and a 94-year-old former Olympian and WW II vet have in common? This past
weekend, each one of them—Greg Laurie, Bethany Hamilton, and Louis
Zamperini—spoke to crowds gathered at Angel Stadium for the 2011 Anaheim Harvest
about their shared faith in Jesus Christ.
Hosted by
more than 215 churches, from Riverside to Irvine to Temecula, the Harvest
Crusades with Greg Laurie marked its 22nd year of evangelistic
outreach in Orange County, Calif. with a three-night event, Friday through Sunday (Aug. 12–14).
The 2011 Anaheim Harvest drew a diverse crowd of 115,000 people from
34 states and 11 countries, all of whom gathered to listen to top Christian
music from artists like Kutless, Jeremy Camp, Francesca Battistelli, Jars of
Clay, Red and Phil Wickham, and to hear the faith stories of Hamilton and
Zamperini. But most important was the message of salvation presented by
Riverside, Calif. pastor and evangelist Laurie each
evening.
Speaking to a
crowd of 45,000 gathered on Sunday evening—many of them 25-years-old or
younger—Laurie addressed the theme, “Home Before Dark,” drawing on the biblical
parable of the prodigal son. This is a story that Jesus tells that
illustrates how we are like this boy, running from God.
“When I was a boy,
my mother used to tell me to get home before dark,” said Laurie. “My mom
was the prodigal daughter, but she came back to the Lord before she died. She made it home before dark.”
Laurie
continued: “Don’t put off your decision to come to know God—you don’t know if
you’ll have a tomorrow. Tonight is your night to get right with God or to
come back to Christ. You can get home before dark. If you want Jesus
Christ to come into your life, he will tonight.”
By the end
of the 2011 Anaheim Harvest, 11,905 people at Angel Stadium accepted Laurie’s
invitation to put their faith in Christ, while another 376 made the same
decision via an online broadcast of the Harvest
Crusades.
