"The Earth is Filled With HIS Glory"

i feel refreshed. i haven't been to Exit 59 in what feels like forever. and it was sooooo good to be back today. i felt like i was at home. it's such a simple church- no show, no flash, just geniune hearts and worship, seeking after God. the praise and worship was so meaningful today. then we had our first baptisim since the church has been planted 6 months ago. it was a 35 year old man who became a christian last year and he is so sweet and a little developmentally behind. just one of those guys you love without even knowing him. he's always at the door welcoming people and reads the scripture for us every Sunday. He shared a little of his testimony and then was baptized. When he came out of the water it was a true celebration. we all stood up and cheered and clapped and i have to admit i got a little teary eyed. it was pretty powerful.

we had a time of sharing and that was really good too, and then more praise and worship. i really felt God's presense. as we were singing "together we sing, everyone sing- Holy is the Lord God almighty. the earth is filled with His glory..." i got a vision of the church. not just our church, but the churches around the world. i was picturing people in Africa singing, Latin America praising, the underground churches in Asia praying... it was a powerful image. God is a God of all nations and of all people. The earth is filled with His glory. people worship in different ways and in different languages, but it is still worship and praise and God hears it all.

We had a time of prayer for many things, most of which revolved around a building. a sister church in Anderson was buying a church today and so we had a "church meeting"and took a vote over if we supported that. :) we also prayed for a permanent building for us as we're renting out a Lutheran church. it was amazing to see the amount of faith that the leadership had about everything- from money to a building to planting new churches- the list could go on and on.

the message was challenging too. afterwards there was a potluck to celebrate the baptisim and we stayed for that. i'm going to miss that church this summer and i can't wait to get more involved next year and see what God is going to do through a little church on the outskirts of Gas City called Exit 59.