The Redemption team, an opportunity to be inviters of worship through music in front of church congregations all across America. You would think that the main part of our ministry would be on stage in front of tons of people that hear the music, the testimonies, the messages, and see the dramas that we put on. This has been proven to be very inaccurate as the years have gone by. Ministry happens when we get out of our beds in the morning. Whether it be in our rooms amongst one another, at gas stations as we travel, in churches, in schools, or in host homes that we stay in each night.
This is just one of the many stories that could be shared about how God has moved in His special way.
As I walked through the door of a home in Steventown, NY my heart was searching desperately for wisdom and strength from the Lord. I went into this host home knowing that the daughter of this family was not saved but was just warming up to the gospel. She had started attending church and her college-age-small group, as her interest in the Bible and the things of God were beginning to grow. Praying that I would have an opportunity to see this twenty-five year old young woman come to know the Savior of the universe my heart began to race as she walked through the front door. I was in the house for maybe ten minutes when I heard that Elizabeth was going to be leaving to go to Olive Garden with some of her friends. I was instantly discouraged because I thought that I was losing my chance to share Jesus with her. However, I ended up being invited to go out with her and her friends, so as we all set out in hopes of finding pumpkin cheesecake, I continued to pray that the Lord would give me an open opportunity to be a bold witness for Him.
It wasn’t long into the night when my new friends learned that it was my birthday. They bent over backwards to make the last few hours of the day extra special for me. Sneaking a hint to the waiter resulted in a big surprise of music and dessert at the end of our meal as everyone sang happy birthday. The entire night was one that I never would have expected. As we were driving back from what seemed like the end to a wonderful time, Elizabeth decided that she wanted to stop at Walmart, so we did. After spending an hour of laughing about all of the different CD’s and movies that we enjoyed, we finally made our way back to their homes. When we got to Tim’s house to drop him off, we all got out of the car, got in a circle and prayed together. Tim prayed for my ministry with Redemption, he prayed for my future, and he thanked the Lord for such a fun night. They got a birthday card out of the trunk of the car that they had bought at Walmart! Come to find out, while we were talking about music and movies, I was oblivious to the fact that they were all taking turns disappearing to go sign this birthday card. I was thinking at this point that this night could not have gone any more differently that I had expected, but soon after, we finally made it back to Elizabeth’s house and all I was thinking was that I was about to run out of time to talk to this lost person about Jesus. Looking back now, I can see how the Lord was clearing the scene for something extra special. Elizabeth and I sat in her living her, ate our dessert from Olive Garden, and began to talk about anything and everything under the sun. I began asking Elizabeth some different questions about her life and we quickly got on the topic of what she thought of Jesus, the church, and the Bible. She had so many questions that the Lord helped me to answer and it wasn’t long before we were sitting next to each other with our Bibles on our laps, going through the Romans Road together. Elizabeth knew that she was bound by the chains of Satan and that she needed Christ to save her. With tears streaming down her face she said how she wanted to be free. It was around one in the morning when Elizabeth prayed and asked Jesus to save her. It was then, that Elizabeth stepped from the darkness of Satan into the glorious light of our Savior.
It’s funny how God can bring four people together over some of Olive Garden’s pumpkin cheesecake and it result in such a night of precious memories. My ministry isn’t only on the stage with a microphone in my hand, it’s everywhere. I am so humbled to think that God would use me in such ways, but I am so thankful that He does. My 21st birthday is one that I will never forget, not because I celebrated like the world told me to, but because I got to witness and be a part of a soul being freed from the chains of Satan. Elizabeth’s story, is definitely a story worth sharing.