By Greg Yee, Superintendent, PacNWC
Rejoice, O people of Zion!
Zech 9:9
Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem!
Look, your king is coming to you.
He is righteous and victorious,
yet he is humble, riding on a donkey—
riding on a donkey’s colt.
Lenten blessings to you Conference Family. I pray that your journey toward Holy Week has been special and anointed. How marvelous and lavish God’s love is for us! I want to share a moment that I experienced a couple of weeks ago.
I stayed a couple of days extra after meetings in Orlando, FL. Yes, I went to Epcot! At the end of the day, Central Conference Superintendent Danny Martinez and I decided to leave the park early after a full day. On the way out we walked past the outdoor theater and saw that CeCe Winans was about to play. We sat in the front row as we were questioning if CeCe had gone mainstream instead of the gospel genre we were more familiar with. Well, we were shocked to find that Disney apparently put no restrictions on what she talked or sang about. We had full-on church at Epcot! It was so unexpected. She spoke about Pentecost, our need for a fresh wind of the Holy Spirit, and lifted the name of Jesus powerfully! Wow!
For her last song, she sang “Believe For It”
They say this mountain can’t be moved
They say these chains will never break
But they don’t know You like we do
There is power in Your name
We’ve heard that there is no way through
We’ve heard the tide will never change
They haven’t seen what You can do
There is power in Your name
So much power in Your name
Move the immovable
Break the unbreakable
God, we believe
God, we believe for it
From the impossible
We’ll see a miracle
God, we believe
God, we believe for it
We know that hope is never lost
For there is still an empty grave
…God we believe
God, we believe for it…
We Epcot Covenant Church worshippers were on our feet, raising our hands. It was one of those special moments when the presence of the Lord was so near. As our worship crescendoed, CeCe invited us to keep repeating.
You said it
I believe it
You said it
It is done
As we continued this confession with increasing surrender, CeCe walked from the opposite side of the stage slowly toward our side. She was speaking into our lives and praying over us for areas of challenge we may be facing.
Discouraged by the pandemic…health challenges…profound loss… God is with you!
You said it…I believe it…You said it…It is done…!
Challenges at work…challenges financially… God is here!
You said it…I believe it…You said it…It is done…!
And as she walked over to our side of the stage, she called out, “And whatever your family is going through and whatever challenges you’re facing with your children…”. Do you believe God is working?…
You said it…I believe it…
Like a moment of delayed grief, I started to weep uncontrollably. I had been holding onto a lot of sadness with some family matters. The moment laid me out before the Lord. After the concert, she didn’t bow or bring any attention to herself. She wanted God to have center stage as we concluded. You said it…I believe it. You said it…It is done!
I continued to weep as we walked toward the park exit – 18,000+ steps that day. My feet were sore, but my spirit brightened with a fortified faith and sustaining joy.
We are people of Good News in a difficult and broken world. We are Easter people. Jesus is risen! He is risen indeed! Friends, as we’ve walked through the challenges of these past years and as we continue to swim in the unanswered questions before us, I pray that your ongoing worship, and especially your Eastertide worship brightens your spirit with increased faith and joy – that in and through us Christ is lifted up.
I also want to remind you that we will be gathering for a celebration dinner and concerted time of worship and prayer Friday night at our annual meeting. I desire for us to give Jesus center stage. I want it to be a time of surrender and pouring ourselves out to God. I eagerly hope that we will experience a fresh wind of the Spirit. Join us on April 29th at Harbor Covenant Church (details)!
Restore us, O Lord God of hosts! Let your face shine, that we may be saved!
Psalm 80:19