20260111 Radical Trust¶

Welcome¶

Good morning, my name is Clifton Bartholomew, and I am a local preacher here at UMC.

It is always so good to share with you all. Welcome again to any visitors and to all our online guests as well.

I always like to say before I preach that I am a teacher by training and so I am very used to being interrupted. If anyone is brave enough to raise their hand and ask a question or give an input, it is warmly welcomed.

Introduction¶

Jab 1 - The Weight We Carry¶

A thought that has been sitting with me recently is how seriously we take ourselves. Many of us live as if things depend on us far more than they actually do—as if stepping back, even briefly, would cause everything to unravel.

I’ll never forget my interview when I joined Reddam. By the end of it, things were going well: we shared values, they were happy with my experience, and I felt aligned with their philosophy of education. But there was one thing I couldn’t let go of—the loyalty I felt to my previous school. I told Catherine how embedded I was in their systems and how much I had given to school. I said that I was nervous that if I left that they would really struggle without me.

She looked me straight in the eye and said, “We are all replaceable, my dear.”

It hit me right in the ego.

But she was right. That experience exposed something deeper that happens in life: We carry far more weight than we should. We live as if it is our job to keep everything together; in work, in our families, at church, they are all relying on me and if I don’t stay on top of it all, things will fall apart. And so life becomes a constant state of bracing.

As a result, we become hyper-vigilant. Every event takes on enormous significance. Every decision must be right. Every outcome must mean something. Our focus narrows drastically, we can only see the trees and miss the forest entirely.

Jab 2 - The Farmer and His Son¶

There’s a story I love because it breaks my brain when I read it. It’s the story of a farmer and his son.

An old farmer who had worked his crops for many years set his aging horse free to pasture. Upon hearing the news, his neighbours said, "Such bad luck, to lose your only horse." "Is that so?" the farmer replied.

The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. "How wonderful, you are so lucky that your horse brought friends" the neighbours exclaimed. "Is that so?" replied the old man.

The following day, the farmer's son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbours again came to offer their sympathy on how much bad luck this was. "Is that so?" answered the farmer.

The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son's leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbours congratulated the farmer on how lucky he was that things had turned out the way they did. "Is that so?" said the farmer.

And then, of course, the young village men were killed in the war and the farmer's son, limp and all, was the only able bodied man remaining. The farmer and his son prospered. When his neighbors praised his fortune and how lucky he was, well, you know how the farmer replied. "Is that so?".

The farmer’s response isn't just a clever trick to stay calm or a cynical way to avoid disappointment. It is a symptom of Radical Trust. Notice—the farmer isn’t passive. He still farms. The son still rides. Life still happens. Radical Trust isn’t withdrawal from life; it’s freedom from having to control its meaning.

Jab 3 - Radical Trust¶

Life can feel unbearable if we believe that we are alone in trying to hold it all together. Life is difficult enough as it is.

I love the simple to hear but difficult to implement idea that Jesus preaches about in the sermon on the mount in Matthew 6.25-34 where Jesus says in verses 25-27:

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

Jesus isn’t shaming us for worrying. He’s reminding us that worry isn’t a power source. This really feels like what the farmer is doing when saying "Is that so?". There a deeper trust that the Divine hand is in his life; that he is not the one holding it all together.

This is something that is a lot easier said than done. It is a lot easier to trust God when things are going well and it is lot harder to trust when things are going poorly.

But that is what Radical Trust in God is. It is the ability to keep your hands open when the horse runs away and when it returns with three more.

Radical Trust isn’t trusting God for a good outcome; it’s trusting God in every outcome.

Wouldn't it be so freeing to be able to live like this?

Right Hook - Moving Towards Radical Trust¶

This weeks prescribed reading is about the Baptism of Jesus which I find quite fitting since last weekend we baptised my daughter Alexandra (its 6 months and I still feel giddy when I can say my daughter).

Let us look to the reading to see what we can learn about how to move closer into Radical Trust.

Explanation¶

Teaching Point 1 - The Identity of Delight¶

The first thing that we can take from both readings is that of our identity in God. We have an identity of delight. In the Matthew reading it’s the familiar story of Jesus being baptized by John. The thing that always strikes me about this passage is that this happens before Jesus has performed a single miracle, before he has preached the Sermon on the Mount, before he has healed a single leper or stood up to a single Pharisee. Before any ounce of performance in his ministry, the heavens open and the Father speaks: "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

And in Isaiah "Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight".

