Passion '08

Where do I even begin to tell about this weekend? This is my fourth Passion event and everyone has been absoluetly amazing but because of the journey that the Lord and I have been on lately it was even more awesome. First of all, just being in that type of worship is indescribable . There was such a spirit there of freedom and sincerity. The worship leaders from Passion have been so gifted by God to completely remove themselves from the equation and give students ( and student pastors) the ability to seek the face of God through music. The Lord speaks through many of the lyrics directly to my heart. At times, I had to stop singing and just listen because it was so overwhelmingly clear and I wanted to hear so perfectly what the Lord was sharing with me. Friday night Chris Tomlin led worship and as he sang the song about how God can move the mountains and then the next line swept all over me "My God is mighty to save, He is mighty to save". So many times Jeremy and I worry about the teens and think about what it will take to get them to desire this relationship with Christ, but its not a worry. My GOD is MIGHTY to save! He is mighty to reach out to wherever they are and save them whatever is surrounding them! Praise the Lord!
Saturday afternoon was a huge time of healing in my life as well. The Lord really spoke to me that sometimes I carry guilt and hurt that is not mine to carry. There are things that we have no control over. Things that happen in our lives that we cannot fix or overcome. And the best part is I DON'T HAVE TO. The Lord knows my heart, he knows my concerns, he knows when bad things happen but that doesn't mean that I have to feel guilt over them. Just because it is bad doesn't mean that I made it bad. The world around us is fallen. Bad things happen and we cannot control them. The image that Louie gave is for us to kneel at the feet of the cross, with all the hurt and shame and guilt and look into the eyes of a Savior who has been on the cross and says to us simply " I know". To think that being hurt and crushed is something that Jesus identifies with and simply wants to love us through is so healing. To think that he smiles on us because we have dedicated our lives to him is such a sweet truth over me. What a blessing!
The last thing I want to leave with is the encouragement I received from one of the songs played called God of this City. It simply says, "You're the God of this City, You're the Lord of these people...and there is no one like our God!" The Lord painted a picture of Jasper in my mind with such a dark cloud surrounding it and just the beginnings of cracks of light shining through. The Lord has placed us here for a reason. Because He is God of this city and we have been sent here to declare his fame and his renown! All glory to God!