(Eric here) Having read some of the things written so far about the Consumed 2010 Germany trip, I must admit that I’m feeling rather inadequate. Jamie (published author), Gretchen (semi-pro blogger and soon to be published author) and Lisa (Songwriter, Lyricist and SHOULD be published author) have all crafted incredibly descriptive and compelling narratives describing some of the amazing things that took place in the land of the Bratwurst. And while a few paragraphs can never fully sum up 10 days of a missions trip, their words have bridged the gap between hearing and being there quite well. So, instead of trying to destroy eloquence with my feeble attempts, I figured I’d do what I do best….be a geek and make a video. 🙂

I would like to share one thing I’ve been thinking about over and over again in regards to a portion of our time in Germany. Our purpose for all that we do under the banner of Consumed is both simple and profound at the same time, and if you’ve ever clicked on the ‘about us’ heading at the top of this page you already know what it is. In everything we do we are ambassadors for Christ, attempting to share the message of abundant life (John 10:10) with the world. And wrapped up inside that message – at the very core of it – is this concept of freedom. We just recently celebrated it as a global church body actually – Christ broke the shackles of death. His victory over the bondage of death has provided us the freedom to experience and live out the abundant, overflowing, more than you can begin to imagine life found only in knowing Him. With that being core to the ministry of Consumed – nay, shall I say to the very lives of those involved with Consumed – it was astounding for to begin to understand the story and background of the church in Dorsten, Germany. We learned on this trip – or maybe I just finally began to grasp the concepts – that the church in Germany is shackled to the government of Germany through a taxation system of giving and government guided system of leadership and control. The church in Dorsten – that we’ve now visited twice – was birthed out of the desire to be free from that system!! They broke away from the government system and established themselves as a self-proclaim ‘free church’. The specifics and details of what that all means impacts every aspect of that church body – and being ‘free’ isn’t always the easy or safe road. And as we were there with them on this past trip, I was struck with the thought that we…Consumed…as ambassadors of this message of ultimate freedom, have been led by God to build a relationship with a church who are desperately seeking to live out freedom on a variety of different levels and in very tangible ways. I feel (Lisa will be proud when she reads that!) that our biggest impact on this trip might have come in the form of the encouragement and edification that we hopefully provided the Dorsten Free Church. At least I hope. And for me, to see them pursuing freedom in very tangible ways was compelling – it encouraged me to continue the pursuit of the freedom that Christ provides….to continue to live in the truth that the shackles have been broken, sin and death have been conquered, and there’s a LIFE to be lived!

All Over The World (excerpt) by Matt Redman
Young and old, near and far
there’s a place for ev’ry heart to
join in your song
join in your song
And ev’ry nation tribe and tongue
come together join as one
give glory to God
glory to God

All over the world Your song will resound
All over the world Your praises ring out
We’re living to see You’re name and renown
All over the world

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