Dear Friends and Family,
It has been a great month. The weather is changing and rain has been forecast for the next 6 months. After my return from Brazil I began gearing up for a busy month. In August I was asked to be a guest speaker at “Gracefest”, a local music festival featuring some of the best Christian musicians in the country. I was asked to give an altar call message at the end of the evening before the Newsboys took the stage. Thousands had been sitting in the sun all afternoon waiting to hear the headliners perform. My message was simple: the tomb of Christ is empty; what does that mean to you? As I read out of the book of Luke, chapter 24, you could feel a hush descend over the crowd and the teens and young adults engaged me immediately. With a short 20 minute window to share the Word and ask for a commitment to Jesus, I was very purposeful in my delivery. As I asked for a show of hands from those who had never given their lives to Jesus, hundreds of hands went up all over the venue. I then asked them to place their hand on their heart and pray with me. The enthusiasm was contagious and provoked me to then pray for those who were sick. The reports from this short ministry opportunity have been wonderful! I’m always honored to be able to share about God’s love in a public venue. It gives the church an incredible voice of hope!
We had an opportunity to share our discipleship tools at a pastors’ gathering in Anaheim last week. The Association of Related Churches was more than generous giving us this advertising space.
The message at Gracefest was one of restoration and reconciliation. It provoked young and old to consider who Jesus is to them personally.
Hundreds raised their hand, acknowledging their need of a saviour who understands.
I was in Baton Rouge for a few days and had the opportunity to speak at Christian Life Academy. I was honored to give back to a school that invested so much in me.
Two years ago, the Lord placed a burden on my heart to begin reaching out to the Native American communities in my area. The suicide rate among these precious teens is one of the highest in the country. A local pastor I met at a Foursquare conference last year called and asked if I would come share at a monthly gathering he was hosting at a local reservation in Riverside. It is actually a federally-funded boarding school for teens that houses over 500 Native Americans from 120 reservations around the USA and Canada. It was a great opportunity and con rmed God’s desire to love a generation for forgotten young people. They were thrilled when I brought out the animals and began to give practical life examples. Even though I was not allowed to openly speak about Jesus, I told them I was a pastor, shared the website and TV show information and even prayed for them at the end, inviting them to come to the stage after the service if they wanted prayer or wanted to talk. This is a great strategy, especially in public schools, because over 100 teens came forward for prayer and to get pictures with the animals.This is a perfect opportunity to openly speak about Jesus and pray for the burdens that these young people carry alone. We have plans to do much much more in these communities next year and believe that God has opened these doors to bring life to those who are most at risk. I will be in Brazil for the rst two weeks of November. Please keep my trip in your prayers. In Jesus’ Name, Chad & Shay