As Leslie, Jen, and others will share with you this morning, Start the Party! is our theme for VBS this year, and I cannot think of a more fitting focus for our faith family! We have A LOT to celebrate when we consider all that God has done, all He is still doing, AND all He has in store in the days ahead!
In chapter ten of his book Courageous Leadership, Bill Hybels talks about reflecting on the lives of some of his favorite leaders in both the Old and New Testaments, praying that their strengths would find greater expression in his life. Let me share a few of his thoughts under the heading, “God, make me like Nehemiah.” (warning, spoiler alert!)
While Nehemiah’s leadership has much to teach us, what I most needed to learn from him was his commitment to celebration.
After 52 days of non-stop rebuilding, Nehemiah arranged a huge celebration for all his faithful workers. He wanted them to savor their achievement, to honor each other’s hard work and praise God for sustaining them during their efforts.
Nehemiah raised the bar for me when it comes to celebration. He reminded me that all work and no celebration is a formula for wearing people down and draining their joy.
Bill Hybels (Courageous Leadership)
As leaders, WE must not let that happen. WE must be as intentional in planning celebrations as we are in setting goals, assigning tasks, and organizing responsibilities. (Please notice that I capitalized, bolded, underlined, italicized, and highlighted the word WE with purple. This has been a powerful reminder to me as well.)
WE need to create regular, intentional opportunities to share stories and remind each other of God’s remarkable grace in providing through challenges and circumstances.
WE need to laugh, and cry, and express our gratitude, and enjoy one another while we celebrate what God did in and through us – for His glory – as often as we possibly can.
WE need to take every opportunity to demonstrate to each other and to those around us:
- our love for one another (John 13:35)
- the fulfillment we find in being an active part of a faith family (1 Corinthians 12)
- and the joy we have in following Christ (Romans 15:13; Galatians 5:22)
And we don’t have to wait until VBS (though I do hope you’re planning to join us for VBS!) We can go ahead… today… and
Start the Party!