Hello, bold and passionate lovers of Jesus!
It is always powerful when we spend 12 hours pouring out our love and adoration on God, but there was something about our Burn falling on Good (news) Friday that took it up to another level! I say “Good (news) Friday” on purpose… the story line for Jesus and his band of radical followers looked anything but good. But because of the Resurrection, we have a Gospel (good news) message to share!
A few people on our intercessory crew mentioned that they really felt that there was a SWEETNESS and TENDERNESS to the worship offered up this month. We also had a sweet time of communion and prayer ministry in the earlier part of the evening. To commune means “to communicate with someone in a very personal and intimate way”, so in reality we were taking communion all night! Psalm 34:8 says “Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him.”
Some of the sweetest times in God’s Presence are during the nightwatch. At midnight, we were still going 30 people strong! At 6am, we had some more intimate time with Jesus with a “Soaking at the Cross” teaching by Duncan Smith. When we take time to understand all that Jesus went through to secure our salvation and healing, it restores in us a holy fear… a reverent awe… and a humble heart of gratitude for the great lengths that God went through to have relationship with us!
I also just wanted to share a really cool testimony. We had a woman donate a sum of money prior to the Burn. She said that she felt that God told her to, and so she did. After the Burn she sent us an email that simply said, “On Thursday, Father told me to sow…. Friday I received a gift double the amount… keep burning!” I’m not sharing this for the purpose of getting donations. I’m sharing this because I want us to remember that God is good, and kind, and He provides for all our needs… and He blesses our obedience! We’re teaching our children (and we’re still learning!) to obey ‘all the way, right away, the right way, and with a happy heart.’ Whether it’s giving, trusting, stepping out in faith, moving left/right, saying yes/no… God wants us to obey with joy, haste, excellence, and faithfulness… and in return we get to experience His fullness!
We want to thank everyone who came out to participate and serve with Burn New Bern this month. We’re made in the image of the Creator and our creative outpourings are just one expression of giving our love back to Him. The atmosphere is changing and we are all working together to prepare a place where Jesus can reign as King!
Blessings and peace,
Sara Thorsby