Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Fields of Faith

Tonight was the Fields of Faith event at Lakeside High School in Hot Springs. This event was sponsored by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and underwritten by the Kamo's Kids Foundation. The Kamo's Kids Foundation was established in memory of Kameron Hale, a sixteen-year-old Lake Hamilton student who died following a 4-wheeler accident in January. We never had the opportunity to meet Kameron, but from all we've heard, he was an amazing Christian kid who was a friend to everybody. We met his parents a few weeks ago, and have begun a friendship with them. It's amazing how quickly you can form a bond with someone who has experienced the same kind of heartbreak you have.

The crowd began to build by about 6:30 this evening...and eventually grew to over 1,000 people.

Bethany was one of seven student speakers this evening, all chosen from different high schools around the area. Each of the students spoke for about five minutes on different topics, and all of them did a wonderful job. Bethany was very nervous...it is a frightening thing to speak about such a personal subject in front of your peers...but she did a great job.

After the students spoke, a former professional football player shared for a few minutes (his name escapes me at the moment), and an excellent drama team performed a very moving skit. The FCA director wrapped it all up by sharing Kameron's story, and referring back to the things Bethany had said about Hannah. An invitation to follow Christ was given, and we sat there on the astroturf next to Kameron's parents and grandparents, tears rolling down our cheeks, as literally hundreds of kids went forward.

What an amazing experience! We could just imagine Hannah and Kameron as part of a great cloud of witnesses in Heaven, smiling as they watched those kids turning their lives over to Christ. How humbling it is to know that the ripples of their lives are still being felt. In fact, a little boy from our church (about 10 or 11 years old) came up to me tonight tugged on my sleeve, and said, "I want to tell you something." I leaned over, and he said in my ear, "Mrs. Jill, you know your daughter who died? Her life had an impact on me." Hannah would be so pleased.

2 comments:

Sherri Smith said...

I know Hannah was up in Heaven last night so proud of her little sister! How wonderful that Bethany is allowing others to see God through her.

Anonymous said...

And ALL the angels rejoiced at each and every decision made as a result of the testimonies shared that night! What a good God we have to use the suffering of His children to increase His kingdom while providing peace and comfort to those who have experienced and suffered such earthly loss.
Laurie