Tico Tuesday, January 30th

Have I ever told you how much I love my church?

If I haven't, let me tell you, I do. Very much. This past weekend we had our first annual summit for the leaders of all the Vida Abundante churches. Those who couldn't come personally from some sister churches (Uruguay, Chile, and a Certain island) sent greetings via video. It was amazing to have 1400 of us gathered together under one roof. It was a rich time of worship and teaching, and we all tried to make the most of the brief moments we had to share together.
Three of the expositors were from Vida Abundante churches, and we were also graced with the presence of Dr. Serafín Contreras. For me, he's one of those dear saints (like Dr. Bob Frederichs and Jack Voelkel) that just emanates the love of Jesus. (I pray I'll be like that when I get older!) Serafín commented that preachers are like table servers and God is the Chef. Well, I'll tell you, our servers did a fantastic job in delivering what the Chef had for us! We ingested rich teachings on biblical sexuality, focused ministry, understanding the Church, determinative leadership, and stages of life and ministry as compared with the various tunics Joseph wore throughout his life. It hit the spot over and over again!
Friday night we also had an ordination service, since many of the pastors of our sister churches has never been ordained. That was a brief, but moving time.
It is so encouraging  to know that we're all in this together and that God is at work in and through each of us as individuals, as members of a local church, as members of the Federation of Vida Abundantes, and, most importantly, as members of the Church universal. No wonder Jesus prayed for unity...
I'm so grateful to be on this journey with you. Thank you for walking with me.
May the love of Jesus fill us and become more a part of us each day,
Carrie