Easter 2014 is behind us 217church and I had a blast!  But there were some incredible moments that made it all worth it to me.  650 people worshiped with us and combined with the 800 people we served yesterday, we came in contact with over 1400 people in a 24 hour period!  That is AWESOME!  I talked to so many people who were personally invited and as a result, they heard the resurrection story of Jesus in a fresh way, some for the first time from the bible!

We are a restored family sent on mission.  We experienced this vision Easter 2014.

Jay and Steve praying 25 minute before the 1st service in Hamilton

I always take time on Monday and reflect on the weekend.  Here were some of my favorite moments I wanted to share with you…

My 10 Favorite Moments This Easter –

#10 My Time in the Car with Jesus Early in the Morning – Before a message was preached, anyone was greeted or a guitar hit a chord, I loved my time with Jesus at sunrise.  It was a 2 hour period of peacefulness, worship and Jesus filled me with his Joy (Nehemiah 8:10) Yes I screamed my lungs out!

#9 Praying with the team for the impact of Easter – Every Sunday 30-40 minutes before services, we pray at each campus for the day.  I can never get enough of watching people pray for Jesus to heal and transform lives.

#8 Meeting a family from one of our egg hunts who came to services – I love interacting with our 1st time guests and people who are new to the church.  They heard of the egg hunt through the internet, then were invited to come at the event.  Well, they came!  Invitations work!  (And by the way they have really NEVER been a part of any church, just looking for something for their kids)

#7 Sprinting from my car to the theater for the final service – Man, the Sunday Easter slow drivers were out in force today!  I made it back to the theater with about 30 seconds to spare, I literally sprinted from the car as the Easter video was ending :).  It was exhilarating!

#6 Feeling the electricity in the rooms during worship – Getting a lot of people together to worship is a unique and empowering experience.  I loved seeing our largest crowd ever sing and proclaim our RISEN, VICTORIOUS, JESUS!

#5 Asking someone who was new to the church to serve – Yep, that happened.  He happened to be early, ran into me, I said hi and then just asked if he wanted to help us welcome people.  He said yes, and I said “welcome to the team.”

#4 Seeing people receive communion together – I love watching people encounter God.  I saw families together, people spontaneously praying for each other and the presence of God was felt.

#3 Watching my family walk into the theater to worship together – There is nothing quite like seeing my beautiful wife and 3 kids walking together.  my 5 year old didn’t want to let go of me!

#2 Gathering around the table and watching my kids open gifts from grandparents – Since our parents live so far away, they send gifts for Easter.  I love that my kids know that the grandparents love them and are thinking about them.

#1 Watching my kids play outside with the neighborhood kids – For whatever reason, God has placed us in a neighborhood with a ton of kids.  I love that my kids are building friendships and learning to love their friends.  My family is my greatest Joy!

Thanks for being an incredible church family.  What about you?  I would love to know your favorite moments…

Josh

Join us at 217church Next Sunday as we continue our Live Differently Series…

April 27 – Spiritual Health

May 4 – Financial Health

May 11- Family Health

May 18 – Physical Health

This Easter Sunday April 20th join us at 217church, a multi-site, contemporary church in Mercer County NJ.  217church is a family with small groups in New Jersey and Pennsylvania that meets Sundays in the Hamilton AMC24 Theater 9:30 & 11am and Grace Rogers School in East Windsor, NJ at 10:15.  Our new East Windsor Campus meets every Sunday.  If you are looking for a church in East Windsor NJ, Lawrenceville NJ, Ewing NJ, Robbinsville NJ, Hightstown NJ, Hamilton NJ, Mercer County, Middlesex County or Bucks County, PA, don’t miss our weekend services. Visit www.217church.com for more information.