As each year comes to a close our staff gathers to celebrate what God did throughout the year in the church. Pastor Steve shares what God is speaking to him about for the following year regarding vision and direction. A few years back, Pastor began to speak about the word, ‘Amaze’. He encouraged that as a staff and Jesus followers we are called to amaze with our work, amaze with our speech, and amaze with our faith. As he was speaking the presence of God filled the room so powerfully you could hear a pin drop.
In the years since, we reference that moment as one where it was evident that God was planting something deep in the staff. To amaze has become one of our core values – to amaze our leaders, each other, the church and God. I thought this concept originated from Pastor until I ran across it in scripture.
Luke 7 …Jesus was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him, “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one ‘go’ and he goes and that one ‘come’ and he comes. I say to my servant ‘do this’ and he does it. When Jesus heard this, He was amazed at him and turning to the crowd following him He said, “I tell you I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” [Luke 7:1-10]
This passage depicts a moment where Jesus Christ, God Himself, was amazed. What amazes me is that anything amazes God. That anything would be so out of the ordinary, so unexpected that it gives God pause. The God who asks Job where he was when He laid the Earth’s foundation, who set its footing as the stars sang and the angels shouted for joy. The God that journeyed to the springs of the sea and comprehends the vast expanse of the earth. The God who gave the horse its strength, whom commands the eagles to soar. He can be amazed?
The universe-maker still allows Himself to marvel at the actions of mortal men.
We find Jesus amazed at only two things in scripture: great faith and lack of faith. The constant is Faith – it still has the ability to make God marvel.