“I will trust the promise. You will carry me safe to shore…”

Of the songs at the 2019 Presbyterian Youth Triennium,⁴ Rend Collective’s “My Lighthouse”⁵ was a favorite. As soon as those first bars of the song were played, the auditorium roared and came alive energized by, I believe, the Holy Spirit. The crowd of mostly young, high school age people burst into song, their hands raised high, the choreography performed harmoniously, their voices proclaiming, “I will trust the promise. You will carry me safe to shore…” I was moved to tears more than once, blessed by the message their young voices sang with conviction and gusto.

Zechariah’s canticle in Luke 1 had such conviction. Having lost his voice for his initial disbelief, Zechariah regains it just in time to praise God for God’s mercy and to pronounce a blessing, a prophecy, to his son that would set the tone for John’s life and ministry. While the neighbors and relatives gossiped about the miraculous circumstances of John’s birth—circumstances that amazed as much as frightened them—they also worried, wondering, “What then will this child become?” (v. 66). Zechariah, filled with the Holy Spirit and knowing his son would become the “prophet of the Most High,” (v. 76) spoke words of vision to a newborn that grew strong in spirit and helped lay the foundation into the way of peace. In building God’s kin-dom, let us remember there is power in the words that we speak, to anyone, but especially to our young ones as we lay the foundation for their spiritual homes.

“Your great love will lead me through. You are the peace in my troubled sea…"⁶ thousands of young Presbyterians sang these words that summer at the Elliot Music Hall.⁷ Claiming those words for their lives, their song also blessed all who heard and joined them. May we cast this vision of kin-dom and bless others with words and acts of love, hope, and mercy. May these words and acts strengthen our collective spirits and guide us all into the way of peace—guide us all home.

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4     The Presbyterian Youth Triennium is a triennial gathering for high schoolers, youth leaders, and young adults sponsored by the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the Cumberland Presbyterian Churches.
5      “My Lighthouse” © Rend Collective/ Integrity Music. youtube.com watch?v=reAlJKv7ptU.
6     “My Lighthouse” by Rend Collective.
7     The Elliot Hall of Music is on the campus of Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana. 

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