Trip 3--Hip Hop Ministry

My third trip was a victory for God's kingdom, and now I have even more work to do! I arrived in Philly on Tuesday May 13 in my big 15 passenger caravan donated from Loucon Training and Retreat Center (loaded with donated baseball eqiupment from PLD and WKU and sound eqiupment) and got started on Wednesday. That Wednesday I went to the court at 3 and played basketball until 7 (It's been a long time since I played like that). Luckily, almost all the guys from the month 1/2 before were there and of course, they remembered me. That day was a big bonus because I exchanged phone #s with several of them (so you know that's a big step).

The next morning there was an advisory board meeting--a group of 4-5 adults meet every 3-6 months to discuss how to raise money or what they can do for the community, etc. One of the members is Phyllis, who works for Impact Services, a company next door to the church (not faith-based). Though they are not "faith-based" they have served alongside of the Salvation Army because of all that the army does for the community and Impact Services job is essentially "community development/improvement." Major had me meet with the group and explain what I've been doing. Phyllis loved the idea and the next day called and asked if she could print an Ad in the newspaper, calling it "The Good Word in Gatorade" (haha)... she explained that it would let the neighborhood know that good things are happening and that there could be potential people who would donate money to my ministry (I think we can call that another step).

Then came Thursday afternoon where I picked up my "California Christian Rappers." From all the money I raised I was able to purchase 5 plane tickets for 4 rappers and a minister to come do a Christian Hip Hop show (Friday and Saturday). In the four days I was with them, I really don't know if I've ever had more fun. These were some of the funnest guys I've been around and the most genuine Christians! Their first day there I took them out for hoagies (no one makes sandwhiches like they do in the North... mmmm!) and showed them around the neighborhood as they passed out fliers and free CDs. As I showed them around, I quote one of the rappers (Explicittrell), "Man, the harvest is definitely here" and from another (N.I.C.), "This neighborhood puts Cali to shame" (these guys were from rough neighborhoods/backgrounds in Cali too). That kind of gives an idea of what this neighborhood is like--a troubled area ridden with drugs, etc but also ready to be harvested for the kingdom. One thing that makes the ministry easier there is almost EVERYONE sits on their porch outside (they have nothing else to do), so the people are right there in front of me! So thursday was spent passing out fliers for the show and spending time in bible study and prayer. The guys also came over that night to play ball in the gym!

Then came the shows. We had hoped to do it outside, but it rained all day Friday. So we cleared out the chapel and set up for inside. Saturday, however, we trusted God and put the equipment outside despite 40% chance of scattered thunderstorms. As the show went on, storms were all around us, but never over us :). When people asked me how the shows went, I tell them, "Quantity not as big as expected, but the impact it had on people greater than I expected." Friday we had 20 and Saturday about 40... so not as many as I had hoped for, but lives were changed in one night. Several people invited Christ into their lives and several others saw for the first time that there is more to it than just believing in a Christ who died for their sins--they saw the idea of "walking in their salvation." That's why I say there is now more work for me. Several people there were outside of my "target group" and now there is potential for an additional bible study/discipleship. What I loved about these two nights is that I saw that I truly did have the best group of Christian rappers--they didn't care how many showed up (and it is common that I would see worship leaders be upset over a 20 person attendance and thus not care so much). These guys were simply there to glorify God and minister--I've never seen people so excited to witness (even during the day, outside of the show). After the show they praised God for the work that had been reaped, "Hallelujah this, hallelujah that"...

One example of a life changed over night is Evette. Evette is a woman (probably in early 40s) who lives a few doors down from the church. A couple of the rappers visited her to invite her to the show. She bluntly replied, "I'm not going to that, I'm going clubbing tonight." Guess where she was that night? Yup... at our show. She heard the music coming from the church so she came over, and brought her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend! She went from saying she was going clubbing to.... the next day standing outside at our show again, only this time passing out bibles and gospel tracts to everyone who walked by!

To close out, I should probably tell you who this group is and how I came to contact them. The four rappers are N.I.C. (Noticed in Christ also called Nicolodean), B Fade, Explicittrell, and Brotha Ruff (aka "Gospel Gorilla") and the minister is Jnezz who started the "Pray Area Movement" which brought these rappers together. I met them online through a friend from another mission trip. A few years ago I went to Jamaica on a mission trip and met Acacia, who was from Cali. Well after she sent out an e-mail to all the Jamaica missionaries about 9 months ago, I responded explaining what I had been up to (part of it was about Philly). She then replied and told me about her friend NIC who would be good to have come out... so then I contacted him. To be honest, neither one of us thought it would actually happen; but hey, God likes to slap you in the face sometimes. They not only helped kickstart my ministry in Philly, but it also helped their ministry. Several people heard them and loved them, and these people have further contacts for future potential shows (they've also had kids e-mail them asking when they were coming back!). I hope to have pictures posted next week... If you want to find out more about Pray Area Movement, they have a myspace web page: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=370124781 (you can even see an interview with Evette).

Well... I'm now getting ready to get on the road to head back for the next 8 weeks! Pray for me and I'll keep things posting once a week. :)