ethanvanse

It was one of the craziest things I've ever seen.

This was an amazing learning experience for me. It came in the most unusual way and at a totally unexpected time.

    Tonight, Church on the Move hosted the first of 8 "Celebrate with Family" Christmas Services - and for an opening night it was a huge success! The building was PACKED before the auditorium ever opened and people just kept coming. It was the single biggest crowd we've ever hosted in one service. For me, It was an unbelievably exciting night.

    Certainly the most incredible part was after the service had started. I had been all over the building watching different things and after my main work was done I slipped into the auditorium to sit with my wife, her parents and our 6 year old son. I was just going to soak in the rest of what is easily the most moving production we have ever done. I had seen it all several times through as we rehearsed and I was looking forward to watching with my son and sharing a nice family moment.

    As I sat in the middle of the crowd, I began to notice something amazing. First, I watched my son as he laughed and sang. Then, I watched as a family sitting in front of us tapped each other lovingly and pointed out different elements that obviously meant something to them. I watched as untold numbers of people raised their hands as we sang and others put their arms around the person sitting or standing next to them. I watched my son fold his hands and sink his head deep into them as our Pastor prayed after maybe the most moving moment of the night. 

    I've seen all this before. I've seen it hundreds of times. I've seen music effect people and I've seen God touch hearts as someone speaks into their life. But, tonight I noticed it from a vastly different perspective.

    The difference is that tonight I saw what was happening. What was really happening, right in front of me. Not just because I was personally invested in it and I wanted to see something great come out of the time and energy we put into it. Not as a promoter or even a fan. I wasn't looking for anything amazing, I was just watching. All I was doing was watching as a spectator. I was simply looking at what was happening around me. The results were undeniable.

    I saw preparation, planning, prayer and a group of people who put their heart and soul into something be touched by God and turned into something amazing. One man who was fresh from a tour of duty in the Army was among the many who were moved so much that they made a radical life choice to follow a God they have never seen into a life long journey without consulting their advisers. They didn't ask anyone's opinion or look for someone's approval. They acted on something so deep and profound that moved them so much they couldn't help but respond.

    As a pastor I'm always amazed at that moment. The moment people see God in such a real way that they give their life to Him. But, tonight I saw it in a totally different way. I saw music, drama, video and the Bible work together in an amazing way. I saw a service that allowed God to be seen by different people at different moments. It was remarkable. 

    As I had my arms over my little boys shoulders, I couldn't hear his words because of the music, but I could feel as he began to sing during the last song. I wondered, as a daddy, what was the moment he saw Jesus tonight? What was the moment that he knew in his heart that God is real? I know what that moment was for me tonight. I know that moment was different, but no less real for others. 

    It was one of the craziest things I've ever seen. The Gospel unfolding right in front of me. The story of Christmas that keeps happening everyday. God coming to meet us in the middle of our world, in the middle of our celebration. That was unexpected for me. I should have known better, but I guess I needed to be reminded. 

    I learned again tonight that God is always reaching for us - whether we're reaching for him or not. More importantly, I was reminded that God wants to reach through us, our talents, opportunities and relationships to others who have yet to see Him so clearly as we have. In 5 days we are bringing unsaved and un-churched guests with us to this same service. My prayer is that they will see God so clearly that they will never be able to deny that on that day He reached into their world and touched their hearts. My prayer is the same for countless others that will sit in those seats and hear these same words. 

    My heartfelt thanks go out to my Pastor, Whit George, Andy Chrisman, Angie Woods, Chris Munch, Adam Bush, Andrew Dale, Kenneth Weston, and on and on. Thanks for using who you are to give God a chance to show Himself to others. Here's to another 7 services like tonight!

    My God and Savior, may they see you in us.

Global, constant, instant and...permanent.

Everything you say will be used against you.

I am a private person. I love my family and I have a special place in my heart for my home. I enjoy being a dad to my two boys Owen & Wyatt more than I can say and I'm the world's best husband...and as you can tell by that statement I'm an optimist. Not the official kind of optimist, I have no idea what they do in their clubs, just the general kind of "I love life and you should too" optimist.

My problem is that while I'm a private and family oriented optimist (that sounds like a graduate degree you'd spend many years earning) I also love the Church. Not just "my church" (churchonthemove.com...which is AWESOME by the way) or "a church" but the Church, big C. I love Jesus and I believe with all my heart that He is the reason I love life. He is the reason I have hope and peace. He is the reason I don't live in fear or worry constantly about the economy and politics. I don't worry about loosing my wife or my car getting broken into, my password getting stolen or my body breaking down with disease. I care about all those things but they don't run my life.

So, what's the problem with that?

Well, the first problem is the fact that I love Jesus more than I love being a private optimist. My love for His work through the local and global Church makes it very difficult for me to sit quietly in the home I am so fond of next to the family I love and quietly think to myself "life is good" while I know there are people who will struggle to sleep tonight without that same hope and peace.

That makes me a public person. Not out of a desire to be seen. Not because my personality loves to be the life of the party. I am a public person because I know that if I am not, someone, somewhere will not see Jesus.

I believe the Church, when healthy and honest, is made up of people who are willing to live publicly what they experience privately - a life of peace and hope - an example that others can see. An example that reflects the miracle of the Gospel, God come to earth. The miracle of the only world view that sees God not as one we chase and must sacrifice to please, but as the pursuer. The one who chases you and gives everything for that crazy love...for you. I believe that when pure, the Church causes people to notice. It causes people to ask questions and begin to search for the truth themselves. 

The second problem is, people actually ask these questions. All people ask questions, including me. We question whether or not a deal is too good to be true, we question whether politicians are corrupt and we form conspiracy theories. It's natural, and we do the same thing with God. So, if people ask questions about God and then see the constant compromise in many who follow Him, it inevitably leads to doubt.

Doubt is a powerful thing. When we doubt something it colors every interaction with it. If you doubt your computer, you pull the files off of it immediately. If your unsure of your car, your not likely to take it on a long road trip. If you doubt my view of God, will you be likely to put any amount of eternal, life changing trust in Him? Probably not.

We understand doubt related to the most everyday things. I believe there are many who have pushed back the issue of God because of the contradictions they see, much like a person who distrusts their car or computer. They have pushed away because they are unsure of His stability. They have seen failures, shortcomings and seeming contradictions in culture and are left skeptical. 

The problem with taking my private hope and peace in Jesus public is that everything I say will be used against me. Everything I say will be available instantly to anyone who wants to attempt to tear it apart. It will be globally accessible to anyone, anywhere. It will be constantly visible, not occasionally, but all the time - and, it will be permanent. It will not be erasable, it will be public.

I know these things. I know that there is an enormous amount of negative sludge in the pool of Christianity. I know that many have turned away and I know that even more will do the same.

But, these problems pale when I consider that I have met Jesus and what else can I do? I cannot remain private. It's intensely personal to me. So, I will begin to write here on these pages as I serve my family, my church family and my community.

My prayer is that as I write thoughts, observations and personal experiences in this format, the Holy Spirit of God would spark in you and nudge you to begin a search. A search for the reasons you doubt God and the reasons you put that faith in other things instead. Friends, stuff, approval, power and even family can only fill a part of the hole in your heart. My prayer is that you would search, because I believe that every honest and heartfelt search ends at the feet of Jesus.

May your search reveal what God says about you everyday. You are loved.

ev