My friend and colleague Dr. Richard Kidd is a member of the Administrative Staff at Regent University in Virginia Beach. He serves as Director of Campus Ministries and does the work of a Chaplain, Counselor, Coach and Adviser.
Richard took a group of about two dozen students on a mission trip to New York last week and wrote this great letter to his prayer supporters after his return. Many of us think of missions as a ministry of people who have already Grown up enough to Go for Jesus. That is true as far as it goes. Another truth is that short term mission trips are very much an opportunity to "Go to Grow in Jesus". As you read the article by Richard, I am sure you will agree that this trip was an opportunity to do both. Gary Sweeten
Dear Gary:
I must say, even though I have done many missions trips with students before, this one was particularly powerful and life changing. Perhaps it was because I love NYC, or it was my first college trip, or God just smiled on us, but the time over the week was powerful in many ways. I have no doubt that your prayers played a large role in that from heaven's perspective, so I want to say thank you for your crucial role in reaching the urban context with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
First, our team of 26 was able to lead over two dozen individuals to faith in Jesus Christ. I think of it as "pulling our weight"... we brought as many into the kingdom as we had on the team. Praise God!
This happened in any number of settings. Some of the most powerful were on the streets. Our very first "appointment" on the streets was an Hispanic man. The team we sent out (by rotation) happened to include one of our fluent Spanish speakers. She had shared in our team meeting her "passion for souls." In the span of a few minutes, she had given him a blanket, a toiletry kit, a sandwich and water. But then God gave the greatest gift of all--the gift of eternal life! The students came back beaming.
Another powerful moment came at the Espanola Soup kitchen. Our team provided a service before the feeding. Students came together and organized their gifts to present worship and testimonies. After the sharing (which revealed that some of our students had more of a "checkered" past than I realized) a Divinity student got up and gave a powerful altar call to which 25 people responded. Some of them were re dedications, but others were first time salvation's. The student who gave the altar call had been a later addition to the team...he had felt led to take his Spring Break, rent a hotel room in Atlanta, and go out on the streets and preach the gospel. We convinced him to go with us, to experience the power of community. As a result, he encouraged others with his zeal and bonded with all the guys in a group they called "Da Bredran" (the Brethren in a Jamaican accent!) Not only did he pay for his trip, he also donated more to cover other students who hadn't been able to pay their own way. God is good!
We ministered at the United Nations, where I was privileged to speak to representatives of over 15 nations in a Christian employee prayer meeting. I spoke on the subject "Turning Terrorists into Diplomats--the Barnabas DNA." The students who went with me were then able to pray with and encourage the workers afterward.I even prayed for one woman from Ethiopia who knew friends of mine in Addis Ababa...God is good!
Many of these workers are stigmatized for expressing their faith publicly at the UN, which is dominated by a pro-gay and pro-choice agenda. We arrived during the Committee on the Status of women, which those forces continually insert pro-abortion language. It was the team's privilege to meet and pray with the Catholic Family league lawyers who lobby for pro-life in this dark atmosphere. What a joy it was to pray with and for them! Then, at the gracious provision of one of our Regent profs, we met with the Archbishop Celestino Migliori, the Papal Nuncio to the UN. He shared with us their fight for life in all segments of the UN, where they have observer status. It was quite an honor to sit next to his excellency!
As I taught our students to minister to both prince and pauper; down and out as well as the up and out, we shared Christ through a cup of soup and a piece of bread at the New York Relief Bus in the South Bronx. The South Bronx was the site of white flight to the tune of 300,000 in lost population, as gangs and violence spread across the area. But Love Gospel Assembly stayed and is ministering to the hurting. In the context of a soup kitchen we gave out clothing, a hot lunch, gave referrals to jobs and rehab ministries, as well as personal prayer. I had the joy of pairing Robert with a donated Pierre Cardin wool overcoat. He had shared with me that he was going for a job interview in the next week and needed something special. God provided a perfect fit for him, and as we prayed, God revealed to me he would have a "Joseph" anointing. It was a coat of gray, not "many colors" but his tears of joy were real nonetheless. What a privilege.
