Harvest Link-Feb 20, 2009

The next week I traveled to Dallas the first part of the week for a conference. I had lunch with James Robinson and then spent some time at his home. As always, he offers a lot of wisdom and I am encouraged every time I get around him. Unexpectedly, I also had lunch with Will Graham, Billy Graham's grandson. It was refreshing to be around someone my age who bleeds evangelism. I especially enjoyed hearing some family stories about growing up around Billy and his current health.

From there I went to TN to a great church [Sevier Heights] that I have been to twice before. On Friday night, we had 62 people saved and numerous other decisions on Sat. I preached in 3 services on Sun as well. One of the people saved Friday grew up in church their whole life. By all accounts, people say she is one of the finest people in the church. She has always lived an outwardly clean life and has avoided many of the pitfalls that some of us have fallen victim to. She went to life group Sunday morning and began sharing with some other people [who were unable to attend Friday's services] how she always thought she was a Christian. She explained how God showed her that she was religious but lost. When she was finished, another girl said, "You just shared my story because I also grew up in church but I know I'm not a real Christian!" Right then the person saved Friday night said, "If you want to, I will pray with you right now and you can accept Christ". She led her in a prayer right there at the table in front of the whole class and then said "I'm getting baptized tonight, do you want to do it with me?" That night there were 28 people baptized. It was the most I have seen in one service in a long time. It's not too uncommon for churches to baptize that many every 3 months or so....To have such a Harvest from one weekend was quite a rush! Many other people who couldn't participate on Sun night were scheduled for the coming weeks. It was quite a celebration!

This last weekend I was in Clovis, New Mexico for some pre crusade rallies for our upcoming November crusade. I preached in a cranked and fired up, Spirit filled Nazarene church. These people had a dose of the Holy Ghost and their worship was stirring. They were uncommonly sweet and happy for church folk! I used to attend a Nazarene church when I lived in Kansas City and loved it. I have always liked their emphasis on personal holiness and separation from the world and wish my Baptist counterparts would follow suit. We had about 15-20 saved! That night I did a rally in a smaller town about 20 miles away. There were 76 decisions for Christ. One of the volunteer youth ministers accepted Christ and he was broken 'big time"! I admired his humility in publicly coming forward. It is not easy when others think you are a leader. At the end of the invitation, a husband and wife came forward. They looked to be about 70 years old. I'm not good at guessing ages, as Missy is, but they both had solid white hair, they moved very slowly and it seemed hard for them to walk. I can't imagine the joy they must have felt that night as they laid in bed knowing, because of their new faith, they would never be separated as a couple. I feel like shouting NOW. It is so rare to see people that age accept Jesus so I was/am really excited. Eugene said of all the decisions he witnessed over the weekend, the elderly couple meant the most to him. Incredible!

I leave for Atlanta on Saturday to preach at First Baptist Snellville, GA. It's a suburb of Atlanta. Please pray that God's spirit would move, the lost would be saved, and believers become passionate about Christ!

REJOICING AT THE BLOOD BATH
JAY