A few reminders for STORYCHURCH

This is a big weekend for all of us who follow Jesus. And for STORYCHURCH, it's one of the biggest weekends in our short history. Here are a few things to remember going into the weekend for STORYCHURCH.

• Keep inviting. They say that most people will say yes if you simply invite them. Let's pack out the Carolina Theatre!
• Speaking of the Carolina Theatre - we're meeting there! Don't show up at Spring Valley Elementary or you will be lonely!
• Plan on joining us tomorrow (Saturday) at the Durham Easter event downtown from 2-4pm. Your kids will love it!
• On Sunday, please arrive early. We want to make sure we are ready to receive our guests so help us out by getting there early and getting your kids checked in.
• Parking will be at the YMCA across the street from the Carolina Theatre.
• It's not too late to volunteer to help us out as a greeter! Just show up early (at least 30 minutes) and we'll get you in place.
• Get those last eggs out for EggDurham!!
• Finally, continue being the generous church we have become by giving whatever you can to help the Durham Literacy Center through EggDurham.

I can't wait to celebrate the resurrection with you. Let's celebrate like never before!

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My dream for STORYCHURCH

This Sunday at STORYCHURCH we talked together about Ezekiel - a sort of unsure prophet who God uses to speak life into a bunch of dry bones. By the time Ezekiel is done speaking to them, they are standing in front of him - not as a bunch of dry bones, but as a vast army with tendons and flesh and the breath of life in their lungs.

Imagine the scene! Ezekiel is speaking and the bones start rattling. A leg bone flys across the valley and attaches itself to a hip. A spine stands up and ribs attach themselves. Soon tendons start forming and flesh appears. And then the breath of life enters their lungs and a huge gasp is heard.

I believe God wants to use STORYCHURCH to be a voice in a valley of dry bones. I believe he has positioned us to speak hope and life, to dream dreams for people that have lost the ability to dream those dreams themselves. One of our primary roles is to remind people that God isn't done with them, and that hope still remains - that we serve a God who resurrects the dead!

What if every time we gathered in homes, in coffee shops, or in our Sunday services - there were dry bones coming back to life? What if our worship was constantly accompanied by the rattling sound of bones being joined together? I believe we can be that kind of community. I believe God is ready to do amazing things in and through us - and many of you have already experienced it. Many of you were nothing but dry bones, and now you have life like you never had it before.

I'm asking you to beg God with me that we would see this happen on a regular basis. That lives would be put back together, hope would be restored, marriages renewed, families rebuilt. Finally, I'm asking you to be bold. Become an Ezekiel in your neighborhood, in your work place, and in your families. Speak life into places of dryness, speak hope into the darkness, and dream dreams for people that they can't dream!

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Secret followers

I was reading a familiar story this morning - the story of the burial of Jesus from John 19. I've probably read it dozens of times in my life, and yet today I saw something I've never seen before. Check it out:

Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate's permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night.

Did you catch that? Look at it again - a secret follower of Jesus who was accompanied by another man who had been so afraid to be seen with Jesus that he went to Him at night - these are the men who end up with the body of Jesus, preparing it for burial.

All day long I've been thinking about this. I wonder about a lot of things. How did these two secret followers of Jesus find each other? What was it like to be burying Jesus after having been too afraid to be seen with him in public? Were they ashamed? Were there regrets? What was their conversation like?

Then again, this particular moment seems to be a very public thing. They go to Pilate (and Mark's gospel tells us that Joseph "went boldly to Pilate") and ask for the body. Both of these men are prominent people. They have a lot to lose in this moment to be seen as sympathetic to this "blasphemer" and "enemy of Rome". Their secret following seems to have taken a public turn.

Here's what I take from this though. The story of Jesus death is surrounded by other stories of people who totally blow it. There's Judas who betrays Him, the disciples who desert Him, one who denies Him, a crowd that mocks Him, religious people who reject Him, and these two guys who are afraid to be seen with Him.

I don't know about you - but I've found myself in just about every one of those groups at some point. And there's been more than one time in my life when I've been afraid to be known as a Jesus follower. But resurrection changes that doesn't it? No one knew the reality of Jesus death more than the guys who wrapped his body, placed it in a cold, hard tomb, and sealed it up. We don't know much about what happened to Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea after the resurrection. But I can guess. My guess is that their secret was out of the bag. I bet their fear gave way to hope, to new life, and to resurrection.

Jesus has that affect on us. He transforms us. He changes us. He embraces us. Whether we've denied Him, rejected Him, deserted Him, mocked Him, or even been afraid to be seen with Him.

May you be encouraged today to follow Him boldly.

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Resurrection

Resurrection: Rob Bell from The Work of Rob Bell on Vimeo.

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Living Water International

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At Christmas last year, Story Church participated in the Advent Conspiracy. Many of us decided to spend less at Christmas on stuff we didn't need, and instead to give toward clean water wells for people that really needed it most. This week I was notified by Living Water International that the well we helped to build has been built. The well is in Bozoubolo in the Central African Republic (see the map above of the exact location of the well). It serves more than 600 people. I can't tell you how excited that makes me! The fact that as a church, before we even officially launched, we had helped to build a well that provides clean water for 600 people is amazing to me. And I think this news came at a great time. For me, its a reminder that what happened at Christmas matters most because of what happened at Easter. The baby who was proclaimed by angels at Christmas was good news to the world because he would one die and free us from sin and death and usher in a new kingdom. It's a kingdom of life and love and grace and hope. It's why Jesus not only proclaimed truth, but he demonstrated the fruit of the present kingdom through miracles of healing. For us as a church, we celebrate the baby Jesus as well as the risen Lord, and we embrace the role we play in the resurrection story. My desire for us is that while we proclaim good news to the world, we are also demonstrating it through acts of justice and mercy. And today, 600 people are experiencing life giving water as a result.

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