6

Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24

Colossians 3:1-4

John 20:1-18 

It has been a wonderful Easter so far, starting last night with the ancient service of the Easter Vigil.  My daughter Ellie was baptized at the service and it was a joyful time all around.  We lit the new fire outside in the courtyard, symbolizing the new light of Jesus' resurrection coming into the world, and Ernie reminded me of another ancient custom of which I was unaware which we apparently used to celebrate here at St. Mark's.  We were preparing for the new fire of Easter, and Ernie asked, "are the kids going to road marshmallows on the fire before the service?"  I said, "Of course they are!"

It was great, the kids had a wonderful time eating S'mores, the acolytes started roasting marshmallows, and I thought, "wait, that's going to get on your robes...oh who cares, enjoy!"  It's been a wonderful celebration of life and new life after the season of Lent and Holy Week in which we're really focused on death.  

I'm so glad we have that time to focus on death, to honor that there is death in our lives, to celebrate that Jesus is with us not only in life and in resurrection, but also in death, but today is all about resurrection.  Jesus was resurrected from the dead, promising us that we will share in his resurrection after our lives have ended, and as the Way, the Truth, and the Life, we follow Jesus' way of resurrection throughout our lives, resurrection following the thousands of deaths that occur in our lives, the failures, disappointments, the broken relationships, etc.

I'm about to sing a song about resurrection from these kids of deaths in our lives.  The story from the song is from a friend of mine whose marriage ended.  I was thinking of two friends whose marriages died, one ended in divorce, and the other ended up staying together.  The one couple, their marriage was dead, absolutely dead and in the tomb; they acknowledged it, said, "we're done."  Not long afterwards, they realized they didn't want their marriage to be dead, and they worked hard and prayed hard, and their marriage was resurrected from the absolute death that it had suffered.

My other friend, his marriage ended in divorce; he wanted it to survive, but it just couldn't happen and so for months his marriage was dead and in the tomb and starting to smell, and he was calling his friends, telling them that he was getting divorced, and one friend said to him, "Wow, a shot to the engine room!  Your life is going up in flames.  This is so exciting my friend!  Your life is never going to be the same."  

That was exactly what my friend needed to hear.  Having sat in the tomb of the death of his marriage for months, he needed to hear words of resurrection, and that's what his friend gave him, and I heard this story and thought, "that's the story I need for this song."  So I asked him, "hey, can I use the story of what your buddy said when you got divorced for this song I'm writing?"  He said, "of course, Brad, there's no copyright on the Holy Spirit."  So, this is song about resurrection.  This is called, "Light On the Horizon."

Light On the Horizon

Words and Music by Brad Sullivan, BMI

Traveling some forgotten road; Light on the horizon comes

I’ll journey on and bear my load; Light on the horizon comes

I’d spent a lifetime worrying,

If this was that or right or wrong, always a fight

Then coming up for air

And down again to wrestle on

I won’t let go, but the blessing was never right,

Or never really there

A man said, “be not afraid.”

“Win or draw you may lose just the same,

There’s far worse, and far less.”

“So my son, let it go.

Remember life is a song,

A song in progress.”

I’ll traveling this forgotten road; Light on the horizon comes

I’ll journey on and bear my load; Light on the horizon comes

Leaning back on the hood of my car,

As the ferry takes me across the bay,

Neither here nor there

Singing songs with my guitar,

Remembering why they call it play,

Music and open air

The job was bad and the hours long,

The money was not worth losing my soul

She said she understood.

“For better or worse, for rich or poor.”

Seems better and rich was far as she would go,

Or far as she could

I’ll traveling this forgotten road; Light on the horizon comes

I’ll journey on and bear my load; Light on the horizon comes

A shot to the engine room; your life is up in flames

Exciting times my friend, you’ll never be the same.

Light on the horizon comes.

Light on the horizon comes.

Light on the horizon comes.

Light on the horizon comes.