Terry Williams

Nov 17 2009

It has to become personal!

I share about the homeless, the poor, the needy and the abused children throughout the world but until it becomes personal, it is just another story. It became more apparent this past weekend that the kids we minister to each week in our childrens churches have very little experience or first hand knowledge of those who are in need, physically and spiritually.

So, how can I help them realize that they are the ones that can make a difference in the lives of other children that need their help? They must see through my eyes as I describe the conditions these children live in every day. It’s important that they¬† hear the deep concern in my voice as I talk about children that are spiritually dying. they must believe that they can make a difference when they choose to help and they need to know that I am not asking them to do something that I am not already doing myself. Being an example is the most powerful way to influence people. Jesus knew this better than anyone.

If we want to influence this generation we need to be the kind of example that will bring about change in the world around us. “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” 1Cor. 11:1

Nov 11 2009

Kids and Gospel Illusions

Recently I’ve been adding a few gospel illusions to my services and both the kids and adults have responded well. They are great fun and amaze the viewers. To begin I’ve used relatively simple illusions and have even been making a few. Here is my latest creation. It’s used in conjunction with a dove pan as I taught about how God can take someone ordinary, add the EXTRA to make you EXTRAordinary.

I know that there may be people that question the use of Gospel Illusions so I visited www.kidology.org to see what they had to say. If you would like to read more about the use of Gospel Magic Tricks, which we like to call “object lessons with a surprise ending” then click HERE to check out these articles posted on the site.

Nov 11 2009

Eternal Differences? You Can Help!

Six straight weeks of kids camp, two United States missions trips and 126 souls later I’m humbled how God chose to use me this summer. As I sit down to share what God did in the lives of children over the past four months I continue to think, ‘what more can I do to reach the children that have yet to know Jesus?’ God opened the doors for me to minister to children throughout Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland. In the 3,700 miles I traveled, I led 126 children in first time decisions to follow Jesus.
clowns The summer started in Appalachia where I partnered with Pastor TJ Wolfe from Warwick AG. We trained and prepared a team to go into Oak Hill West Virginia where we did street ministry and then held a three day evangelistic outreach for the children in that area. Over 26 children invited Jesus into their lives that week.
COH Next I headed to Dallas Pennsylvania where I spent a week at Camp Orchard Hill as the guest speaker. Using “Deeply Rooted” as the theme, I challenged the campers to evaluate their personal relationship with Jesus and to grow deeper in their faith. 76 children gave their hearts to Jesus and many others fell deeper in love with Him. When testimonies were shared one girl stood up and said, “Before coming to camp I really didn’t know Jesus and didn’t care but today I want everyone to know that I know Him and want to live for Him forever.” One of the boys stood and shared, “Now I know that Jesus will provide for me and I don‚Äôt need to worry about things.” The most touching was a girl that said, “I’ve learned that I can still have happiness even though my dad just died.” There are children here in the United States that are hurting and need the hope and love that only Jesus gives.
Keyser The summer was rounded off with five more weeks of kids camp and then I headed to Keyser WV with a team from 1st AG in Harrisonburg VA led by Trevor Whetzel. We had been invited to participate in a city wide outreach and minister to the children. All of our efforts were rewarded with 24 children making decisions to follow Jesus.
There are many more children to be reached. I want to continue to prepare people, train teams and minister to these children but we need your help. We’ve raised 28% of our budget. To remain on the mission field we’re asking you to invest in our ministry through a monthly Faith Promise. We are making an eternal difference in the lives of children, now you can help.
Click on our Donate page for instructions how you can partner with us. Please prayerfully consider investing in the lives of children through our ministry!

Sep 25 2009

Maggie and Eleanor become friends

It wasn’t long before Maggie was noticed rummaging through the trash looking for something that she could either eat or salvage. She wore mismatched clothes, sneakers with holes in the toes and gloves that were missing the fingers. She came looking for a free meal and found something more valuable. Maggie has shared her story with many kids at different churches but had never received this level of acceptance and immediate friendship. Like all visits the children were initially apprehensive about Maggie but eventually warmed up to her dynamic personality . As they shared and asked questions the kids accepted her as a friend despite their differences.

eleanor

To help kids understand the importance of reaching out to people in need, I¬† portray Maggie, a homeless lady. I encourage kids to recognize the needs of people around them and act on that need. These kids needed little encouragement. One particular girl accepted Maggie and became her instant friend. Her name was Eleanor. She introduced Maggie to other kids, invited her to sit next to her and welcomed her to pray and worship with the group. Maggie felt important and loved.

That day I saw the heartbeat of those children. Although Maggie and the children were different they didn’t treat her different. They didn’t base their love for her on her economic or social status. They loved her despite their differences. If only the world could operate in the same way!

Aug 03 2009

Keyser City-Wide Outreach

With the help of ‘No Limitz’ youth group from 1st AG in Harrisonburg Virginia, three years of community prayer by local leaders and pastors in Keyser, months of preparation, and hundreds of volunteers the seeds were planted to lead over 25 children in making personal decisions to follow Jesus. What a weekend of rejoicing in Keyser West Virginia as these children’s lives were changed for eternity.

keyser

The reward that came from the hours and hours of practice and team preparation were seen in the faces of those children. My reward was being able to help train and prepare this youth group to reap the harvest in Keyser. As a missionary to children in the United States, it’s not as much about how many children I can reach with the gospel but how many people can I empower to share the gospel with children. Only then will we see the multitudes come to know Jesus.

I was so blessed by the youth groups efforts and their desire to minister to the children. They put in long hours with very little free time as they prepared games, illusions, skits and music to share with the children. They remained focused on the task at hand but never lost sight of their goal; to see children give their lives to Jesus.

“Return Unto Me” was the theme of the event and together we stepped out in faith to reach the community of Keyser West Virginia. People representing different denominations and ages had come together to provide the platform for people to come and experience the message of Christ’s love.

Many thanks to Pastor John and Pastor Shawn from Keyser Assembly of God and the many other churches that made our trip so amazing and for providing our housing and food as well as facilities to prepare for the three services. It was a blessing to minister alongside of you.

May Keyser West Virginia continue to become a community committed to Jesus.