Last night got off to a really rough start at AU.

I know that might seem like a surprising way to start a blog post – there seems to be an unwritten rule among church leaders that we can only blog and tweet about the AMAZING, the STUNNING or the FANTASTIC.  Don’t get me wrong, I love celebrating what God does on a daily basis.  And we should walk into life and ministry expecting to be amazed.  After all, we are following a King with all authority and unrivaled power.  But there are rough patches and there’s value in talking about those too.

Ever have an hour and a half window of time where it feels like everything that could go wrong does?  Welcome to 7.15 – 8.45 last night at AU.  I don’t want to overstate it – we didn’t have some sort of cataclysmic meltdown.  But key members of our production team were out town.  DC traffic was especially disgusting putting half of our band about 45 minutes behind schedule.  We had many volunteers who couldn’t make it.  And everything just seemed to be taking forever.  Those who were there were a sweaty mess (something about the AC also having a rough night!) and working like crazy to pull the night together.  And I was getting a little frustrated – I had such high hopes for the night and it seemed like that was all out the window.  Ever been there?

It’s in moments like last night that the promises of the Bible come alive.  I couldn’t get Romans 8:11 out of my mind, nor did I want to.  Here’s its promise, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.”  That shifts the conversation completely, doesn’t it?  The same Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is alive in me.  And in you if you are a follower of Jesus.  That flips even the worst of nights on its head.

Our band and I spent a few minutes praying over this verse and the night.  And when we opened the doors, everything felt different.

By the way, more students came to The Gathering at AU last night than have come all year.  They were so engaged in worship and the talk.  And as we left last night, it was with a feeling that God had done some major work in the hearts of students.  Something supernatural and powerful happened in that room.  I can’t help myself – it really was AMAZING.

I guess I’m writing this as much as a reminder to myself as anyone else.  Serving and leading in the church can get rough at times.  But don’t throw in the towel.  Don’t write the night off.  Don’t get discouraged.  Trust.  Believe.  Hope.  Lean into the power of Christ.  Expect.  Persevere.  And watch God work.  I know I can always use that reminder.  If it helps you too, FANTASTIC!