Dear Evergreen Family:
Happy birthday Evergreen! October 17, 1999, marked the first Sunday service of this great church. Evergreen is 21 this week! A great milestone to celebrate.
The number 21 is more exciting than we realize. 21 means a lot. It means that over the years, about 130,000 persons have worshipped God at Evergreen (I’m counting individuals as many times as they have attended worship). This is staggering, really. 130,000 worship encounters. Only in heaven will we fully comprehend the total impact of all those encounters, and I believe we will find that knowledge overwhelming.
The number 21 gets even more exciting when we realize this means that we’ve sung about 520,000 songs! Yes, half-a-million songs sung (I’m counting each of the 130,000 persons singing four songs at each service). This is even more staggering. We know how singing a single song can change us, for a day or for good. Imagine the effect of half-a-million songs sung. Mind boggling.
Now for the ridiculous. 21 years also means that 260,000,000 words of a message have been heard (130,000 persons multiplied by the average 2,000-word message). Has a single word or phrase in a Sunday message ever pierced your heart? Now, try to comprehend the effect of a quarter of a billion words. Wow. (I fully realize that a quarter of a billion words spread out over 21 years is one thing, while a quarter of a billion words in one sitting would surely have the opposite effect.)
All of this is not even scratching the surface of 21 years of service, relationships, mission, and teaching. Evergreen’s 21 years have been astronomically significant. Being a part of Evergreen means being a part of something God-sized.
Now picture the next 21 years. Picture what God will be able to do with our humble efforts to exalt, experience, and extend Christ into the world around us. If we “squint,” we can see it. We need to be able to see it. The more we can see, the more it will be. It is an honor to be on this journey with you.
May God bless us all.
Your Fellow Minister in Christ,
Mark