(Yes, a
MAN, even!)
Before attending
the recent Promise Keepers Rally in Knoxville, Tennessee, I pondered
what it would be like. Will it live up to what I have heard? Will
it change my life? Will this be an enormous waste of my time?
My friends that attended with me from the Asheville area had heard
some negative things regarding the Promise Keepers. We all agreed
on the trip there, that if anything happened we were uncomfortable
with, we would simply leave.
As we entered Neyland
Stadium, we felt the excitement in the air. After getting a bite
to eat we found our seats, and waited for the program to begin.
As we waited, listening to the background music, a group of men
across from us (about 20 or so) stood up and shouted "We Love
Jesus, Yes We Do. We Love Jesus, How About You?" and pointed to
the other side of the stadium. Then another group stood up, then
another, then another. All around us these small groups stood
up to proclaim the name of Jesus. I knew I was in the right place.
Mike Silva, president
of Mike Silva Evangelism International, gave the first message
of the event. His message "Heart of a Godly Man Captured by Christ"
showed us that we must depend on Christ, the strongest, strong
one. His message was followed by an invitation to Christ. Several
thousand men moved toward the floor of the stadium to accept Christ
as their Savior.
Then came the rain,
but amazingly no one left! As the rain was pouring down, God was
pouring out His Spirit on 50,000 wet men who were there to seek
Him.
Bill McCartney,
founder and CEO of Promise Keepers, brought the final message
of that evening. His message "Purity of the Heart: Living Clean
Before God," brought our attention to a man’s strongest temptation,
that of sexual lust, whether it is in our thought life or acted
out in adultery.
The Saturday
Morning services began with a lot of praise and worship music.
This was something that I had never experienced before, a 50,000
male choir praising the name of Jesus.
Saturday Messages:
All of these
messages gave us a newfound understanding of what a Godly man
is. This valued information, if applied through the Holy Spirit
can achieve tremendous change in the lives of men, their families,
in their churches, their communities, states, countries, and the
entire world. The Promise Keeper Ministry can be a Godly influence
throughout the world and also in your life.
I Promise!
