We finally arrived in St. Louis on Sunday morning. Our delayed flight from Seattle meant we missed our connection in Chicago, and the next (and last) flight to St. Louis was canceled that evening. We got a “Distressed Traveler’s” voucher for hotel, caught a shuttle to it, and had five hours before heading back to the airport for an early morning flight. Oh, the adventure of it all!
Urbana ‘09’s in full swing, its focus being on the fact that Jesus came to dwell among us, and we need to take Him into our “neighborhoods” – perhaps that’s the inner city, maybe it’s the place we work, perhaps it’s a remote African village or a downtown office. Wherever we spend our time, that’s our neighborhood, and Jesus wants to dwell there.
This morning, a young black man named Ryan led the singing. Wow – what a voice! He started by saying, “In my neighborhood, we sweat when we worship. C’mon, everyone, let’s sweat!” And then the music and singing began. How fun to sing and praise God with 15,000 others from around the world.
The exhibition hall has about 300 mission displays and booths. There’s something for everyone, from groups who stress caring for the environment to those sponsoring high adventure mission trips, freeing children from slavery, and working in orphanages. The list of opportunities seems endless….and good thing, because the needs are endless, too.
It’s 12:45 p.m. now. The exhibition hall opens in 15 minutes, and we’ll be at our booth then to speak with and encourage those who stop by. We’re praying for God to open our eyes and ears and mouths while we’re here – too see those who need a good word, to truly hear what they say (not just give them our IM spiel), and to speak the words they need to hear.
Gotta go. I hope my feet can hold out. Yesterday they really hurt by the end of the day – walking and standing on concrete floors for hours takes a toll.
Have a good day, everyone!
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