Hey Fam! Happy Thursday!
Isn’t it awesome that we get to do what we do? To be able to be so bold for Jesus and see hundreds and hundreds of people touched with the Gospel every weekend is SO amazing, isn’t it?!
The Lord really stirred my heart with gratitude yesterday, when He reminded me that it was exactly 8 years ago when He seeded me with inspiration to preach the Gospel open air. I was on vacation in Atlanta, and I was walking downtown with my son. As we approached an intersection, I heard what sounded like preaching. Sure enough, that’s what it was. I was stunned. I had never seen something like this before and so I took a video, listened for a minute or two and then kept walking. Here’s the video:
After I left, I was so impressed by the man’s boldness and courage to do that all by himself, that I never forgot it.
Funny story about that- in 2018, just a few months after Monte and I had started the ministry, we were at a July 4th gathering and we were talking about all the different signs God had given us through the years that told us that we would one day be doing this. That night I told him the story of the man I saw in Atlanta. I pulled up the video to show him when it was, and I even told him the exact date- 8/16/2015. I thought it was neat because 816 was our old area code back home in Kansas City. Within another hour, he and I left the gathering, and we had the CRAZIEST confirmation. We pulled behind a car at a traffic light that had a huge sticker on the back windshield with that EXACT date written on it- 8/16/15. That was one of those burning bush moments, for sure.
Another thing that got me stirred up with gratitude this week was realizing how amazing it is that we have police protection everywhere we go. In the 5 years and over 550 outreaches, we’ve had the police called on us well over 10 times that we know of. EVERY time, at EVERY location, they take our side and provide a firewall of protection for us. Because of that, we’ve been able to share the Gospel with over 100,000 people. What a miracle!
I was thinking about this last week because exactly 6 years ago, during the prequel to the ministry (“Church on the Beach”), we had our very first police encounter. I was reminded of it by this Facebook memory post:
His name was Officer McKnight and wow did God use him to encourage us that night!
So, here we are all these years and all these outreaches later, and the fruit is beyond calculation. Think of how many believers were inspired to do the same thing, but never told us. Think of all the people that heard the Word, got convicted, and left to do their private business with God, but never told us. And then ON TOP OF THAT, think of all the people that we’ve actually seen get ministered to in some way, shape or form. It is truly mind blowing.
Today is also a special day because it is the two-year anniversary of when God first told me to begin the Riverwalk outreach. Here’s a Facebook live video I did at the park that day where I explain the confirmation and I also share some of the prophetic words and fulfillments that laid the foundation for the ministry. I also prophesied some things over the state in the video that have come to pass! You can check it out here- https://www.facebook.com/749050021/videos/3070111093216826/
On top of that, what the Lord also showed me recently is that what we are doing is bigger than just souls getting saved and people getting ministered to. He made it very clear that what we are doing is part of His strategy for taking back the land for His Kingdom. And, in the 5 years since we’ve been ministering across the state, we’ve seen MASSIVE Kingdom changes all over. All the more reason to keep it going!
On to the weekend…
Friday night was warmer than usual, so there were less people out overall, but a number of people still stopped and listened, and we got to minister to a good amount of them. Here’s one video of some kids getting prayed over:
One woman that came by was struggling with a lot of grief from having lost her husband recently. The Lord touched her and brought healing to her that night. Another man came by and ended up talking to Rene for quite a while. Rene told me that the man came to the Lord that night. Our new friend Anne also brought a friend of hers with her that she has been praying for and sowing into for a while. She prayed to receive the Lord that night too. Here’s a video where you can see both of them, along with our new sound system that we just bought.
At the very end, just before we left, a Hispanic couple came over and asked if I could pray for their family. They were so thankful that I did. They asked for the address of our church, and he said they hadn’t been to church in a few years. I could tell God was really stirring something up in both of them. Here’s a picture I got as they left:
It was such a great night. BIG thanks to Thom, Mike M, Laney, Rene, Maria and Anne for coming out to serve. Great work!
