Rap music, hip-hop dancers and a rainbow of strobe lights set the atmosphere for The Basement, an outreach that draws thousands of youth to Cathedral of the Cross in Birmingham, Ala., every Tuesday night.
“People ask me all the time: ‘Is this revival?’” says Matt Pitt, the 23-year old founder of The Basement. “I can't say what it is. I can just say that God is alive, He's moving and He's up to something.”
The ministry has witnessed incredible growth since its inception just three years ago in the basement of Pitt's parents' home. It was there while on break from his studies at the University of Alabama that Pitt experienced a life-altering encounter with God.
Pitt says he was immediately delivered from drugs, recommitted his life to Christ and set out to introduce others to Christ. The next week Pitt began a Bible study with three friends.
Three years later, it has grown to number more than 5,000, and people travel from as far away as Florida, Georgia and Louisiana to attend. Pitt says he intentionally designed The Basement's look to compete with clubs and bars for the soul of his generation. And he says his message is simple.
“No matter who you are or where you are, God has a plan for your life,” Pitt says. “God is taking the nobodies and making them somebodies. God has something huge just for you, just stick it out and watch what happens.” It's a message thousands show up each week to hear. –David Lamb in Birmingham, Ala.
