Redefining Normal

Disciple Now 2012

There have been a few times in my life where I’ve seen God move in ways that are simply unexplainable and this past weekend was one of those moments. Our community has an annual event called Disciple Now that brings together youth groups and churches from several counties for an intense weekend of Bible study and worship. Our theme this year was “Redefining Normal” and we have been praying for God to redefine “normal Christianity” and to do the unexpected.

We started to realize something big was going to take place when we had to change locations a few weeks out because our registration had exceeded our expectations. We began to challenge our students not to go into this weekend expecting the same old routine from another Christian event, but to expect God to break in to our routine and to lead us to revival.

On Saturday night, God opened up the heavens and showered His presence down upon us. The glory of God was being revealed right in our midst as students began crying out for God to save them. Our speaker, Chris Brooks, came prepared to preach, but God had other plans. Chris humbly allowed the Lord to lead him as he stepped aside and simply asked for any student, who realizes their need for salvation, to simply raise their hand. For the next 15-20 minutes, students all over the building began raising their hands and stepping in to the story of God as a son and daughter of God for the first time!

It is difficult to find words to explain what we experienced, but I am reminded of a story found in Luke 7. In this passage, Jesus steps into a story of a funeral procession where a mother is about to bury her only son. Jesus shows up and does the unexpected by giving life to the dead. I am not a huge fan of The Message, but I love the way Eugene Peterson paraphrased the response of the crowd. ”They all realized they were in a place of holy mystery, that God was at work among them. They were quietly worshipful – and then noisily grateful, calling out among themselves, God is back, looking to the needs of His people! The news of Jesus spread all through the country.”