Have you ever been to an event that has overwhelmed not only your heart with passion towards others but also changed your life? I just got back from one of the greatest 4 days of my life. This was the Passion 2012 Conference in Atlanta Georgia. I want to put all of this experience into words but I am struggling to do so and took yesterday as a day to prayerfully think about what to write on here so I can fully glorify God while also explaining exactly what happened in Georgia. The one word that can fully explain everything is Jesus!! He wasn't just present in the Georgia Dome and surrounding buildings but he was alive and working through the 45,000 in attendance as well as those who volunteered their time to make this conference happen.
I unfortunately was about two and a half hours late the first night because of my inability to get off work before noon but I showed up right at the time God had planned. When I got there I had already missed the first main session of the event in which Louie Giglio spoke and Chris Tomlin led worship so needless to say I was very bummed by the time I entered the World Congress Center to register. When I entered the building I was overwhelmed with the amount of people walking to their family groups. The lady at the desk gave me a packet that had a purple bracelet in it but then I explained that I had no clue where to go so she switched me from that color to a green one and more importantly a striped green one. Their room was right beside where I registered. This sounds very insignificant but this little change was all God because little did I know that I knew four people in this group and most importantly that I would meet 7 new people that would eventually become my family in a matter of 48 hours. These 7 come from different states in the U.S. but they all have a love of Christ and are all attending this conference hoping that God will give them answers to different things in their own personal lives. When I walked into this hall with 5,000 fellow striped green wearers I did not know what to think other than I hope I have a group with the people I know and well God had different plans. After we all met and broke some of the ice we dove right into the word of God in Ephesians. One of the best parts of having a random group of people studying the word of God is everyone has their own interpretation of what it means and also we all have different life experiences that we can bring to the table that could in turn help out those within the group. When I left our family group that night I knew we had something special but honestly excitement was building because I wanted to hear the David Crowder Band for the late night concert. DCB brought the house down and had the 45,000 wanting more but we all had to leave the Dome and get some sleep because it was going to be a long four days.
When leaving the dome on Monday night I had one thing on my mind, sleep! I drove to our hotel but took a different route and then had to drive around the downtown area of Atlanta because of the multiple one way streets. This detour opened my eyes to the poverty level in this city and many others in the world. I saw over 100 homeless people and I could not believe it. Yes I've seen the homeless before but never of this magnitude and I, like many others, just put this harsh reality into the back of our minds and move on with life. I forgot to mention that on Monday night it was spitting snow and was very very cold. I struggled to fall asleep that night knowing there was so many people just in this city that have no homes and have to resort to using other peoples trash to manufacture something to keep them warm. Before getting to Passion every person attending was asked to bring towels and socks so they could use this mass donation to give to those homeless and needy in the city. I was frustrated because I had to stop and buy socks for this Monday afternoon but after seeing the homeless I knew that what I donated would help keep a few people warm for many many nights. My thoughts have changed toward this and I am going to try and give back to my community both with my money and time.
As I close this portion of the blog regarding my experiences at Passion, I ask that you all pray for the 45,000 who were in attendance. We all are back at our normal lives now on fire for God and ready to make a difference. I also ask that you all consider donating something to a local charity so those less fortunate might be able to have a better life. Remember there are hundreds if not thousands of homeless in Atlanta Georgia right now and probably some in your hometown. I also ask that you might open your Bibles today and read some of Ephesians in not the whole book. (It's Short) God Bless you all and I will be blogging about the rest of my experiences at Passion 2012 in the days ahead. Have a wonderful day.
Ephesians 1:11-14 "11 In him we were also chosen,[e] having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory."
