WOW!
That's all I can say about last night's opening Mass Event.
"Mass Event" refers to the special ceremonies that NYG participants have each night to close out each day of the NYG activities. It is an amazing time with 25,000+ Lutherans of the community of God worshiping and praising God together as one BIG family in Christ Jesus. And unless you have been to one of these, you cannot do it justice in trying to describe it. From the lights, to the music (which you don't even care how very LOUD it is--see Psalm 100 to know what I am talking about.), to the stories and the humor. Here at this time and in this place youth are free to let go and be themselves and to be enthusiastic about their faith and life in Christ.
What an awesome day! We had a district (South Dakota District) event at another hotel near the convention center, where we had a catered luncheon that was very yummy (especially that gigantic piece of XTREME-ly rich chocolate cake...OOOOH yeah--gimme some more of that! Also, we were provided with entertainment from 3-2-1 Improv, a Christian improvisation group that travels all over the country (and sometimes across borders) to share joy and laughter with people. We ate and laughed and had a great time!
The rest of the day was spent doing what we wanted all gearing up to the Mass Opening Event at the Alamo Dome. We finally got Torri her Mexican food. I found out that she enjoys a good Chimichanga as much as I do! (Have you ever tried saying that word..."CHIMICHANGA" Say it fast and loud. It's kind of a funny word) Anyway, we ate at a Mexican restaurant on the riverwalk.
After dinner, we went to the Alamo Dome, the site for all our Mass Events. You have not experienced anything like what it is like to see so many youth and chaperons coming from different directions and converging on to one place. The air was thick with excitement. You could feel the love (No, I'm not kidding about that...there were teens going around giving out free hugs to--EVERYONE). It seemed like forever for the sea of people (was this what it was like for Moses trying to lead Israel to the promised land?) to get to our destination, and once we got there it was more chaos of sorts trying to get to one of the openings for each section of the dome. When we finally made it to a less crowded section, we went in and that's when the music started, and those who were already seated let out a great big cheer! During the Mass Event, there were many singing along, waving their arms, clapping, and some beach balls being batted around different parts of the stadium. It is like one great big giant worship and praise party going on. And our youth were really getting into it.
What a night. Once again, our youth are awesome, and I am proud to be their pastor and help them to continue to grow in their faith and live in their baptismal identities. That's all I have about Day #4. I will share about our Day 5 adventures tonight...unless we get back too late! God's blessings, and I look forward to sharing our special news with you later in the week!
Love in Christ Jesus,
Pastor Dave
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| Jenna & Devin with 3-2-1 Improv guys. |
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| Opening Mass Event |
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