Being “driven” in one's relationship with Christ and taking seriously the challenges that Christian faith presents was the focus of Virginia Baptists' Youth EnCounter 2008.
Photo by Alice Rusher
Sonicflood leads in worship at YEC.
Held July 31 and August 1 at the Richmond Raceway Complex and concluding with a fun afternoon and evening at Kings Dominion on Friday, Youth EnCounter drew students from all across Virginia.
While they waited for the program to officially begin on Thursday afternoon, students enjoyed the outdoor festival atmosphere and interactive and inflatable games. Whether it was riding the mechanical bull, playing a game of joust or inflatable volleyball, stretching themselves to the limits climbing the rock wall or testing their abilities at the Velcro jump, students enjoyed each other and the challenging games at Youth EnCounter.
Highlighting this year's event was comedian Thor Ramsey, who made everyone laugh with his side-splitting comedy that incorporated some of his mundane but funny observations on life, parenting and other topics. The worship leaders were the legendary innovators of contemporary worship, Sonicflood. Presenting the biblical messages each day was Wade Morris, a familiar face to Virginia students. Morris presented a no-holds-barred approach to being driven in one's relationship with Christ and how that changes everything in life.
The Thursday evening worship service, led by Sonicflood and Wade Morris, witnessed and recorded 15 first-time salvation decisions, 13 students sensing God's calling to ministry and service, and 47 recommitments to Christ. The worship service was followed by a two-hour concert that generated a lot of excitement and energy, starting with the pulsating hip-hop sound of Grits and continuing with the popular music of one of the new stars in the contemporary Christian scene, Sanctus Real.
Bluefield College photo
YEC participants who were awarded scholarships to Bluefield College.
“I came to YEC to hang out with my friends, but being here changed me and pushed me to make a commitment to get closer to God,” said Ian Gillman, a youth member of Pine Street Baptist Church in Richmond. “I now have a better understanding and motivation to continue to press onward, never give up, and allow God to come into my life every single day.”
Photo by Alice Rusher
The rock wall was a popular feature at YEC.
“The speaker inspired me to let people know I believe in God, so that is what I am committed to do,” said Jasmine Lovelace of Greenfield Baptist Church in Gretna. “I definitely feel that the time I spent here worshipping God, hearing testimonies, praying and bonding as a youth group has really helped me to open up and enter a deeper relationship with God.”
Photo by Alice Rusher
The band Sanctus Real in concert during the Thursday night of YEC.
A major sponsor of Youth EnCounter 2008 was Bluefield College. Its magnetic and popular display area offered students challenging contests with Guitar Hero or racing on the Wii and also provided information to them about the college and its strong relationship to the Baptist General Association of Virginia and Youth EnCounter. On Friday morning, David Olive, president of Bluefield College, shared a personal greeting with the students and then presented nine $3,000 scholarships to students who had registered for a scholarship drawing for potential students for Bluefield College.
“Students are looking for something fun and interactive,” said Bluefield College's Kris Hardy, director of creative media. “Our presence in this event brings the name and face of Bluefield College to each student who participates. We had everything from human bowling to Nintendo Wii, and students had the opportunity to interact with our admissions counselors and current students.”
Photo by Alice Rusher
Getting ready for Human Bowling.
As co-sponsors of the event, Bluefield College not only helped plan the program for YEC, but also produced and presented a series of video vignettes to open each session of the conference. Participants who visited the Bluefield College exhibit had chances to win free t-shirts, a Nintendo Wii, and an Apple iPod Touch.
“We believe YEC is a great venue to cultivate relationships with students and build a positive presence in students' minds,” said BC's Toby Ziglar, vice president for enrollment management. “Each year we are able to continue to build on our brand name and particularly reach out to the eastern part of the state. We are building our reputation and hoping to get our name out there in the community.”
Photo by Alice Rusher
The hip hop group Grits signs autographs.
The Virginia Baptist Mission Board's Baptist Collegiate Ministries also partnered with Youth EnCounter to provide support and presence so students all across Virginia would make a strong connection with the work of BCM in the state's schools. Campus ministers and BCM students provided on-going support to help facilitate and implement Youth EnCounter. Baptist Collegiate Ministries also held a drawing to give away several MP3 players to students who signed up at the BCM booth.
This year's Youth EnCounter theme — “DRIVEN” — is truly God's challenge to each of us: being driven every day in our faith with Christ and letting that faith work in our everyday lives to change the world.
Bluefield College freelance writer Sharde Sherman contributed to this story.