God of This City

Wow.

I don't think I could write an entire chapter and adequately describe to you all the amazing night that we had last night here in Sydney. I am so humbled and amazed to be here, to see and experience first hand the work that God is doing through the Passion team all around the world.

And it wasn't about the fact that I got to travel around the globe to one of the most beautiful places ever, it wasn't about the fact that God filled the auditorium with over 8,000 students. It wasn't about the cd's that were sold, or the songs that were sung. It was about uniting the body of Christ and students from over 86 universities all under one roof for His renown, and hearing and seeing what He was doing in and through that...from the moment we started planning months and months ago, till the very last person left the arena.

Stories are already pouring in about God at work last night, both inside and outside the arena, and I was blessed to experience one of these moments first hand. At about 2 hours to go before the beginning of the event, hundreds of students were already in a line that stretched halfway around the entertainment center. As I walked outside to check on the status of things, I was approached by a guy named Mike who walked up off the street. Mike is from Germany, and he is in Australia on a work visa. Our conversation went something like this:

Mike: "So what is going on...why are all these people lined up out here?"
Me: "It's an event for University Students"
Mike: "An event? What kind of event?"
Me: "It's a Christian event - we'll have worship and teaching and all that fun stuff...it's gonna rock."
Mike: "It's for Christians? You mean all of those students are lined up for an event for Christians?"
Me: "Yep."
Mike: "You have to be kidding. Are you kidding? Something like this would NEVER happen in Germany where I am from. There's just no way."

We continued to talk about the event - I told him it was a free event and asked if he would like to come. His eyes were as big as saucers, and he shouted "YES!" I handed him a ticket, and then he realized that it started at 7pm, and he was scheduled to be at work at 7pm. He thanked me, and then asked me to give the ticket to someone else who could use it...and then he just stood there for a moment looking at the students, somewhat speechless. Then he said that even though he was not going to be able to attend, God was speaking to him. He told me, "you have no idea what this has just done for my walk with God - seeing all these students in a time when I have been questioning things...you just have no idea." I prayed for Mike for the rest of the night as we worshipped there without him...I don't know anything else about his story, and it's likely I never will, but it was so cool to see God using this night to reach people in this city who never even set foot inside the arena doors.

I was reminded then that, even if everything else the rest of the night went wrong, it didn't matter - God was already at work and He would accomplish His mission anyway!

The rest of the night was great - it was so amazing to just stand back in the arena and watch 8,000 university students just worshipping the Lord with all their might - unified across campuses, across cities, and even in some cases, across continents. I pray that something sparked in the hearts of those students last night that they will carry out back into their campuses and homes and just be alive in Christ to all those around them. I pray that they become a generation who will not hold back when it comes to proclaiming the name of Jesus!

Today was a wonderful, and also bittersweet day. I felt a huge relief that everything that our team has been working on for months and months had finally paid off, but i'm also a little sad that it's all over and that i'll be going back home in just a few short days. My heart has grown very attached to the people and the students in the city of Sydney. It was a cold and rainy day today....and I was so thankful. Thankful that the rain held off until today, and that the students stayed dry last night. As I type this, I am looking outside my window at quite possibly the most beautiful rainbow I have ever seen, sweeping over the Sydney Opera house and touching down into the Sydney Harbour. It's colors are brilliant - the brightest i've ever seen in a real rainbow. I'm listening to Tomlin's song "God of This City," and looking at this rainbow - a symbol of God's promise - couldn't be a more fitting end to a perfect day. Just as the song says "greater things are yet to come, greater things are still to be done in this city." That's my prayer tonight. That God will continue to do great things in the city of Sydney, long after we are gone. Who knows if i'll ever get to come back here again. But I can assure you - the people of this city will remain in my heart forever.

Here's a little glimpse into Passion Sydney, with some of my photos and videos, and also a few photos from our amazing tour photographer, Jeremy Cowart (you can tell which ones are his -they are the phenomenal pics. I'm not that great of a photographer - he's stinking amazing with a camera!).

Cheers mates!
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