A God Thing

Ted Campbell, director of the New America Singers, recently filed this report.  God is truly using these young people to bring hope to our military.  

They clapped for 7 minutes straight while over 500 Marines double-timed it out of the chapel…then the Singers just sat on the risers in stunned silence…tears streaming down many faces.  The noisy exit was over, as the recruits returned to their Camp Pendleton Barracks…but no one questioned that God had been in the house.

The night hadn't started out so good.  We were running nearly an hour late, hoping for several key Singers would join us…they didn't…and we knew there was no way our performance could be at its strongest.  Then, the chaplain in charge had been called away, and we had to let ourselves into an empty building.  As the guys feverishly threw up sound and lights and the ladies put on make-up, the clock ticked on relentlessly.  Starting time.  Way past starting time.  No audience.  No one to even ask about an audience.  Not good.  Adam had flown in from Texas.  Others had flown or driven from a thousand miles away to share the love of Jesus with Marines.

While assistant directors tried to teach new kids some choreography and music and Ken and the guys worked on setting lights and sound, Betty and I looked for the closest guard on duty.  He didn't have a clue.  The Officer on duty didn't have a clue.  But the guard didn't give up easily.  He called drill sergeants from several companies and asked if they knew about the concert.  They didn't, but said they would check with their commanders and call back.  Well.  In less than ten minutes, over 500 recruits had double-timed into the chapel.  When it was packed, a hundred or so were sent back to the barracks.  No more room.

We sang and loved and prayed.  Jon and Deanna Ramsay, professional singers who lived nearby, gave us a hand and sang half a dozen fantastic numbers to help us cover for the songs we didn't have the personnel to properly cover.  Both also shared a few scriptures and words of encouragement.   As we wrapped up with a few more choreographed numbers, we just shared about how they could know for sure that they knew the Lord.  We're talking tough young men.  Nineteen years old.  Getting ready to head for Iraq.  Eight Marines had been killed in Fallujah that day alone.  The recruits were listening.  Ready.  Open to the Holy Spirit. 

After we went through the sinner's prayer, I asked how many of them had made a decision to invite Jesus into their lives during the program.  A few timidly raised their hands.  Then, hands went up all over the auditorium.  Not sure how many.  With a quick glance I knew it was more than 3 dozen.  Our adults scattered around the building assured me that there were many more than that.  What can you say?  God's time, God's place, God's people…young men getting right with their creator.  Oh, this is the fourth time we've sung for the men at Camp Pendleton, and we are scheduled to sing again Nov. 20.  And there have always been decisions.  But this was really overwhelming.  Praise the Lord.

For Singers who were present, or could not be there, let me leave you with this thought.  We can't always ask for public commitments.  This summer, our team sang for over 44,000 mostly non-Christian students in Singapore, Thailand, Korea, and Hong Kong.  Just like tonight at Pendleton, we don't know exactly how many come to know the Lord…but we know that many, many did.  Numbers are not our problem.  We go.  We share.  We love.  And He changes lives.  But, it is nice now and then when we can see with our own eyes that the Lord is indeed in the business of using us to bring people into the Kingdom, isn't it! 

Do seriously pray for these young men.  They know that there is a real likelihood that they could die in battle.  They're scared.  They're your age.  But they are committed to putting their lives on the line so all of us can live in freedom.  Let's be committed to putting our lives on the line by sharing the love of Jesus with as many people as the Lord brings into our sphere of influence.

Love you all.  So proud of you all.  Live for Jesus!

Love in Jesus! 
Ted Campbell, New America Singers 

Special to the California Southern Baptist

FRESNO - The California Southern Baptist Convention New America Singers were one of seven groups from around the world invited to sing for this summer's Baptist World Youth Conference in Hong Kong.

The students from CSBC churches sang at the Baptist World Alliance-sponsored meeting, and presented 48 concerts in Singapore, Thailand and Korea.

The International Mission Board invited the group to present concerts for school assemblies in Thailand; Youth For Christ asked the choir to spend a week in Singapore singing in public schools as well as Christian schools; and the group performed at Central Baptist Church in Suwon, Korea, where BWA president Billy Kim serves as pastor.

"With invitations in hand, all we needed to do was pray for the Lord to come up with a team of singers who could live up to expectations," said Ted Campbell, New America Singers director. "And for Him to convince parents that it was a good idea to take young people overseas with the current world situation. And for Him to convince people to pay for the trip.

"He did," Campbell declared. "And, as several young people later said, 'We'll never be the same again!'"  Campbell estimated the choir performed for 44,000 people during the tour. 

Brittany Kell (r) prays with a high school
student in Singapore

Darnell Powell from Valley Baptist Church in Bakersfield thought Korea was "amazing. We were the backup choir for the great gospel singer Larnell Harris at the Baptist World Alliance program at the Olympic Gymnasium in Seoul and at a football stadium for the U.S. Army, in addition to doing our own segments in those programs.

"We sang many times for soldiers at stadiums, in chapels, and for an Army athletic competition," Powell said. "The men and women were so appreciative, lonely and very open to the gospel. Several prayed with us to accept Jesus. To top it off, we sang three services for Dr. Billy Kim and his 10,000 member Suwon Central Baptist Church."

               From the Epicenter to Thailand
       Joe Patterson smiles in the face of danger

"I like Hong Kong," added Joe Patterson from First Baptist Church in Galt. "We went to perform for the Baptist World Youth Conference, but I think we received a lot more than we gave. Just think: over 4,000 young adults from over 100 nations, living together, talking and planning and praying together in small 'family' groups.

"Some of our new friends live in countries that are being ravaged by bloody civil wars, some are being persecuted, some African countries have lost about a fourth of their population from AIDS, and Bangladesh got hit by a flood in July that left 10 million people homeless. But these guys really love Jesus, and are excited about reaching their nations for the Lord," Patterson said.

Stephanie Lawrence from Magnolia Avenue Baptist Church in Riverside said Thailand was her favorite.

"The people are so laid back and friendly, and the schools are huge! We sang for two Christian high schools that had about 7,000 students each. Most of the kids are Hindu, Buddhist or Muslim, but we were still allowed to do totally Christian programs and show them how to be saved," Lawrence said. "Sometimes we even got to talk and pray with the kids after the assembly programs. Besides singing for nine school assemblies in Bangkok and in Chiang Mai, we did some churches, and had time for sightseeing."

Brooke Hartwell, a member of First Baptist Church of Mira Mesa in San Diego, said the group "worked the hardest" in Singapore.

"Youth for Christ had us singing three assemblies a day for public and Christian high schools," Hartwell explained. "We had a free hand in the Christian schools, but had to be more careful in the public schools. We mixed some Christian songs in with popular music and skits, then we invited them to a big YFC rally at the International Baptist Church.

"Several hundred came, and we did a totally gospel program and broke into small groups and gave kids an opportunity to meet the Lord."

For Ted Campbell the best part of the tour was not the places, but "the team of singers the Lord put together."

"Talented, professional, committed to Jesus . I knew this was going to be the most spiritually, physically and musically demanding trip the Lord has ever arranged for us, and He sent us exactly the right team members!

"These young people walked before crowds of thousands, TV cameras zooming in constantly, day after day without hesitation," Campbell said. "They smiled and moved with precision, radiating the love of Jesus every time. In spite of a demanding schedule that would have put most of us in a hospital,  they were always ready to sing and talk about Jesus.

"The future looks bright with this kind of young leaders-in-training, and California Baptists can certainly be proud of them!" Campbell declared.

California Southern
Baptist Convention