God has done so much in the last year in my life personally as well in the city of Amarillo that it makes my head spin! Over and over God has brought me back to knowing that His ways are much higher than mine and that our seasons are in His hands. By nature, I’m a planner. And all of you who are fellow Burn Directors immediately began laughing at that. For those of you who may not know, there is nothing about The Burn that can really be planned except for maybe the venues. Even those fall through sometimes and you have to be flexible enough to roll with the punches so to speak. This can really start messing with people like me who thrive on being organized. This past year, my life has been a work in progress. I struggled with the whole “performance” mentality not only in leading worship but also in how I worked. Everything had to be all in row and very structured. However, God is not tamable. He does NOT abide by my rules and regulations. He doesn’t follow my wants. He doesn’t follow me, period! He’s the leader, not me. He is indeed the One who must build this house.

I was once again slammed in the face with this revelation. I did everything I could do to plan for our Burn Preview here in Amarillo and to say that I was a wee bit nervous is a huge understatement! Nothing was going according to my plans. The week that I really needed to be working nonstop on the preparations, I along with every single person in my family came down with the flu. There was no working. There was only sleeping and allowing my body to fight the bug off. In that forced “down time” I was once again smacked in the face with the verse found in Psalm 127:1 (NIV)

Unless the Lord builds the house,

its builders labor in vain.

Unless the Lord watches over the city,

the watchmen stand guard in vain.

This verse has literally been my lifeline over the past month. The Holy Spirit was telling my mind to shut up and realize that this Burn thing was not in my control. It was and is completely God’s. Sean sent this same verse out the night he arrived in Amarillo and I KNEW that this was a very real KEY to this movement.

Fast forward to last Friday night, the night of the Burn Preview here in Amarillo. Kate (Feucht) and I had made a mad dash to my house to pick up the Burn CD’s and when we drove into the parking lot of the venue, I was absolutely astonished at the number of people who were there to hear about Burn 24-7 and Burn Amarillo. We had close to 100 people there who were hungry and thirsty for a move of God in this city and area! This was totally an act of God! As Jeremy and I began to share the vision that God had given us concerning Burn Amarillo, the Holy Spirit invaded that room. I had stepped up onto the platform freaking out a bit because I honestly did not know what I was going to say to all of those people. While my husband shared, I stood there praying silently for God to use my mouth. He spoke these words to me, “Sandy, open your mouth and I will fill it.” The moment I opened my mouth, God took over and spoke. I was gushing forth His vision for my city in those few minutes and I began seeing people begin crying and nodding and being totally captivated by the Spirit of God. I guess what I’m trying to get across is this; all God requires from us is total submission. That is much easier said than done. But I completely am 100% convinced that God did what He did on Friday night because Jeremy and I completely laid every little detail about that evening into the hands of Jesus. As I sat and listened to Sean and Melissa (Gilbreath - Director Burn DFW) share from their hearts, I was once again captivated by God and I knew (and know) that I am exactly where God wants me doing what He created me to do. I am to BURN and I am to sound out the call to gather others so that we may BURN together in unity and watch God change our city and region!

I want to close with some quotes from people who came to the Burn Amarillo Preview:

“LOVE IT! It’s pure, it’s honest, and not diluted!” - Broc Carter, Amarillo, Texas

“One of the main things I saw at the Preview was this…there were a few moments when everyone seemed to be engaged with the Lord and I could hear pockets of spontaneous worship, or a “new” song coming forth and I have not experienced that in this city at a “multi-church” function. There was not any competition or let’s do worship this way or that way, but we were just engaged and flowing together. It was not about a concert, or event, but about encountering the love of the Father and even if for one brief moment, bringing a little bit of heaven down to earth.” - DeLynn Novak, Amarillo, Texas

Experience The Burn Amarillo Preview last week was just that, an experience, but then again, it always is. I enjoy going to the Burn because it is a free environment to worship, both for someone on the stage and someone at the alter or in the pews/chairs.

I’ve experienced both sides thus far and even though I am very new to this, I am looking forward to God moving MIGHTILY in this “Freedom of Worship”! - Kevin Briles, Amarillo, Texas