One weekend in September we were incredibly blessed by a visit from our mentors, Phil and Sam Meadows. Phil and Sam are the founders of the Inspire Movement, a non-profit ministry that helps inspire and equip people to hunger for more of Jesus and follow his way of life. Anthony and I worked alongside the Meadows for 3 years in Wilmore, Kentucky, and without them, we would not be doing what we are doing in St. Louis. We are so grateful for them and for the time they took to lead a Learning Community with our church community all day Saturday, and to join us in worship and a time of ministry on Sunday.
Our learning community reflected on the concept of God with us. So often we live like God is above us, talking down to us, or he is ahead of us, and we have to bring him into our present reality. When in fact, Jesus is amongst us, near as our next breath in every moment, and the Holy Spirit helps reveal him to us. And as Phil stated, it is our job to make the invisible, visible. In our prayers, our relationships, our worship, our work, and our interactions. This is such a significant concept to our lives and faith, and was incredibly powerful for us as a community to reflect on together. We have all left this weekend encouraged and inspired with the power of the Holy Spirit, and the implications of what this means for each of our lives in St. Louis. Anthony and I personally saw a move of God in our community this weekend, and we are praising him for it!
Testimonies from the weekend
“Our time together could be described as a thin space — where heaven seemed to invade our present reality. Jesus’ presence was with us! We were not only encouraged and inspired by the teaching, but I believe, more importantly, we encountered the love of Jesus in a deeper way. I believe we (our church community) will look back on this weekend as a moment in time when the Holy Spirit sparked deeper longing and desire for more of Jesus. We believe there’s more for us as we draw closer to Jesus together!”
“Spending an entire weekend with people who are just seeking Jesus was so invigorating for my soul. To learn from people who have had more life experiences who can impart their wisdom, have open and honest conversations, worship together, laugh together-the weekend was truly a gift for me. Our time left me more aware of Jesus’ presence in my day to day while also longing for even more of Him.”