Saturday was quite eventful. Our brother and teammate Jeff organized an outreach in Newtown in partnership with several churches, and it was awesome! They had free food, free gifts for kids to win, bounce houses, Charles Taylor and Purpose Culture doing music, baptisms, and a whole bunch of people ministering. Here’s one video I got of the worship:
Here’s a video I got of some kids being baptized. There were many that took that step:
This was my second time preaching the gospel in Newtown, and both times I’ve done it I’ve been hit hard with a realization of the redemptive power of God. You see, back in my BC days I used to come to Newtown only to buy drugs. To be there helping lead people OUT of the darkness was such a cool feeling. It was also such a blessing just to see a big event like that even happening there, because for so many years it has been the darkest area of the city by far. Yet more evidence of how God is breaking down strongholds all over our region!
Another cool thing that happened at the outreach was that I spoke to Roger Lee, who heads up the Sarasota House of Prayer. I’ve known Roger for years and he and I were talking about a class that he and his staff could teach to help new believers that get saved at the outreach get started on the right foot. He very much wants to partner with us in that way, which is a huge answer to prayer! He also asked me to start leading a weekly prayer set for evangelism and that should be starting soon. I’d love for you to join that, so I’ll keep you posted.
After a few hours of rest, I headed up to Riverwalk and it was a powerful time there too. We started the night with a “passing of the baton” moment, which was really cool. Recently, after the Lord provided for us to buy a new sound system to replace our smaller JBL, He told me to give the JBL away. He highlighted our brother and teammate Cody and told me that he was the one to give it to. Cody is one of the most anointed Christian rappers I’ve ever heard, and I was blessed to be able to arm him with a weapon that will allow him to take more ground for Jesus through his outreaches and discipleship programs that he and his wife are leading. Here’s us together on Saturday when he came to pick it up:
Here’s a clip of him rapping his new song “who can be against me?” It’s powerful!
As Cody was finishing his other song, a group of people started setting up a sound system underneath the awning. I asked them on the microphone if they came to have a party and the responded- “we’re having a Jesus Party!” That was music to my ears! Turns out they are from a local Hispanic church, and they felt compelled to come to Riverwalk and do worship and preach the Gospel. I was stunned! Here’s a video of them during worship:
We pray all the time for pastors and churches to do this, so what a cool way for God to answer our prayer…so we could actually witness it. More Lord!!
Throughout the night there were many that got ministered to and there were at least 6 people that prayed to receive Christ. Here’s a few videos of people getting ministered to:
Another:
One woman we met had just left an abusive relationship that day, so she was very much ready to encounter Jesus. Another guy, who said he was a believer, even started throwing up as we were praying for his deliverance and then said he felt at peace. Later on, a man came up and listened to the Gospel but sincerely said “I’m not ready to receive Him yet.” He ended up praying for Jesus to reveal Himself to him though, so it’s only a matter of time before he gets saved!
BIG thanks to Laney, Chuck, Debbie, David, Cody and our Gen Z dynamic duo Jackson and Zack. Great work everyone!
Sunday was an exciting day. There were less people overall because it was hotter than usual, but we still had a good and steady flow of people coming to the tents. Here’s one video from earlier:
At one point though, rain clouds started coming in, so we packed up and went to the pavilion. As usual, the pavilion gave us a captive audience and I was amazed at how many people listened to the Gospel. Many people responded to the altar call too and raised their hands to declare Jesus as Lord. It was so cool! Here is one video that was gotten a bit later, where you can hear people still responding.
As the evening went on, many people came to listen, and several people said they wanted to get baptized. Here’s a video from the later evening:
The evening was not without some drama though. Earlier in the night a man came up and started asking questions about whether we believe you can sin and still be saved. It was clear that he was just wanting to argue anyone who thought differently than him, which was that you can basically do whatever you want as long as you believe. He had a 16-ounce beer in his hand the entire time too. While we were in the pavilion, some of the drummers came up and started drumming, and when I asked them if they were trying to come against us, this “brother” got right in my face and started cussing me out. Here’s a clip of the last bit of it:
Once he stopped, I continued to call out the drummers and several of them actually apologized, shook my hand and said that they meant no disrespect. I felt like God used it to get a few of those guys to jump off that bandwagon, because you could tell there was genuine godly sorrow.
Never a dull moment! Blessed are they who are persecuted for His name’s sake!!! Hallelujah!
This weekend our schedule will be:
Friday at Bayfront Park (179) at 7pm
Saturday at Riverwalk (105) at 6pm- This will be our two-year anniversary at Riverwalk!
Sunday at Siesta Beach (283) at 4pm.
Please pray and please come when you can!
Blessings and love
Chris