Much has happened this last week. We finally had our first Sunday service in our new Church facility. It was super exciting. The morning was filled with all kinds of people coming in and looking in all of the classes. Looking at the new rooms that were built, the pictures that had been painted on all of the walls in the children's classrooms. Noticing all of the flooring and the updates that have been made to our new building. Then the service started and it felt like the excitement just kept on coming. I was really surprised that almost everyone was not just on time, but a little early. There was also several new faces in the crowd. Which just added to the excitement of the day. The music started, and the band and tech guys had put together a little video to go with a song the band did. The video chronicled the construction that has been going on over the last several months. The end of the song was met with much applause that seemed to just happen, not like at other times when one person starts it and then other join in. After the welcome was over and the band finished it's next song, the people clapped again, and again it was the kind of applause that everyone starts, starting and ending with the flow of the service. All in all the band did a great job in adding to the excitement of this special morning. The morning was made even more special because it was not just our first Sunday in the new building, but it was also mothers day. To sum it all up, we had one of our highest attendance Sundays ever, and the day went off without a major problem. Everyone went away feeling really good and excited about our new building and the future of our church.
I am hoping that when the excitement fades, as it always does, that the expectations and dreams of the people do not fade with it. It makes me think of when Moses came down from the mountain after seeing God. His face was glowing with the power of God. The people were amazed and even afraid. Soon after that Moses started wearing a covering over his face. Not so people would not be afraid of the glow from his face, but so that they would not see that the glow was slowly fading away. I think he was afraid that the people would think that God was leaving, or that He was no longer in favor of them. The reality is that the glow was going to fade. Moses was not perfect, and he did not live in a perfect world. The glow had to fade. The excitement of a new building is going to fade. Things are going to break and wear out. The shine is going to wear off of things, the building is going to get dirty and worn down. There is no way we can put a Vail over the building so the people don't see the shine slowly going away. I just hope that our people realize that even though the excitement may not always be what it was like on the first Sunday, that God is still with us, and His plan is still the same. Wherever God's people are, that is where the "church" is. That is because wherever God's people are, that is where God is. Emotion was never meant to carry us along, dedication and obedience to the Father was. No matter how we feel on any given day, we are to do what God tells us, and we should always remember that God is with us and for us.
James
I am hoping that when the excitement fades, as it always does, that the expectations and dreams of the people do not fade with it. It makes me think of when Moses came down from the mountain after seeing God. His face was glowing with the power of God. The people were amazed and even afraid. Soon after that Moses started wearing a covering over his face. Not so people would not be afraid of the glow from his face, but so that they would not see that the glow was slowly fading away. I think he was afraid that the people would think that God was leaving, or that He was no longer in favor of them. The reality is that the glow was going to fade. Moses was not perfect, and he did not live in a perfect world. The glow had to fade. The excitement of a new building is going to fade. Things are going to break and wear out. The shine is going to wear off of things, the building is going to get dirty and worn down. There is no way we can put a Vail over the building so the people don't see the shine slowly going away. I just hope that our people realize that even though the excitement may not always be what it was like on the first Sunday, that God is still with us, and His plan is still the same. Wherever God's people are, that is where the "church" is. That is because wherever God's people are, that is where God is. Emotion was never meant to carry us along, dedication and obedience to the Father was. No matter how we feel on any given day, we are to do what God tells us, and we should always remember that God is with us and for us.
James
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