A few weeks ago our two teams attended a worship/preaching gathering in the middle of Moyogalpa on Ometepe Island. Estimated crowd size: 4,000.
Now, that´s 4,000 people who don't use deoderant. Gathering in a public square composed mostly of dirt and trash. Surrounded by vendors selling everything from cady apples, to glow sticks, to grilled mystery meat. Needless to say, there were a lot of sights and sounds (and smells) to take in regardless of the actual production happening on stage.
However, one thing stood out to me about all others…these people were not afraid to worship their God. They brought balloons, banners and flags to wave, celebrating the life and victory found in Christ. They gathered together with energy, rubbing shoulders, trading sweat and not worrying about having enough space for themselves. They sang with passion…shouted and jumped…smiling and laughing…finding JOY in WORSHIP. They wanted to be there…to celebrate Jesus!
I wish I could express the energy they displayed as they worshiped. Oh, this might help. The whole event lasted form 8pm until 5am! Non-stop. Some of that time was for performances and for preaching, and some for worship and prayer. But it wasn't a two or even a four hour get-together. It was ALL NIGHT LONG. Whole families were camped out, planning on being there the whole time. No baby sitters. No "bedtimes" for the kids. Just families and people coming together to spend a whole night praising and worshiping God. People weren´t going home because "it was getting late" or because "they had to get up early tomorrow". They stayed through the night out of an excitement to be gathered together in the name of Jesus!
It made me wonder about the way we do things back home. And I mean the American church in general. Could we rally 4,000 people to worship and pray for nine hours straight through the night? Would people even consider that a "good" use of time? Would they be excited about it? Or would it seem unnecessarily long? Would people go out of desire and passion for more of Christ? Or would they think it was overkill? Would they go out of joy, not caring if it went 24 hours? Or would they go out of guilt…thinking it's what a "good Christian" would do?
I don´t know. I know we didn´t stay the whole time. We were tired. We went home. We said it'd been a long day and we wanted to sleep. It was mostly in Spanish, and we couldn't understand a lot of what was being said. So we left. And now I'm left wondering what it would be like to worship with 4,000 other believers for an entire night. I'm left thinking we all missed out on something awesome.
I do know one thing. I want that kind of heart. The kind of heart that seeks rest not in sleep, but in Christ. That seeks nourishment not in food, but in Christ. That seeks joy not in things, but in His presence alone. A heart that loves worshiping, regardless of the time frame. A heart that wants more and more and more of Jesus. I want that heart. THE HEART THAT ALWAYS, ALWAYS WANTS jESUS MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE. I´m praying for that heart. Please Jesus…lead me in that direction. Towards you. Towards you alone. Please. Please.
