|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
Print
By Jaime McGarvey
We’ve all read the book of
Acts at least once in our lives and attempted to digest all the miraculous tales
of the apostles Jesus personally commissioned before he left Earth.
All my life I’ve visualized Peter preaching his first sermon to a crowd
of unbelievers, Philip witnessing to the Ethiopian, Cornelius’s house
receiving the Holy Ghost, and the lame man at the gate Beautiful asking for alms
and receiving so much more than silver and gold.
It must have been so amazing to be living and working for God with such a
unified group of believers in those early days (Acts 2:42-47). Obviously, it wasn’t always that way.
Division and persecution hit soon enough, but they made it through with
their faith in God and each other. I
wonder as I’m rereading Acts these days if Luke and the rest of the gang had
any idea when they were quickly jotting down notes of the day’s events on
whatever they could find that we use their words as a guide 2,000 years later.
Did they know their deeds would be the material for the greatest book
ever written? I kind of doubt it.
They were living in exciting times just like we are and wanted to make
sure someone remembered and could get the story straight.
They were merely writing letters, posting emails, making phone calls, and
updating their EC page with all of their exploits just like we do.
I’m challenged that the latter will be greater and that others will
read in awe of this generation’s exploits.
Living Acts Today Walking down the streets of Y-Bor City at 2:30 a.m. with 900
other Apostolics dressed in construction cone orange T-shirts that screamed
“In Your Face Devil” on the back, I began to feel that rush I think Peter
and John felt as they sat in the Temple courtyard preaching the gospel.
Soulwinner’s Bootcamp
(August 10-13) 2006 in St. Petersburg, Florida was nothing short of a book of
Acts experience. (Believe me, I
realize this sounds dramatic and over-the-top.
Two weeks ago I would have read those words and sniffed thinking that
whoever wrote them was on some conference high.) Ask anyone who has been on a
missions trip or been in the middle of a crusade with thousands of unsaved
hungry people, and they’ll utter the same crazy sounding things.
Host pastor Matt Maddix calls it
the “Soulwinner’s Fire.” It’s
the fire of the Holy Ghost that forces you to see people the way God sees them.
It’s the fire that compelled Peter to stand up and say, “Repent and
be baptized…” when he’d never spoken to that many people before in his
life. It’s the fire that,
according to Maddix, “messes with your head!”
It wakes you up at night thinking about souls.
It gets you out in your community to reach people no one else is.
It keeps you out there reaching when everyone else loses interest or
thinks you’re nuts. Bootcamp Laid Bare For me one point of Bootcamp is to
give hungry Apostolics an injection of this fire. Messages like the ones preached at the Thursday evening
kick-off service laid us bare. UPCI
General Superintendent Kenneth Haney preached on being a “heel-grabber” and
Bro. Anthony Mangun followed him challenging us to find out what God’s passion
is and carve out our own ministry. Maddix
taught Friday and Saturday mornings. He
weaved his personal narrative through practical examples of soul-winning
practices. Speaking on everything
from the importance of attitude to the soulwinner that failed to staying healthy
to the basics of reaching the youth of today, he imparted the foundation of what
makes a great soulwinner and only mounted the pulpit in classic Maddix style
once. Maddix inserted numerous people
from various backgrounds to share their successes and failures at reaching the
lost. They spoke passionately but
practically. This isn’t rocket
science. It’s just hard work and
consistency. It’s so easy it’s
almost shameful. How difficult is
it walk down the street and give out cold drinks and a church card?
How difficult is it to spend some quality time with some underprivileged
kids? Sure, there is sacrifice
involved and the enemy will attack you at every level, but we’re talking about
souls. This was their message again
and again. Freak Factor Holy Ghost Fire A second point of Bootcamp is
practical application. Maddix
ignites your passion for soulwinning during the sessions and then sets you loose
on unsuspecting St. Petersburg! It’s
a great concept, though. I have
files full of material I’ve gotten at conferences that is just revolutionary
if every properly implemented. (“If” is the operating word there.)
