This is awesome. He works all things for the good of those who love Him.
Look what the Lord is doing in Littleton at Columbine--Karla
Christianity has not been tried and found wanting, but found difficult
and untried.
"It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible"
--George Washington
Subject: Fwd: Our Saviour is Awesome
Brothers & Sisters in Christ - I write this for your
Encouragement....
Though until today I was someone on the outside of the Columbine
incident - through fellowship with other local youth pastors
throughout today, attending Cassie Bernall's funeral, and attending a
citywide Youth Pastor meeting tonight - I have a new appreciation for
just how Awesome our God is....
------
For those in the Denver Area:
Sunday Evening, 2 May - Cherry Hills Community Church / 5:30-9:30 PM
- There will be a youth led praise and worship session led by John &
Steve
Cohen from Columbine (see below) designed to encourage the local
youth in their faith and in evangelism in their schools.
Parents/Adults are welcome but it is designed for the kids and
organized by the youth (Mainly the youth of Foothills Bible Church -
Who lost John Tomlin)... The service will be Evangelistic in nature
so bringing pre-Christians would be wise...
------
Some Testimony to God's work in Jefferson County/Things you won't
hear about in the news:
Funerals - John Tomlin, Rachel Scott, and Cassie Bernall's funerals
were very evangelical and evangelistic in nature. All three focused
90% on
Christ and 10% on the individual. The gospel was presented clearly
in each of the funerals and a number of the local youth made first
time commitments to Christ in each of the services. The true faith of
the parents and desire to
draw others to Christ through the life & death of their children was
very evident..
1. John Tomiln's Memorial Service (16) - John was a committed
believer. He was active in mission work. John's best friend shared
at the funeral that although John was a great guy, he was not going to
heaven because of that. He was going to heaven because of his trust
and fellowship with Christ. This was a reoccurring theme throughout
the funeral. There were a number of first time commitments to Christ
that took place at the funeral.
2. Rachel Scott's Funeral (17) - Rachel was a committed believer who
desired to go into missionary work in Africa. Her prom date shared how
her faith and impacted him and those around her in the school. Over
15 first time commitments to Christ occurred at the funeral.
3. Cassie Bernall/Martyr's Funeral (17) - I was blessed with an
invitation from a brother youth worker/her youth pastor to attend the
funeral. Cassie was totally anti-Christian 2 years ago. She was
involved in witchcraft and very suicidal. Her parents forcibly
dragged her into the youth pastor's office. When she walked out - his
reaction was "Wow, she is a lost cause..." Through the prayers of her
church's youth group, parents, and youth pastor,
Cassie about 6 months later walked back up to the youth pastor and
said "You'll never guess what I did today... I gave my life to
Christ." From that point forward, Cassie was a radical evangelist on
her campus. The funeral showed some video tape of her sharing parts
of her testimony which were very powerful. It is because of her
radical faith on Campus that she was asked if she believed in God -
She replied "Yes, I believe in Jesus." (Not I believe in God as the
media has reported.) From that she was killed.. I can say that her
parents were devastated but proud of their daughter (she looks exactly
like her mother). The funeral was more of a celebration of Christ's
work in her and through her and a number of girls shared how she had
led them to faith. At Cassie's Memorial Service over 75 kids made
first time commitments to Christ. At the funeral, the pastor and a
member of the musical group presented the gospel twice and offered the
"Sinner's Prayer" twice. Her funeral was more of an evangelistic
event than a mourning of the loss.. I was very touched by the
testimony of her friends along with the clear presentation of the
gospel (in attendance was everyone from the JeffCo SWAT Team,
Paramedics, District Attorneys' Office, etc).. I feel honored to
have been able to witness such an event & watch God work through her
death to bring life to others.
Others worth mentioning/Praying For:
John & Steve Cohen - They wrote "Friend of Mine/Columbine" an
evangelistic song regarding their school and the need for God's
redemption. The memorial service televised internationally on Sunday
was opened with the song. They have had the opportunity to clearly
present the gospel on Good Morning America and the Today Show (this
morning in fact). I spent about 30 minutes talking to them. John was
the leader of the Columbine Bible Club which apparently was very, very
large. His (and his brother's) faith were very apparent and their
tender/gentle hearts clearly showed through. As a testimony on how
God works in mysterious ways - Virgin Records will be producing their
CD free for them (though it is being sold for $10 ($11.95 w/ shipping)
to support the victims' families. They are a true testimony of great
faith in a young age. On a side note - they are in a Christian Ska
band I've forgotten the name]. Their clear articulation of the
Gospel on several national (and international) shows is a great
witness to their faith & to God's amazing work through this
incident..
Craig Scott (15) - Craig was sitting between Isaiah Shoels and Matt
Kechter in the library. Matt was his best friend. Both Matt & Isaiah
were shot
and Craig played dead, lying in their blood. Craig then led a number
from the library out to safety. He then led those from the library in
prayer for their brothers & sisters who were still in the school. He
shared that one by one his friends' siblings came out - but his never
did. He lost his best friend and sister. The next day on the Today
Show he shared his story then affirmed that he would be getting
through this with God's help. He clearly affirmed that his hope is in
God and that he and his family will make it through. In the midst of
his pain - the hope he has was very apparent.
