easter non-production...

I been going to Easter services for the last 30+ years and have probably seen the whole spectrum of how people celebrate together: the litigurical service, the deeply-reflective (even emo) experience, the media-rich emergent service, the super high-energy celebrations, and the highly produced dramatic presentations (of the Passion, etc.).

But yesterday we gathered with a community (that we are falling in love with) who just listened to people's life stories before they were baptized: a sweet high school girl who had struggled with depression, a college kid who felt safe enough in the community to be really open about his deeper struggles, a really funny guy from NY who was a bitter atheist for years....

It was so refreshing to just hear (in a simple, honest, non-flashy way) stories about how people's lives have been drastically changed by a God who is alive and well on the earth today. Just to see the way Christ is actively moving in other people is enough for me...