Thursday was a difficult day, as we changed gears and did contact evangelism in a primarily Muslim segment of Queens, Jackson Heights. There, a large influx of Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Indians has joined the Hispanic and Chinese who preceded them to form what the locals called "our very own United Nations." We joined a YWAM team and set up a "Prayer Station" on the corner...complete with tacky red aprons with praying hands on them. The team was to hand out fliers, and direct people to the table, where others would offer to pray for needs the residents might have.
For those of you who know me well that methodology pretty much drove me crazy. I refused to don the red apron, but for the sake of the team hung around to pray and give protection. (not everyone seemed so friendly) Many of the team had to confront rejection as person after person refused their sincere offer of prayer. I watched one student in particular grapple with a feeling of impotence and frustration over the rejection. (0 for 50 at one point) He prayed for at least one young person who would pray with him.
Then we met Evo the rapper. We knew his name, because it was shaved into his wispy young beard! He responded with sincerity to our offer of prayer, although his friend seemed more interested in praying with one of our young women! Evo began to share his views of God, and confessed he had let his interest in music overtake his faith. He prayed with us to rededicate his life to Christ and after we said Amen, promised to come back one day to give a Lamborghini to each of us when he made it. So I figure I've got that going for me!
As it happened the teams that we sent to Jackson Heights had limited success with the prayer stations, but the one in Harlem led by Dr. Antipas Harris, our Urban Ministry specialist at Regent, met different results. People there were so hungry, they stood in line several deep to receive prayer! They met Black Panthers, Nation of Islam, lapsed Christians, and more. One huge muscular man on his way to the gym was convinced to stop. There our "stud" Caleb prayed with him to receive Christ. With the stupid red apron on, nonetheless! I was forced to reevaluate my view of the tool's effectiveness... in light of the sufficiency of Christ.
The final ministry was in the Coler-Goldwater Hospital, Thursday night. On tiny Roosevelt Island, this out of the way medical facility housed many who suffer from various long-term infirmities. Many have the HIV virus, and while some like Tony, suffer from MS. Tony was a precious soul, who loved God passionately and vocally. Our entire team visited with him, and were delighted to see how he responded with joy and grace to the indignities of his disease. At his invitation, the team read some of his poems out loud. Several team members had to excuse themselves, overcome with emotion at how he faced his physical limitations with such effervescent joy. Then Tony invited the team to join him in the creation of a new poem about his "angels" sent by God to visit. More tears, and more prayer ended the visit, along with a precious copy of the new poem.
So many of the stories in the hospital cannot be told publicly, out of respect to those who have suffered. Suffice it to say that the trauma that so many have endured boggles the mind, and sear the soul. It reduced us to sobs on numerous occasions. But the team held impromptu praise concerts in hospital rooms, and prayed and cared for many. We read favorite bible verses and held gnarled hands. One patient after pouring out her tale of pain prayed the sinners prayer. In their joy, the students rushed out to tell their peers what had happened. One member of our team said, "What's that?" So there, on the last night of the trip, on the 2nd floor of a drab hospital ward, Julie gave her life to Jesus Christ. There was much rejoicing all around!
Thank you so much for your partnership in prayer. You are truly co-laborers in Christ. Pray for the students as they return "never to lose their zeal." They have vowed to begin ministries like this in our area. They want to tell other students the joys of praying and seeing Christ move among the hurting and disenfranchised. They are bubbling over with joy... and will lead the chapel services this Wednesday and Thursday at Regent. Pray that this will be but the beginning of the missions program at Regent. Pray that we will not soon forget that the Spirit of Christ is on us to preach good news to the poor.
God bless,
Richard Kidd
My blog at Regent is Are We There Yet?
Praise the Lord for this great report. It makes us want to take our own mission trip even if we just go to downtown Cincinnati. Keep up that great work, Richard.
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