April 2 – “It is enough ... Easter 2018”

Once again God did some remarkable things at the Seaside Easter celebration.  He never ceases to amaze me.  It is enough that we saw a full moon and the sunrise in all its glory at the same time.

It is enough that the pelicans flew over time and time again in formation, and were followed by a smattering of seagulls and terns.

It was enough that two Jamaica Beach police officers volunteered their time to direct the huge volume of traffic.  They were even able to garner permission for people to park along the main thoroughfare for the duration of the service. 

It is enough that the Jamaica Beach Volunteer Fire Department once again partnered with us to provide the trailer stage, a generator, and some power lights for setup.  And wouldn’t you know it?  When not one but two medical emergencies arose in the crowd, who should be on site to respond, but a fireman, the fire chief, and a paramedic.  Not to mention Nurse April who also offered her services. 

It is enough that in spite of the highest tide we have ever had on an Easter Sunday morning, there were once again over 700 people in attendance on the beach.  They simply found new perches on the dunes and further back from the trailer stage. 

It is enough that two or three hundred of them stopped by the church for breakfast afterward. 

It is enough that 25 or 30 children enjoyed the Easter egg hunt. 

It is enough that 45 more people came for the ten o’clock service. 

And yes, it is enough that fifteen people joined me in the cold waters of the Gulf to be baptized. 

But what always strike me are the stories behind the numbers.  They are what matters anyway. 

The folks who met up at the church on Thursday to get things set up discovering just how much behind the scenes preparation in necessary to accomplish such an event. 

Our events coordinator who came down with the flu, but through her mom still sent 100 breakfast burritos.

Mr. Bob, our greeter extraordinaire, who also was hit with the flu, who texted that he was praying anyway.

Our church’s lawyer who stopped me at breakfast and prayed with me right then.

That little girl who found the golden egg won the brand new children’s Adventure Bible.  And it “just so happened” that her mom and dad had just been talking about transitioning her from a Bible story book to a “real” Bible.

The man who stopped me after the service and introduced himself as “an entertainer.”  He said, “I live in Spring (about two hours from Galveston).  I don’t go to church because I work every Saturday night and don’t get home until extremely late.  But I heard about this service on the beach, and for some reason I got about an hour’s sleep and drove on down.  This was amazing.  I’ll be back.”  Not sure how his God story will end up, but he sure got a few seeds planted in his life. 

And the God stories of those being baptized were especially riveting.

The Granddad and his granddaughter who just started living with them full-time.

The lady who found out about our service on FaceBook and messaged to ask if she could be baptized.

The young man who is new to the area looking for a new start, and began it with a relationship with Jesus and baptism.

The Texas A&M freshman who was there with his Dad.

The lady from Virginia who was heading to Houston for cancer treatment.  She was a believer, but had never followed through with baptism.

The family of five who all wanted to be baptized together.  When I asked about their relationship with Jesus, Mom and Dad were certain of theirs.  The youngest daughter was not yet two, so we decided we would wait until she was old enough to decide for herself.  The middle daughter, about five or six, was extremely excited and she also knew for sure and was ready.  The older daughter, about eleven or twelve, was a different story, however.  She seemed a bit withdrawn or shy.  I took the time to talk with directly.  She told me that she had “never done that praying thing,” but she really wanted to.  So right there on the beach she prayed and entered the family of God. 

And then there was the lady who is a fairly recent transplant recipient.  She got special permission from her team of doctors to be baptized as long as she took a shower as soon as she could after. 

And that sweet little lady was the one I saw back at breakfast, listening as a gentleman poured his heart out to her about how God has been dealing with him over the course of the last fourteen days.  She listened attentively, then gently reached way up and placed her hand on his shoulder, and said, “Well, then you need to pray this prayer with me.”  She proceeded to lead him in the sinners’ prayer.  When she said “Amen,” he looked up and made eye contact with me, as if to say, “What just happened?”  I asked if the prayer really spoke the desire of his heart, and he assured me that it did.  So we welcomed him into the Kingdom as well. 

John 19:30 says, “Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.”

Jesus, you declared that “It is finished.”  After yesterday we have seen that “It is enough” as well.  Thank you for being our Enough.  Amen.