Parakalein

I had planned a Worship Experience for the runners at the NYC marathon.  It is a Worship Service like none other, not churchy very runner friendly and God focused.  I had been in touch with runners who had   a scripture to read a story to tell or a  song to share.  It was all prearranged.  This was very different than 25 years ago when I presented a message and we sang together in a spontaneous, unstructured form of Worship.  The Service "by runners for runners" had been endorsed by the marathon headquarters so I now have a tent, a sound system, a communion table and a list of participants previously secured.

None of them were there as the time for the service approached.  Understand for those none runners who are reading this that there were 48,000 runners in a small park all looking for different things that they were not finding.

So as the runners gathered for Worship I announced we were doing this the way they did it in Acts.  Whoever gathered  from that group some and a hymn, some a spiritual song and another a word from God.  I heard myself say to them that we sometimes organize our Worship and unintentionally organize God out of our worship.  A Japanese man came up to the microphone.  He spoke of the tragedies of Hiroshima, earthquakes and tsunamis and of 9/11 and the tragedies here. So he was running for peace in our world and he spoke peace to all.  Then a man from France sang a peace ballad.....it felt like, i had stepped out of the way and God's presence was bring felt in a powerful and personal way as God's people shared from their hearts encouraging one another in faith.  Maybe that is what Worship is suppose to be.

God found us.  Or rather when I let go of my agenda we found God in our midst.

God is present always everywhere all the time.....in tragedies and in triumphs the same God is there!
God works everything for good in our lives. Amen