The Sun will come up!

Today and tomorrow my thoughts are in Springfield, Missouri! While we lived there for most of those eight years we attended Oak Grove A/G. I taught in the girl's club, sang in the choir, played the piano, for one period I directed the choir, let's just say I was as busy as I could be in the local church while I was the National Director of the A/G Girl's Clubs and working crazy hours and traveling the world! Those were good times!

But on Easter my thoughts go to one incredible event. The Sunrise service. The Sunday School class that we attended was led by Marilyn. She is a go-getter in the kingdom of God. She doesn't let any grass grow under her feet! She is an interior designer and owns her own company. She is one classy lady! A prayer warrior, a great teacher, and most of all a Godly lady. Under her leadership our Sunday School class started a sunrise service in Jordan Valley Park. There would just be a dozen of us on those cold, wet Missouri Easter mornings. We would carry the keyboard in and sing those beautiful Easter hymns and someone would give a devotional, the sun would come up and we would go eat breakfast, then on to morning Easter service. Some years I played the piano with fingerless gloves it was so cold! My heels would sink into the ground and make me stand tipsy turvy....good days!



But on the fourth year of the sunrise service in the park something happened! Our Sunday School class went to the Tower Club as a group for breakfast. This restaurant overlooks the little city of Springfield and Hammon's Field, where the Springfield Cardinals play. It was an exciting time, old-timers, young families, singles, well nearly our entire Sunday School class was there and Denny said as he looked out through those huge window panes overlooking the Hammon's Field, "Next year we will hold the service there!"



Marilyn grabbed ahold of what we now know to be a prophetic word and ran with it! She contacted businesses in Springfield to help sponsor this endeavor, got handbills made, billboards in town, invited the churches and it happened! Even the Springfield Cardinals organization makes Hammon's Fields available free of cost. If it should rain we go to the training facility. The first year we looked kind of sparse in that huge stadium but now in the seventh year of having it in the stadium the crowd is picking up!



It is so very majestic when the sun is just starting to come up and the "Triumphant Trumpeters" begin the service with Christ Arose! Wow! incredible sound. 15 trumpeters from Evangel University in gorgeous harmony begin the fanfare. Tomorrow Pastor Ron, from Oak Grove A/G will lead in prayer, a college pastor from Missouri State will read the scripture, Mike Shildt, the new manager of the Springfield Cardinals will give a testimony and the preaching will come from the major of the Salvation Army.




Needless to say as I received the email this week my heart filled up with joy. Knowing the history of the sunrise community service makes me so proud that we were part of the beginnings when it was just our Sunday School class in the park and now under the leadership of Marilyn it has become a community "happening"! God is so good. I only wish I could be there tomorrow.



Tomorrow will be the eleventh year for the sunrise service. Denny called Marilyn this morning to see if she needed some ushers! He made himself available! I really like back stories so there you have it, the back story for the Springfield, MO sunrise service. It is a service but it is mostly a celebration. HE IS RISEN!