“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”- John 1:14
This past Sunday four of us set out for Statesville, North Carolina to take part in the bonfire Crusades that were taking place at the local fairgrounds. We knew they were hoping to have around 1,400 kids every night, but other than that we weren’t really sure what to expect. We were hoping for a good turnout, but honestly many of us were skeptical of how many people would actually show up. The conference was geared toward junior high and high school youth, but there were college age and adults there as well.
The first day we met up with some other AIM staff members that were already there, and we then went to set up the AIM booth. As we drove up, we were all a little surprised at 
the size of the set-up. There was a massive tent with chairs and a stage ready to accommodate thousands of people. As we set up our booth, we could feel the excitement growing. The first night we were overwhelmed to see over 2,000 people show up. It was absolutely amazing to see churches from all over the area come together for one common purpose: to impact and motivate the youth in the Iredell county for Christ. This continued over the next two nights and the tent was filled every night. I was amazed by how God completely came down and poured out his blessings on this event and all who were involved. We ended up seeing over 250 people accept Christ as their Savior and many give their lives to full-time ministry. Although slow at first, we also had an amazing response to people desiring to serve on the mission field. God showed His power in a way that He is the only one who can get
any praise for the results from the conference. He humbled us and set us in awe of His power. There are a few kids that I truly expect to see here at training camps before they set out to change the world, and that in itself makes it all worth it and fills my heart in a way only He can.
The speaker for the weekend was Clayton King. He spoke truth with power every night and the Spirit used him in a mighty way. On the second night he spoke about serving Christ with our lives. Something he said really struck me. He posed the question: “Why should we continue to strive to fit in with the world?” He said, “No one makes a name for God by sitting and waiting on someone else to step up. We need to take a risk. When we are desperate for something is when we will take a 
risk.” Still as I write this it really moves my heart. We should be desperate for the Lord. If we desperately desire Him, then we will not settle for sitting still and fitting into the world’s norms, but we will take risks for Him because He is what drives us. It really challenged me to stop trying to always fit in and to continue to take risks for Him so that people will see His light through me. Are you desperate for Him? Are you willing to take the risk to make His name known? Clayton made a great point: God is either Lord of everything in our lives or He is Lord of nothing. There is no in-between. When we take risks is when we see God move in big ways, and when we have great faith is when we will see God’s power. Why wouldn’t we want to risk it all?
Thank you for your prayers. God’s power is alive in today’s youth, and they are yearning to know Him more and to make a difference in this world. God poured out his blessings by allowing us to love on them even for just a moment, and provide opportunities for them to minister to the world around them. May God bless everyone involved and raise up a generation that is completely sold-out for Him!
God bless everyone on this beautiful day!
For His Glory,
Caroline 🙂
Ps. 56:3
