Dear Church Family,
With the holiday season right around the corner, I want to update you all on The Lights at Morning Star. As a leadership team, we have decided not to do The Lights this year. We have enjoyed putting on this event for three of the last four years, and we have seen lots of great community response, with close to 15,000 people participating last year. So why would we take a break from something so many people have enjoyed?
PRIORITY. It takes hundreds of staff and volunteer hours to pull off an event of this magnitude, and that cost impacts our staff and volunteer base well into the new year. Honestly, by the time we felt like we had recovered from last year’s Lights, it was past time to start for this year.
OVERALL IMPACT. We have no doubt that the community appreciates The Lights at Morning Star and we love helping the area become more aware of Salem Angels, but it has been harder to see the long-term impact of the Lights leading people to pursue a Jesus-first life. We understand that some things can’t be measured this side of heaven and we are confident God has used this event in ways we don’t know, however, we believe it is wiser to invest our time, money, and resources in other ways this year.
We are open to doing The Lights in the future and we’ll be seeking the Lord as to what He wants us to do, but if this is going to happen we would want to see some clear signs of strong volunteer and financial commitment before we jump in again.
The Lights began in the time of the COVID-19 lockdown. Much of Salem was closed and online was how people connected. And then The Lights shone in the darkness! Carloads of people drove through our campus and experienced the true meaning of Christmas through creative storytelling and personal contact. Many, many volunteers and investors caught the vision and made it happen. To each one of you, thank you! It was glorious. We’re looking forward to seeing what God has in mind for the future.
Your questions and input are always welcome and appreciated, feel free to email me (john@mstar.church) or by using the button below:
In all things, Jesus first.
John Jaskilka
Executive Pastor