In 2005 the course of my life was changed forever.
It was in the fall of that year in the course of a conversation with a close friend that I voiced for the very first time that I sensed God might be leading us to plant a church. These were words were astonishing even for me to hear spoken aloud after spending much of my life avoiding organized religion and it's proponents. Even after committing my life to Christ at the age of sixteen, I had continued to avoid "church people" at all costs.
But our conversation that day had been sparked by a defining moment in my life that had taken place earlier that year. On a fateful winter night in Minneapolis, Christ met me on the balcony of an old Presbyterian church and He said something that I will never forget. In a time of worship and prayer, Jesus essentially said, "Aaron, you have been seeking to love me while hating on my bride, and I am not done with her yet."
Since then, God has had me on a journey of character and calling in which He has been slowly and, at times, painfully stripping me of my cynicism. He has been teaching me how to be a creator rather than just a consumer, an infusor of hope rather than a defuser of hope, a servant first and a leader second, an artist in a world so often full of critics.
Nearly six years, three states, two schools and an internship later, we now find ourselves just five days away from seeing that calling placed on our lives so long ago become a reality. I am excited. I am terrified. I am everything inbetween. We stand at the precipice, and while many voices in our heads tell us to turn back, that it'll never work, that it is destined for failure, our souls tell us otherwise as God turns our attention to His promises, encouraging us to be strong and courageous, beckoning us to jump.
For those reading this, I thank you for following us on this journey and for your many kind words and prayers along the way. And now I ask you to continue to pray for us, Mosaic, and the city of Lincoln. The resistance has been substantial. Ephesians 6:12 has never been so real to us as it has been in this season. Sickness, heartbreak, injuries, ongoing ailments, job loss, technical issues, delayed shipments, lost keys, damaged equipment, and deeply struggling relationships have all been a part of just this past week alone.
In a way, however, it only excites me further for what is to come. The darkness is trembling. I can feel it. Something significant is afoot. The Enemy shakes with fear and outrage. Frantically, he reinforces strongholds, shouting lies amongst us, desperately trying to slow down what God is preparing to do in our city, of which I know Mosaic is to be a part. He knows as well as I that he stands powerless before the King of Kings and His gospel.
It won't be perfect. It'll be messy. It won't all go according to plan. Few things ever do. It'll be hard. And at times, it'll involve much pain and struggle and sacrifice. But to join God in His work to see people filled with the life and freedom and healing that is in Christ, it is well worth all of it. It is a movement that God has been in for thousands of years.
And it cannot be stopped.
"Therefore, in the present case, I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.” - Acts 5:38-39
