by Spencer Farmer

As I sitting here trying to process the emotions, thoughts and feelings of the first full day of Connect, I feel raw.

How do you capture the flavor and essence of hundreds of friends and soon-to-be-friends reconnecting to refresh our bodies, souls, and minds? These are the late nights, the fast paced early mornings, the thought-provoking whirlwind of the moment-to-moment.

Connect is a space for our tribal expressions, for our missional explorations and our awe-inspired standing in the presence of God. It is a place where the kingdom(e) always looks like Jesus. It is the Dome under which God is always King. A place where we “mimitai,” we mimic our Jesus. It is a place for revolution, a time for movement.

Connect is a time for questions. And no matter what question is being asked, or who is asking, the answer is always Jesus. (And I’m not kidding).

As Greg Boyd has taught us of “Revolting Beauty” (the theme of Connect), he has challenged us as “the tribe of kingdom people” to participate in real life.

Here are a few thoughts that I’ll take away from this day:

“You know the sickness by how radical the cure required for it!” (On the cure of the Cross.)

“God’s love reflects our worth based on how much He is willing to pay for us. We cannot be worth any more than we are worth right now!”

“We pledge our life moment-to-moment to Jesus!” (We must practice the presence of God.)

“Bless everyone. Bless them at all times!”

At the end of the day I find myself completely poured out before Jesus. I am a snotty, crying mess, free to be so in His presence and in the presence of my brothers and sister here at Connect. Overpowered by His love for me. Wow! What a start to the week.

Interact with Spencer about his article by visiting his blog at Four Wild Geese.