A delightful report from Pastor Scott Distler (Lititz, PA) on some post-BNYC activity:
The weather and the water temperature of the Pacific Ocean at Huntington Beach in Southern California were absolutely perfect. It was spiritually uplifting for me to simply watch as our youth group started their day at the beach by getting in groups of 2 or 3, holding hands, and praying for God’s safety for the day and for ministry opportunities as they spent the day at the beach.
But the real highlight came right after that time of prayer. We had some 12-15 teenagers from our group who had never followed the Lord in water baptism since they had accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.
One of the High School guys came up to Andy Brightbill, our Pastor of Student Ministries, and asked if it would be possible to be baptized in the ocean that day. Before long, there were all of the others who wanted to do the same thing. How can you say “No” or “You probably ought to wait” to young people who are so eager to take a step of faith? You can’t say “no.” You have to encourage and accommodate their passion and their zeal.
What a thrill it was to watch as the whole Youth Group waded out waist deep into the pacific and witnessed these steps of obedience as Andy had the privilege of baptizing each one of them. As each teen came up out of the water the rest of the group applauded and cheered as we all shared in the excitement of their steps of obedience.
Hallelujah!! What a great morning it was.
