In 1994 our team came for the first time to Midland, Michigan to Calvary Baptist Church. We had a high night of 190 that year with over 240 teens attending. Although we did not hit those numbers we did have a high night of 114 and a total attendance of around 145.
The Christian school has grown since we were last here. When the team arrived, the anticipation was already building. The competition proved to be intense from the beginning of the week. The Rangers began to pull ahead midway through the week and there was no turning back. On Friday evening, they ended up taking the week by a hefty lead.
The Lord worked in hearts in the Christian school throughout the week. There was very little movement during the week. There were some who responded to the message on bitterness and some responded during the emphasis of getting right with God. Even though there were not many visibly responding to the invitations, God was working in hearts. On Friday, when we gave an invitation for those who had done business with God during the week (publically or privately), many responded. We had a good time for a few minutes as they prayed and I encouraged them in their walk of faith.
On our first rally night we were thrilled with some older teens who responded to the invitation. One young man was definitely more Gothic in his appearance. When he came back the next night, he didn’t even look like the same young man. The black finger nail polish was gone and so were some of the temporary “dark” tattoos he was wearing. It was a blessing to see God work in his life. We also had a neighbor of the church come with two teenage sons. They live right across the street from the church. One of the sons came for salvation.
On the final night, there were some really impacting testimonies, but things were cut short when it began to pour rain. Several testimonies were given in the rain and then finally the night had to be suspended. There were many waiting to give testimonies who were still in line. That is good problem to have!
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