Day 66: Sunday's Greatness

So this morning's services went great; as part of the vision for 2010, Hillsong made new service times: 8 and 10 a.m., and 12 p.m. instead of 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m. and 1:15. It turned out to be a very smart move, because every service was pretty much full, which ended up being a good problem. As for the choir, it became quite the interesting situation. We had a original setup for where we would stand on the platforms, but when it was time for us to be in our set position, there were these two random guys already standing there. Since there was no room left on the platform, me, Donny, Alex, and Rafael decided to worship from behind the platform, worshipping our hearts out without being seen. It was funny seeing Gabe Kelly look over at us while playing the drums and laughing at us 4 guys singing and jumping in the VERY back, completely invisible to the congregation but very visible in the spirit of worship; as our fieldwork specialist put it, "God saw us". It was so much fun though; having all that room to move around in joy and peace was awesome. I kind of want to do it again! Joel A'Bell spoke on kingdom greatness today; he gave an excellent perspective on it. He spoke on the story of Saul before he became king, and how it was set that he would meet Samuel. Saul's father Kish sent him along with a servantto find some lost sheep. God used this servant of the house, one whose name is never mentioned. Joel said that this exemplified that greatness comes from anonymity: not being identified or recognized when working. When Saul was ready to give up and head back home, the servant spoke up and mentioned a prophet that was in a nearby town; through this it was exemplified that greatness requires the ability to hear the voice of the Lord. The servant could hear the voice of the Lord telling him of Samuel being in that town. We as servants have the ability to hear the voice of the Lord too; sure we can hear it through sermons and songs and prayers from other people, but WE have the ability to hear it for ourselves. Saul then asked, "What can we give him? We are almost out of food." Then the servant said, "I have a quarter of a sheckel of silver that we can give to him." This exemplified that a servant of greatness is ready. He is prepared. We have to be prepared for God's path so that it can be fulfilled. The final point is that when Samuel was going to anoint Saul to be king, he asked Saul to send his servant down the road so that it would be just the 2 of them. Greatness can sometimes be moving aside so that others can be blessed. This servant, who was used to orchestrate this event, could have stayed, but he wasn't required then. It takes greatness to be a good servant, especially when you won't be recognized for what you do. Isn't that such a great word; I love it. After those incredible services, I got to spend some quality time with Donny, a fellow American amigo, playing around with the piano and having lunch together; it's nice to get those chances to just hang out with people you barely get to see. It was so good. The rest of the day involved just enjoying the beautiful day indoors and relaxing; it is after all a tough week coming up with the Colour Women's Conference!!!
God bless,
Steven