In 1997 the team came to West Meadows Baptist Church and Academy for the first time. Since that time we have had the privilege of coming here several times. Pastor Bruce Armstrong has been faithful serving the Lord on the outskirts of Jacksonville and has become a good friend over these years.
There were quite a few new students at the school, but most were into the competition from the start. It looked like the Army Rangers were going to take the week, but the Marine Recon made a push at the end of the week and handily won. This was Recon team’s fourth victory at West Meadows (by far the team with the most victories there).
One of the mornings before the evening rallies, one of our team captains was out early in the morning inviting teens at bus stops. He stopped and began to invite a group out when one of the teens reacted with excitement because he had come two years before. One of the teens asked the team captain, “Do you guys have basketball?” The young man who had come two years earlier burst with a touch of sarcasm, “Do they have basketball? Yeah, with a four foot ball!” A couple nights later several of those teens walked to the church from a nearby subdivision. Almost all of them responded to the invitation that night. One of them who had gotten saved brought someone else the final night who also trusted the Lord.
Several teens really dealt with sin issues in their lives. One young lady dealt with some issues in her life and gave a wonderful testimony and pointed out that now she realized she could help others.
One young man came to give a testimony. The team captain asked him what he wanted to say. He responded, “About going heaven.” After questioning some more the captain realized the boy was not saved and wanted to be saved. He was able to lead him to Christ.
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