Best Easter Service Ever

Well that may be a pretty bold statement about Easter, but I have to stick to it.  Just three days ago I experienced such an amazing day of worship.

I don’t consider Easter to be a one hour slot on a Sunday morning when the calendar tells us to celebrate. I consider an Easter celebration to be a full day celebration starting just after Friday night. And this weekend was just that.

Sunday though was so sweet!  We arrived at the Oaktree Cinema at our usually bright and early time of 7:00 am to set up. That in itself was total worship! Everyone works so well and with great attitudes, “as unto the Lord.”  We gathered to testify, pray and encourage at 9 am as we always do and hear how God has been working throughout the week. It is so encouraging to hear of his greatness.

The sun came out and then people started showing up, early.  Like, …what?  Twenty minutes early! Crazy, I know.  In the lobby we had the “Cross Project” (crosses in art form from the Epic Life family) this was a beautiful display attracting much thought and attention.

David kicked the music off with a worship choir of eight adults and six kids, that really rocked the house! The music was spot on and the house was filling up…140 people, twice our regular attendance.  And people who aren’t just visitors but will come back.

I got up to deliver God’s word and realized that I had misplaced my notes and Bible, so with a borrowed Word and the Spirit’s leading, God cranked out a great talk that hit home and celebrated the Hope of Easter morning. We got to celebrate with more music and close the morning out.

But the conversations that ensued were the best!  A dad who was in tears because his entire family was a church for the first time, a mom who is struggling as a parent and whose marriage is falling apart, a young woman who has been addicted to crack for too long, a dad watching his son go from death to life, a leader desiring to live in the Hope of the Resurrection, an owner of a local business with her whole family, families of brand new Christians, and more.  There was so much joy and hope and love. It was beautiful!

Afterwards my family joined three other families, not necessarily Epic families for an Easter lunch, our first time for a holiday meal in a Seattle home. God allowed us to encourage and build into our hosts.  The night ended with other leaders joining us at our home testifying what God had done that morning and what he is and will be doing here in Seattle.

Epic Life Church is Epic because we live in the Hope of the Resurrection!

Kickoff Sunday, Oct. 4th, 2009

Three years ago God tugged on my heart to leave a very secure and exciting college pastorate and move to Seattle to start a church. This past Sunday, after three years of listening to and following after God, Epic Life Church was officially opened.

And it was awesome!

We began the morning pulling the trailer to the theater and starting to set up a half hour late at 7:30am, but things started coming together and we broke at 9 am to pray and asked God to give us peace and let us enjoy the morning, no matter what happens.

Ten sandwich boards and an eight foot banner set out on the streets and outside the theater and then with the lights down on the house, lights up on the stage and a great atmosphere creating screen behind, D-Vic and the band cranked up the amps and worship ensued with 110 people in the main auditorium and twenty some kids in the children’s theater. The worship music ended with a hiphop hymn and Nathan rapping to bring it home. It was sweet.

I spoke on John 1:1, The Word/Logos with painted black boxes with white letters painted on them, “LOGOS” and explained the Epic Life vision and what God is doing in North Seattle and on Aurora.

We ended out with David’s own song, Your Words.  Then it was off to talk to people and encourage them and answer questions.  It was excellent!

By 12:30 pm we had the trailer packed back up and exited the theater clean and ready for the next movie.

Later that night we met to celebrate at our home with ample celebratory ice cream and toppings.

Thank you God for letting us be in the midst of your Story here in North Seattle.