Scheduling events that force you to immediately put into practice what
you have just been taught takes away the hesitation we generally have about new
ideas. Friday afternoon 400 bootcampers
under the age of 25 were dropped off at all the high schools in St. Pete’s.
They passed out cards inviting teens to a Back to School Bash in a
downtown park that evening. Over
1,000 teenagers showed up to find a bash that rivaled anything I’ve attended.
A band rocked out on stage to a screaming crowd with a mosh pit and stage
diving. (Although they did have to
nix the stage diving after a while due to permit regulations)
Giant spotlights swept across the sky drawing more crowds.
The feeding of the 5,000 was recreated with Papa Johns pizza replacing
the loaves and fishies. Freak
Factor got unsaved teens up on stage bobbing for pickled pigs feet in rotten
milk and other mixtures too disgusting to share.
They were pressed against the stage for the band and the freak factor and
the iPod and laptop giveaways and so there they still were for the Holy Ghost.
After some short testimonies and a step-by-step “How to get the Holy
Ghost” lesson, the spirit of God swept through the place and before you could
say, “In Your Face, Devil,” the crowds were crying out to God and heading to
the fountain to be baptized. It was
incredible. If you’ve never stood
in a public fountain praying someone through to the Holy Ghost, I’m telling
you, you haven’t lived! Each event was carried out similarly. For the homeless outreach, Bootcampers filled the city park and mingled with the homeless. By the time the outdoor service began, many were at the front of the stage standing side-by-side the Bootcampers jumping and dancing. (A few even made it on stage and were quickly whisked off.) Before long, everywhere you looked
Bootcampers were praying with people and lines were forming at the two horse
troughs we used for baptisms. Miraculous
healings were happening all over the park for the residents and the Bootcampers.
St. Petersburg has around 3,000 homeless people, and we were privileged
to feed over 1,000 people that night. I
volunteered to be one of the servers in the food line and served hotdogs and
chips and smiles for two hours. The
Life Center also gave out over 1,000 backpacks to the homeless. Witnessing in Partytown
We left the outdoor service around 11 p.m. and changed into
our orange T-shirts. Then 900 of us
loading into chartered buses and headed to Y-Bor City.
Okay, picture the bar/club section
of your city at 2 a.m. for a moment. Now
insert 900 pumped up, T-shirted Apostolics led by a bullhorn-toting radical
marching down the streets of that environment.
We drown out the bands and the DJ’s in the clubs with our chanting and
singing. (There is definitely power
in numbers.) At exactly 2:38 we met in the center of Y-Bor
City knelt and prayed. Amazingly,
15 people got the Holy Ghost that night. There
were a couple literally running to the front of our group to pray. It was an
insane experience. The last event of the Bootcamp was the Super
Kidz Party. This was a
carnival-type atmosphere set up in a park in South side.
The Life Center has done a lot of outreach and servanthood in South side.
The people are familiar with the church and came out in droves to play on
inflatable games, eat BBQ, check out the reptile petting zoo, get prizes, and
listen to the live music. It was a
laid-back atmosphere geared for kids but when the altar call was given, adults
and children alike filled the altars and the baptismal tanks. The Bootcampers packed their bags and vacated St. Petersburg
on Monday morning. They took with
them a “Soulwinner’s Fire” and an “In Your Face Devil” attitude and
practical experience to share with their home churches and cities.
They left behind 206 people filled with the Holy Ghost and 192 baptized
in Jesus name in one weekend! And to that Matt Maddix would mount
the pulpit, wave his towel and scream, “In yoooourrrr face, Devil!”
ninetyandnine.com ©
2006, Jaime McGarvey --------- Jaime McGarvey is a Marketing and PR director for
a community college in Moberly, MO. In
her real life she is the youth pastor for a phenomenal group of young people and
has recently been totally and completely slain with soulwinner’s fire.
Watch out Moberly!
|
|
|
