My wife and I went to the Sunday service this year at the Pavilion. Most of the 6000 seats were filled, if not all. One aspect I particularly liked regarding the venue is the parking. There is plenty of parking available near the Pavilion for this event, since it is on Sunday morning. The service itself was very moving and everyone was really into the life of Christ, his death and the joy of his resurrection.
I was personally touched by much of the service, but especially about this song we sang together- "I am free to run. I am free to dance..." as the ballerina danced on the stage. Now you know why I portray myself on my candidate signs as a runner. I am a runner, in many more ways other than racing. The feeling you have as a runner relates easily to being freed from the bondage of sin through the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Dr. Bruce Webb is the perfect person to lead the First Baptist Church of The Woodlands in this Easter service. His difficulties in early life with the sudden loss of his mother and the problems of his dad, makes him simply one of us, just normal people, surviving what trials God puts upon us to make us better servants. He was rescued from the mental anguish associated with those trials and now shares his life experiences to rescue others from such difficulties. A testimonial from several church members showed how a church can play an important role to full recovery from cancer to divorce. It is apparent that members and staff of this church are engaged in caring ministries for people. There were many guests similar to me and my wife, who also were quite impressed with the service.
Some of the powerful messages I gleaned from the pastor were:
1. Jesus Christ is the most influential person of all time in this world.
2. Jesus Christ was not an attractive man but physically a strong one. He lived his short life as we do. He knew how it felt to hammer a nail and hit your hand with the hammer. He worked hard just like we do for a living. He survived the scourging before he was nailed to the cross, when many died from it.
3. What is it like to be connected to God through Christ? It is more than praying. It is more than answers to prayers. It is a relationship, freeing a person from empty religion. It is real! It is now! He influences our daily lives when we accept him as our savior.
4. Jesus is the ultimate example to us of influence. From a poor family, he has influenced many things on this earth to bring us to where we are today, such as hospitals where once, man would not venture because of his fear of disease and death. With Christ's teachings, mankind has overcome that fear and embraced caring for the sick.
As the service proceeded, an artist was painting the face of Jesus as he perceives it was. Yahoo has had a series of articles this past week which have depicted a reasonable vision of Christ, not a blue-eyed white person, but a dark brown-eyed Middle Eastern person.
I hope you like me walked away refreshed and renewed in the hope and freedom that Jesus brings to us, and will go next week to continue that spiritual renewal.
To the gentleman I met this past week, who was in the depths of depression trying to find a job, and to the gentleman I met two weeks ago who is in the throws of a divorce -
Go to a church! This one would be a fine choice, but there are others as well. You should find people willing to help you and minister to you. Don't try to do it by yourself. Both of you are fine people. Let God into your hearts and be free from oppression and sin. That is the gateway to happiness and renewal of spirit. I hope you are reading this article and listen. I have zero doubt that it would help you tremendously!
Happy Easter everybody. May God be with you!
