“When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.  For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.  I came to you in weakness  with great fear and trembling.  My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.”  1 Corinthians 2:1-5

I am going to miss the smell of the place.  The way it hit me every time I walked into the worship space.  So many memories.  The pictures will be great to look at, but there is something about sitting there and simply inhaling the place.

That big old wooden cross…how many times have I spoken to that cross…how many times it has spoken to me.

Sunday mornings, 7:35.  A journal, a video, candlelight worship. Lead Team meetings.

Sitting there, nervous, at my first ever Worship Team meeting.

Environments, budgets, music, children, nervousness, hugs, love.  Choking back tears and laughing uncontrollably.

Preaching.

8:15 worship and 8:15 hugs and 8:15 glances and 8:15 faith and 8:15 humor.

Popcorn crumbs on the floor.  So crowded we ran out of seats!

Empty.  In prayer, on my knees.

When it sounded as if I would end up on staff, and “I Will Follow” came into my head and I prayed and I prayed and I prayed.

Driving by.  Sitting in the parking lot.  The night I stopped by late, and gave up, and gave in to The Call.

When my whole future was figured out for me while I stood right there listening, and I stomped away mad.

When I was told “God’s telling you, you can.”

VBS, and goofiness, and airborne things, and flames.

Bricks, and flowers, and murals and things.

Lights and commitments, trust and belief, spirit and joy, wonder and shadows.

Foo Fighters, and Cold Play, and U2 and The Beatles.

That time we had Aslan on the screen, and the little girl said, “Look Mommy!  A LION!”

Coyotes on Mother’s Day.

Ladders to preach from and ladders to move, and Jacob’s Ladder Fire Truck in the parking lot.

Tabitha’s Closet and Tabitha’s Breakfast and Tabitha’s Video Fairy.

Moment after moment after moment, day after day after day.

I loved it like a child loves, and I loved it like it was my child, too.

I can’t imagine that I will ever have a definition of “church” that does not include The Park, or of faith that does not include “Come As You Are”, or of friendship that does not include “That’s how we roll.”  or is it…”That’s the way we roll”?  I will never get that right!!

You have loved me in my nerdiness, and crankiness, and craziness, and all.

One time we were doing a “Remember your Baptism” moment and I was stationed at one end up front.  My job was to put a hand on your head as you walked by and to tell you that you are God’s beloved, and that with you, God is well pleased.  And I meant it.  But every one of you that came through the line…well you saw me with my hand up, reaching for you, so…you hugged me.  Every single person that came through that line hugged me that day.

Beloved.

The truth is, I have never known love in community quite like this.  And I am grateful beyond grateful to have been broken and blessed here.

May the Lord that brought you always keep you.  They say His will won’t take you where His grace won’t keep you.

May it be so.  May it be so.

Wherever we are, we gather to worship God who loves us.

Let’s Stand!  And Let’s Sing!