hillsong united live

 

Last Saturday morning we received an invitation to the Hillsong United Live concert. When Andrew said the words, I literally shot up from the couch and asked him, "For real?" I heard about it on the radio months ago, but because money is so tight I didn't think we'd actually get to go, so I put it out of my mind and tried not to think about it even though I really wanted to go.

Hillsong United Live is popular for their worship songs and albums. We sing many of their songs at church and some of them have come to mean a great deal to me personally. I wanted to see them perform live, but I had my qualms. Their music and lyrics are so reverent, so joyful, so real. How would they measure up in person? Would they be cheesy, speak too much Christianese, or worse, be phony and make the concert all about them? After all, I had come to respect them and feel a camaraderie with them as I sang and worshipped along with them at home and in my car. Would going to the concert disappoint me?

We arrived Saturday night and the arena was buzzing with excitement. We found our seats and settled in. My youngest sister, Stacey, called to tell me that she and her friends had picked up the tickets they had been given from the will call booth and they had amazing seats. They were downright giddy and I could hear the excitement over the line. Floor seats, front row. She and I text messaged like crazy so that we could locate one another among the thousands filing into the arena. This big sister felt comforted knowing exactly where she was even though there were 3 levels separating us. Soon after we waved like crazy to each other, the lights went dark and the crowd cheered and screamed.

The performers came onto the stage and the music filled the space. My qualms were relieved. This night would only be about One Person's glory and He wasn't one of them wielding a guitar or microphone on that stage, but He was in the room. This must be called a concert because there are performers and there is live music, but other than that the connotation that goes with the word concert ends there. The lyrics came up on two big screens for those of us who did not know all the words by heart. This was a worship service. A 3 hour long worship service and it was amazing. The band was humble and gracious. They were fabulous musicians and singers. They led the arena in song very well. And it was all about Jesus. And my heart was full.

I looked down at Stacey often and saw her singing her heart out with raised hands. It was beautiful. I teared up on more than one occasion.
  

At one point the band left the stage for the night. I had no doubt that they would return for an encore. In the meantime, while the arena was dark, the whole audience continued singing the chorus to the last song they had sung. The WHOLE audience. A Capella. It was incredible and I never wanted it to end because it felt like I was peaking through a slit in the doorway of heaven. A vast multitude of people singing to King Jesus. It felt perfect and right and good.

I look forward to the days ahead when those "nights" are the norm and not the exception. It reminded me of the famous C.S. Lewis quote, "If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world."

The link below is a play list of Hillsong United music and much of it we sang on Saturday night. I hope you will take a listen and enjoy.

YouTube Playlist