Rev. Kenneth M. Locke, Interim Pastor
Orchard Park Presbyterian Church; Carmel, IN
September 21, 2025; Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost
I know I’ve mentioned before when I was about 40, I took up racing. I ran several half-marathons and a handful of marathons until I developed arthritis in my foot. That ended my racing days.
When I started racing, I had two big surprises. Thow things that never entered my mind when I was just casually running through my neighborhood.
My first surprise was you can’t turn your mind off in a race. You have to pay attention. At the start, you’re jammed in like sardines and you don’t want to trip each other. As you spread out, you find yourself stuck behind packs of runners going slower than you. When that happens, you have to reach down for the BCD. Be bold, be creative, be decisive.
Be Bold. Don’t just hang back and wait. Look for a way through. Move up and breathe down their necks, say ‘coming through’ until they let you by. Be bold.
Be Creative. Look for ways around them. If you’re coming to a curve and they’re sticking to the middle of the road, aim for the inside of the curve and shoot past. Be creative.
Be Decisive. Once you commit to a strategy, do it. Pull out all the stops and muscle your way through. Let the others know you’re not backing down. Be decisive.
You can’t run a race on autopilot. You have to be bold, creative, and decisive.
The other thing that surprised me about running races was all the people showing up with signs of encouragement. All kinds of signs. Some directed towards individuals. Some rather rude. And some were just funny.
My favorite was ‘Run Like You Stole Something.’ I like that. Run with a purpose. This is serious. Give it all you’ve got. And while you’re running be bold, be creative, be decisive.
A manager, a steward, was stealing from his employer. The employer found out and was furious. “Clean out your office. You’re fired.” The steward was scared. “What am I going to do?” He took action: he was bold, creative, decisive.
“How much do you owe my master?” “Nine hundred gallons of olive oil.” “Here’s your bill. Quick, change it to 450.” “How much do you owe my master?” “A thousand bushels of wheat.” “Here’s your bill. Quick, change it to 800.”
The steward was bold. He didn’t try getting his job back. He doubled-down on the way he was already going.
He was creative. ‘Quick, change your bill. And remember me when I’m unemployed.’
And he was decisive. He didn’t waste any time.
My friends, hear me. Please don’t steal anything. “Pastor Ken told us to steal!” No! Not what I’m saying. But can we approach our faith like we stole something? Can we be bold, creative and decisive Christians, acting with zeal, determination, and purpose?
Instead of reading the same old devotions we’ve been reading every morning for years, can we try something new? We’re going to be sharing some special Advent devotionals this year. Can we make the bold decision to use those devotionals as well?
Commitment Sunday, pledge Sunday, is coming up. Can we pursue our pledge with the energy and determination of a thief trying not to get caught? Instead of just filling out the same old card and pledging the same old amount, can we also commit to volunteering? Can we be creative about it? Can we volunteer to help decorate our church for Advent? Not just, ‘Let me know if you need me.’ Instead let’s say, ‘I want to help with this. Tell me when and where to show up!’ Or walk up to a committee chair and say, ‘Tell me when your next meeting is. I want to be part of this ministry.’ Be bold, be creative, be decisive. Do it with energy, zest, zeal.
Think about Jesus and our salvation for a moment. Think about Jesus boldly standing in the Garden of Gethsemane, waiting to be arrested. Think about Jesus creatively offering himself as the sacrificial lamb. Think about him decisively seeing it through, all the way to cross, the grave, and beyond.
What did Jesus do? He stole something. Jesus stole our souls from hell. Jesus stole our souls from hell.
Beloved – Christianity is too important for autopilot. Let’s be good stewards: growing in faith, growing in ministry, growing as a church by being bold, creative, and decisive. Like we stole something. Like we stole something. Amen.
