Overflow

It was a privilege to journey with our eighteen students from Spokane First Church to Florida and experience Nazarene Youth Conference (NYC) for a third time. Once again, thank you church for your support in getting our students there.

The theme for this NYC was overflow. Building from Romans Chapter 15 verse 13:

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in faith so that you overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (CEB).

The creative team behind the event incorporated this overflow theme into all aspects of the event. Each worship service focused on one aspect of water found in scripture including: overflow, spring, rain, current, river and waterfall.

I encourage you to explore the recordings of these services which are all on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/@nazarene_youth_conference

From the moment we left Spokane until we returned home each day was jam packed with activity. I and our students were exhausted at moments along the way, but I was impressed with their good attitudes and intentional efforts to make the most of the experience. I want to just briefly share what was my favorite part of the experience.

As many students have recounted to me, and I can affirm for myself, there is something incredibly powerful about gathering with over ten thousand worshipers all directing our praise to Jesus Christ. My favorite part by far was just watching our students engage in the times of worship, surrendering themselves to God’s presence and focusing on Him.

I can’t help but wonder if these experiences are somewhat like the scene which is described in Revelation 7:

9 After this I looked, and there was a great crowd that no one could number. They were from every nation, tribe, people, and language. They were standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They wore white robes and held palm branches in their hands. 10 They cried out with a loud voice:

“Victory belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

11 All the angels stood in a circle around the throne, and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell facedown before the throne and worshipped God, 12 saying,

“Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and always. Amen.”

I genuinely love our teens. I loved getting to journey with them. Let us commit to continue praying that the seeds which were planted in Tampa Florida will flourish and grow into beautiful works of God in the lives of our students. Let us pray that God’s Spirit would be seen and felt and experienced as a holy overflow in their lives. I personally pray that this experience would be contagious in my life and the corporate life of Spokane First Church. Lord this is our prayer.

Pastor Shawn Stevenson