This is something I have a deeper appreciation for only after living with my daughter for 6 months. The feeling of: "She is my daughter, whom I love; with her I am well pleased", feels natural as a parental attitude toward your child. And if it is something we do naturally, how much more does God feel this way toward us.

Radical Trust begins by knowing that our true identity isn't earned; it is received through Grace. "Well pleased" is our starting line, not our finish line. The Good News isn't a call to work harder to keep it all together. It is an invitation to be "Delighted In" before you have even begun. Before you fixed the problem, before you saved the day, before you even got out of bed, the Creator looked at you and was satisfied.

Teaching Point 2 - The Gentle Strength¶

The second thing that we can take from the reading is the idea of Gentle Strength or holding on lightly. In the Isaiah passage he describes the "Servant" as someone who "will not shout or cry out", who won't "break a bruised reed" or "snuff out a smouldering wick."

Yet "he will bring justice to the nations", he will "open eyes that are blind" and "release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness."

The world tells us power looks loud, urgent, and forceful. And when we feel we are the only ones holding the line, it makes us tense and hypervigilant because we think the stability of our world depends on our hustle. Isaiah tells us God’s power looks gentle, patient, and unafraid. Radical Trust shows us that true power—Kingdom power—is quiet. It is the strength of a person who knows they aren't the ones doing the upholding, God is.

Teaching Point 3 - The Spirit as the Power Source¶

The last thing that we can take from the reading is that in both Matthew and Isaiah it emphasizes that the Spirit is "resting" or being "put" upon the person. In Matthew, the Spirit descends like a dove. In Isaiah, God says, "I will put my Spirit on him."

The "weight" of the mission is shifted from human shoulders to the Spirit of God.

Think about the difference between a "system" and a "Spirit." A system is something we build, maintain, and fix. If the system breaks, it’s on us. But a Spirit is something that sustains us. The reason we feel like things will unravel if we step back—or that my previous school would collapse without me—is that we are relying on our own "systems" rather than the "Spirit" that sustains the universe. Radical Trust is the recognition that the same Spirit that hovered over the waters at creation is the one hovering over your life right now.

Application¶

So what can we do to move more into this idea of Radical Trust? Where might God be inviting you into this posture this week?

Maybe it’s a situation where the horse has just run away. Maybe it’s a place where things seem good—and you’re afraid they won’t last. What weight are you carrying alone? How are you trying to hold it all together by yourself?

To practice moving towards this kind of trust, may I suggest three practices:

Action 1: Name it, don't fix it¶

We often don't realize how much we are "bracing" until our shoulders are up to our ears. This week, practice naming the weight without trying to "force" a positive spin on it, or jump straight to catastrophe.

Radical trust is not optimism; it is surrender. Radical trust is not apathy; it is surrender.

Throughout the day, ask yourself: "What am I trying to hold together right now?"

Whether it’s a project at work, a child’s behaviour, or a health scare, don't try to fix it or pray it away immediately. Just name it: "I am carrying the weight of [X] as if it all depends on me." Naming it is the first step in realizing that the "system" isn't yours to maintain alone.

Action 2: Unclench your fists¶

Radical Trust isn't just a mental state; it’s a physical one. Often, we don't realize we are "bracing" until our bodies tell us.

Several times a day—perhaps when you sit down at your desk, get into your car, or pick up your child—check your hands. Are they balled up? Are your shoulders near your ears? Physically open your palms on your lap. This simple, open posture is a physical prayer that says, "I am not holding the world together right now. I am receiving the life God is giving me."

The posture of Kingdom power is the Gentle Strength of a person who knows they aren't the ones doing the upholding, God is.

Action 3: Plug in¶

Finally, we have to shift from our own "system" to God’s "Spirit." If you don't plug into the source of your identity, you will inevitably default back to hyper-vigilance.

Pray, pray, pray. Be quiet. Plug into the source. Be still. Step away. We must learn to act from approval, not for approval. When we plug into the power of the Spirit, we encounter a "peace that surpasses all understanding"; the weight of the mission shifts from your shoulders to the One who sustains the universe.

Benediction¶

As you go into this week, remember: You are not a system to be managed; you are a child to be loved. You are not the one holding the line; you are the one being upheld.

May you have the courage to let the horse run, the peace to let the son heal, and the radical trust to know that in every outcome, the Spirit is hovering over your life.

One Liner¶

Radical Trust isn’t trusting God for a good outcome; it’s trusting God in every outcome.