Decision Time At the Edwards Dome

I can remember when Jesus called me out of the darkness and I knew he was alive and that he knew me by name. I was fourteen, and it was on a Christian camp (I mean a camp - in tents) near the sea, and the Lord used the zany antics of the camp leaders and helpers each evening as they performed skits and spoke the Gospel in plain English. It all made sense for the first time to me. And the way they obviously loved living for Jesus made me want the same.

Growing as I followed, but sliding away after a while, He challenged me through the preaching at my church: "I gave my all for you- what will you give for me?" I realised it was all or nothing, and that He deserved my all.

Something similar was happening tonight for many of the 16,000 Urbanites here in St. Louis.

No time to visit landmarks! Busy Urbaning!

 When the call was finally given to say 'Yes!' to God's great call to missions, and stand as a witness, it seemed that half of us rose to our feet. Someone (or many someones) will have to count all those decision cards and verify my estimate, but it was a very large number of people.

As a friend of ours remarked, walking back to the hotel, it's one thing to say Yes, but quite another to know what comes next - to know what your 'yes' will grow into!

If you were one of those in the Edwards Dome tonight, you may have been thinking - as I was - that at some points the decision process was being drawn out to some length. Several speakers laboured the same theme in a variety of ways :- Say Yes! Jesus is worth it! Invest your life in that which will last forever! This generation can finish the work!

But on reflection, I think it was well worth the extra minutes. Perhaps some of you were chaffing at the bit... "Yes! Yes, God! Just let me sign this thing and get out there and be your light in the darkness! I get the message!" It's a big decision, though; planning to build a tower then running out of bricks puts egg on your face; setting off to war then fleeing from a superior enemy army won't win you great popularity. Saying a hasty 'Yes' then reconsidering is not what you want to do.

'Yes' is one of the shortest words there is. But it can grow into the largest of trees, and the birds of the air can perch in its branches. Happy gardening!

Gene