This is the third time the team has been to Trinity in the last few years. Pastor Ken Cash is a blessing with whom to labor. I first met Brother Cash in 1997 when he was a youth pastor in Kinston, NC. Ed Goode, the youth pastor, is great to work with as well. The Lord gave us a great week in both the school and evangelism. I believe there were over 30 teens who responded to the salvation invitation.
There were quite of few of the students who responded to the Lord’s working in their hearts during the school chapels. There was a young man early in the week who was wrestling with the call to preach. He prayed at the beginning of the week that if God wanted him to preach someone would come up to him and tell him that he was called to preach. During the week he responded to an invitation and when the team captain, John, counselled him, the boy had circled the area of ‘pride” on the verses sheet that is used in counselling. He started to talk about areas of pride that didn’t seem substantive to John. John, concerned, said, “I brought you back here because it seems you are not surrendered to something God is calling you to do. Is there anything you are not surrendered to?” The young man admitted, “Everybody tells me I should be a preacher, but I do not know if I am called.” John then related to him that he actually brought him back to tell him that he thought he was called to preach. John followed with a question, “Have you ever thought about being a preacher?” He put his head in his hands and said, “I think you just answered that question.” Later in the day he told his parents about what the Lord was doing in his life.
One Christian school young lady came back on Friday to deal with disrespect toward her parents and surrendering to mission field. When she called her dad, he was first concerned that she had bad news and was in trouble, but then she surprised him by apologizing for being disrespectful. After she had gotten things right and was going back to class, her team captain asked her how she was doing. She replied, “I’m doing great . . . now!”
One young lady testified on Friday evening of dealing with hidden sin. She started her testimony this way, “I had done some terrible things that a Christian girl should never do.” She proceeded to tell the audience that she was afraid to talk to her mother. A year passed and when the War of Special Forces came to her school, she related, “My heart was even more burdened than it was before. It felt like something was just clenching my heart all day long and I couldn’t shake it.” She went home and told her mom, “Mom, I have to talk to you.” She continued, “And I took her and we went to my room and I just let it all out. I told her everything. Satan had put a fear in my heart the previous time that I had this burden, ‘You’re mom’s not going to think of you the same. She’s not gonna look at you the same. She’s gonna be so disappointed in you.’ Satan put that fear in my heart and I just couldn’t bear it. And I just let God take the place of that fear. And I came to realize that even if my mom does look at me differently, God’s gonna love me just the same. And if any of you are struggling with this, let me encourage you. Let God take away that fear and it won’t feel so scary and you will feel so much better after you get that off of your chest. So, I really encourage all of you if you have anything that you feel is between you and God, you need to get that out of the way and take care of it as soon as you possibly can.” There were many other powerful testimonies and it was a blessing to hear of truth setting young people free.
We also were grateful for many encouraging salvation decisions. After school one day, the Recon team captain, John, recruited a young man and a young lady. Later the young man came back by John. John asked, “Do you know where any teens are?” He replied, “I’m on my way to a gym, you want to come with me?” Of course John did. On way to the gym, John was able to recruit teens the whole way over there. The young man came on Wednesday, but he didn’t respond to the invitation. John was burdened for him so afterwards he talked to him and he got saved!
Another young man was recruited in front of a flower shop. He was buying flowers for someone. He came on Wednesday all by himself and got saved. One of the team captains, Jonathan, asked him, “Why did you come?” “God, I guess,” he answered, “I don’t usually come to things like this.” The Sunday following he was in church.
John, the Recon captain, saw a mother and two kids in Walmart. He hesitated about inviting them, but finally recruited the son and the mother walked into the conversation. The mother was all for it! They came first night and the son got saved. One of our co-captains talked to the mom and gave her the Gospel. The daughter responded to invitation on Friday and got saved. The mother signed up for her family to ride the bus on Sunday. John was sure glad he invited them!
On Friday another young man got saved. After prayed for salvation, he looked up and said with a chuckle and smile, “I feel good.”
John, the Recon team captain, saw a young man walking into an apartment building. He ran after him to invite him to the War of Special Forces, but by the time he got inside the building, he had gone into one of the apartments. John was not sure which apartment he had gone into. John prayed for direction and then knocked on one of the doors. It was the very apartment the young man was in. He came Friday and got saved.
The week was a great blessing. There is nothing like watching the power of the Gospel in lives!
About the Author
