Reflection from Verge - Day 3

The final day of the Verge conference was a memorable one. A couple of highlights of the day: First up was Aaron Ivey's music and story. He and his band played one of their house shows. Their music is terrific (I just bought their album off emusic), but it was their story that made the biggest impact. Part of the goal of their house concerts is to raise awareness of the need for adoption, especially in Haiti. For over two years he and his wife were trying to adopt a little boy named Amos from Haiti. They were finally able to bring him home two weeks ago. You can read more of the story on Aaron's blog, and below is a local news story.




Francis Chan was up next, and spoke on the topic of suffering. Suffering is all throughout the Scriptures, yet we are surprised when we experience it. Chan said that we have this backwards: we ought to be surprised (and worried) if we're not experiencing it. After he spoke the band came back up and led worship, then Matt Carter came up, and honestly shared that he wasn't sure what should happen next. It was time for break-out sessions to begin, but he gave permission to stay and continue seeking God. He sat down. Silence, then one by one, different people began shouting out the praises of our God. Later the band came back up and led us in a wonderful time of worshiping through singing. It was one of those moments where you're reminded that the psalmist said it best, that the nearness of God is my good (Ps. 73:28).

This moment, and the ones following, encapsulated what I appreciated most about this conference. The leaders were humble and dependent on God. Sure they were stumbling around at times, but when God is moving, that's the best posture to have. I am so glad that we got to go to Verge. I know that God is continuing to work what we experienced into the life of our church. So grateful for that!