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Paradise 08 is one day of undistracted worship at the geographical center of the nation in Kansas on May 25.

Will you be there?

What makes the Paradise event unusual is not so much the emphasis on, but the de-emphasis on all things not directly involved with glorifying Jesus.

If there is a distraction to be found that will keep students from pure worship, every effort is being made to remove it. This isn’t just lip service. By rule of the event’s constitution, nothing is to echo from the huge speakers except music and scripture. There will be no sales pitches. No sermons, as well-intentioned as they may be.

Skilled musicians will be present, including some “big” names, but those names will not be revealed and they will not be seen. No person on stage, no shirt sales, no CD sales, no release dates to promote, and no follow-up event or organization to build. This isn’t just a spoken promise: it is in writing. You can read the constitution at www.paradise08.com.

There is nothing inherently wrong with programs, messages, events, or CD sales. But, as we say often in regard to Paradise: NOT THIS TIME!

Will youth pastors, college students, and young adults get in cars, vans and busses on or about Saturday, May 24 and journey to be on the Paradise field by dawn of Sunday, May 25?

In case you are deciding whether or not to make the pilgrimage, consider a few reasons to get a ticket now.

1. This will be the only Paradise event ever in history.

It is written explicitly into the constitution that governs Paradise, Inc. that at the end of the event, after all the bills have been paid, any remaining money will be sent back to the group leaders. All the names of the participants will be given to a third party accounting firm for safekeeping, and Paradise Inc. will be dissolved. There is no organization being built; there is no second, third, or fourth event. If you miss Paradise 08, you could miss a slice of history. There will be no second chance.

2. The conversation could not be more important.

In youth ministry relationship building, the road trip is indispensable. Relationships will develop and deepen as you trek to any location that is far away. But on this trip, your conversation will center on what undistracted worship of Jesus Christ as the King of kings looks like, feels like and sounds like.

There will be no conversation about which band was best, who was the best speaker, or who had the best light show. It will be only for and only about, undistracted worship. Can you think of any conversation that is more important to have with students?

I encourage you to grab a group of students into whose lives you are pouring, grab a few tents, pack a cooler of food, and make the pilgrimage.

The conversation there and back will be priceless.

3. It could be a “God thing.”

Over the past year, I’ve been in hundreds of hours of conversation about Paradise. I liken Paradise to a brand new cool-looking toy on the kindergarten playground. Some people think it’s cool; some think it’s a little weird. Some understand it and really want it, while others run the other way due to lack of understanding.

Many try to categorize it as a Baptist thing, a conservative thing, a para-church thing, or a Catholic thing. Some say it’s an old-school dream; others say it is a young person’s ideal. Quite frankly, everyone probably has part of it right and part of it wrong.

Aside from all the talk, there is a large group of very diverse people, from different streams of the church, who have felt an unmistakable call from God to be part of the preparations. You can see a list of them at www.paradise08.com.

We don’t claim to know why the call came, but it is as real as our next breath. I happen to be one of those people who feel called by God to lean into this vision. And when God does this to a large group of brothers and sisters, we should all listen, and ask Him what He wants us to do with it.

Paradise will be just a day. But that day, and the creation of it, could be a God thing. Maybe it is because it is just one day, just for Jesus. I think God would be pretty excited about that.

Join us for Paradise on Sunday, May 25, 2008.

Seven worship periods will run from sunrise to sunset. A special time – the sacred assembly – will run from noon to 4 p.m. There will be times of worship together in small groups, times for solitude, and times where you can roam over 600 acres of woods and trails and streams, “being still” in God’s sacred creation.

Please log onto http://www.paradise08.com and buy a ticket for you and a few of your closest friends. Don’t miss this slice of time in which undistracted worship could be an unforgettable moment for you and your students.