My Youth Ministry Friends - I spent 5 hours this evening at a Youth
Leader Gathering at Foothills Bible Church. We had around 400 Youth
Pastors from the local area showed up. I'd ask for your prayers for
the youth leaders
in the Jefferson County area. I spent several hours just weeping
with several of my good friends from seminary who either lost kids or
have kids severely impacted by the shooting. I can't imagine what it
would be like to lose a
member of one of the youth groups I've been involved in.. These
youth ministers were devastated and drained but their hope in Christ
was very clear. I had the opportunity to minister to and pray with a
number of JeffCo Youth Pastors today & was very encouraged.. They are
an amazing bunch who are exhausted emotionally and physically & need
the prayers of others.
Specifically:
Larry - Larry is a classmate who runs a outreach center for troubled
youth called "Tuesday at your Mother's". He has local bands come in
and play and is geared towards the troubled youth in the area.
Tuesday before last
Eric Harris was at his coffee house/concert. One of the band
members playing broke a string on his guitar and it took 30 minutes to
fix. The lead singer clearly presented his testimony and the Gospel
in that 30 minute period. In fact, one of the band members had a word
that someone "was going to kill someone or had just killed someone"
and asked them to come forward for prayer - no one did. My brother
Larry is wrought with guilt over the fact that he had Eric Harris at
one of his services just 7 days before their killing spree and he
feels he didn't minister properly to prevent the tragedy. Please pray
for Larry's peace & for his ministry to troubled youth. He still has
several of Eric and Dylan's crowd that show up to his
coffeehouse/concerts.
Jeremy - Jeremy is a classmate who is the Youth Pastor at Foothills
Bible Church. Almost the entire youth group attended Columbine. They
lost John Tomlin & are really hurting. Jeremy needs strength in
ministering to his youth
(also Rusty, Youth Leader at Foothills).
Clement Park - After Cassie's funeral, I spent some time at Clement
Park with some youth pastor brothers. I was encouraged to see that
about 90% of the notes left were clearly evangelical and expressed the
need to turn to Jesus and His atoning sacrifice. If you are in the
local area, I would say this is a sight your children should see. I
noticed a number of parents with middle school and elementary age
children using this as a "teachable moment." I
heard a number of people sharing the gospel with visitors (though
L.Ron Hubbard folks were there passing out materials also).
Jefferson County - The minute I drove into Jefferson County, I felt
the clear presence of the Holy Spirit at work. The city is ripe for
the harvest. I've heard testimonies of 10's to 50's at a time turning
to Christ at each of the various memorials and services. The gospel
is being clearly presented at every event. The churches are united in
service and effort / the sense of community among the believers is
amazing. The churches are being supported by the community in
amazing ways. At the youth pastor event we had more food than
everyone could eat and take home. Local restaurants are giving away
thousands of meals to the churches. God is working through secular
organizations and businesses for His purpose. At the youth event -
Group Publishing/Youth Specialties donated hundreds and hundreds of
youth material books/etc. They had more than everyone could take.
----
I'm writing all this to encourage you in that our Lord and Savior
works in mysterious ways. Through the death of believers like Cassie,
John and Rachel He has brought new life to thousands. I've seen the
Gospel presented on CNN (& CNN International - Live) a number of
times. Even more so on the local stations, amazingly, often by youth.
The church in the area is united, the believers focus is on Christ
(it's amazing how fast priorities
change in a situation like this) and the city is hungering for the
Gospel. Christ
is clearly working in infinite ways through this incident.
Please pray for the churches/ministers and for the pre-Christians in
Jefferson County and praise God for His amazing ways. And please be
encouraged by the amazing workings of our Lord through tragedies like
this.
God Bless,
Hansel
PS For those that are curious, the passages used for Dylan
Kleybold's funeral Saturday were about David and Absolom and how
although Absolom rebelled against his father (David) and drew up an
army to fight against him, David still loved him and mourned his
death. There was a private funeral with only 12 in attendance.
Dylan's older brother's best friend had felt called to share the
Gospel with their family last Christmas. None responded then but
he has now withdrawn from this semester at college and is flying back
to minister to the family..
======== Steve & John's Song - getting national air play=====
Friend of Mine
Columbine, flower bloom, tenderly I sing to you.
Columbine, roseblood red, heartbreak overflows my head.
Columbine, flower bloom.
Columbine there's hope for you.
Columbine, friend of mine.
To your gain, on the mark.
With your love, love again.
Comfort peace and sweet release come from you.
Where, it's true, I hide myself in you.
Can you still hear raging guns ending dreams of precious ones.
In God' son, hope will come, his red stain will take our pain.
Columbine, friend of mine.
Peace will come to you in time.
Columbine, friend of mine.
Turn a page, to your gain.
Keep your heart on the mark.
Comfort us with your love.
Love again.
Christ of grace attend this place we look to you.
Honor you.
Fix you in our view.
Columbine, flower bloom.
Tenderly I sing to you.
Columbine, roseblood red, heartbreak overflows my head.
Columbine, friend of mine.
Peace will come to you in time.
Columbine, friend of mine.
- Jonathan and Stephen Cohen
_______
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