A Testimony from Heather in the Booking Department

When You Can Run But You Cannot Hide International Came to my School

When you take a look at our younger generation, at first glance, it seems that we are so far gone as a nation that we are beyond hope.  We face youth who are immoral, indoctrinated with a Godless, lawless mentality, and will do extreme things such as school shootings at the drop of a hat.

I understand - I was one of them 12 years ago. I was a perfectly formed in the secular, immoral lifestyle. I grew up barely ever going to church. I hated church, and eventually would not step foot in one. I thought abortion and homosexuality were okay. My mentality was, just “do what you want to do,” as long as you aren’t like Hitler. Sadly, I thought God was okay with that, too.

My senior year in high school, right before Christmas break, You Can Run But You Cannot Hide International came to my school to perform a concert and lyceum. I had no idea that day that my life would be completely transformed! I walked into that assembly program as one of the typical young people that many of you reading this right now think are too brainwashed to hear the truth and receive it. I walked out of the assembly program with lights going on in my heart and mind, questioning EVERYTHING I had been trained up in for 17 years! It is amazing what the Spirit of God can do in a 2-hour assembly program!

I came into the auditorium, dreading having to sit through a boring lecture…or so I thought! When Bradlee Dean began to speak to our school of 1,800 students, it was electrifying. Although I was sitting in the back corner of the room, it was as if there was no one else there, and every word was spoken directly to me.  Bradlee did not come across like the same-old sophisticated speaker who doesn’t know what he’s talking about. He spoke with such passion and truth that it was impossible NOT to walk away unaffected! He did not beat around the bush and say things “nicely” so as not to hurt the “poor youth” who “have it so rough.” No - he loved us enough to tell us “No!” and mean it. He showed us his scars and I could not get the truth he spoke out of my heart and mind.

Within 2 weeks, I had stopped partying, smoking, and hanging out with my friends who lived that type of lifestyle. I began going to church, and was hungry to learn about the Living God, about the Christ who died for me, and now sits at the right hand of my Father! I came back to school from Christmas break with a Bible in my hand at all times (my choir teacher even took it from me for reading it in class =)).  

Since that day, I have been able to be a part of booking the 330 high school assembly programs we have done, and have seen first-hand thousands more youth who experienced the same thing I did when I was sitting in the lyceum myself. It has truly been a blessing.