This past weekend the interns at the Honor Academy (TeenMania's internship) experienced God in a whole new way.  Beginning Wednesday evening, they took part of a 3 day fast.  On Thursday they worked and had a special time of prayer in place of lunch.  Then, at 10pm on Thursday night they took a vow of silence.  This was a fast from the world...no talking, texting, reading anything but the Bible...it was just them and God.

Upon their arrival into the office on Monday, my heart was filled with joy from all the testimonies of their incredible weekend. Many of them received vision for the next phase of their life...several felt the Lord speaking to them about past hurts...but one thing that they ALL held witness to was the fact that the Lord encountered them and showed His love in a way they had never experienced.

These young men and women are eager to be used by the Lord and to reach out to a hurting generation.  They are ready to help them ENCOUNTER God!!

standing in faith for an Encounter,

Rhonda and the Richmond Team

Published on Wednesday, November 11, 2009 @ 8:55 AM CST
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Hi, friends!

My name is Rhonda Brown and I am the new Regional Manager for the Richmond Acquire the Fire. I am originally from North Carolina and was blessed to attend Bible college in Virginia.I now reside in Texas, but heart will always be on the East Coast!

I remember attending my first ATF as a youth.  I was 15 years old and my youth group decided to attend this event that I had never heard of.  Being the committed youth group member that I was, or maybe just a social butterfly, I had to go and be a part of what was happening.  That year the theme was "WorldChanger."  To this day I can still sing a part of the main song for the weekend!  That weekend changed my life for eternity.  I realized that I could change the world.  I could make a difference...and that is exactly what the Lord was asking me to do.

Now, many years later, I am a part of helping youth all over North America have this same experience.  I get to partner with youth leaders and pastors from all over and help in shaking a generation.  I consider this an honor as well as an enormous challenge from God.  Who am I that He would consider me for such a privilege?  Who am I that He would look at me and think that I could do anything of worth for His kingdom?  Well... I am a WorldChanger.

My team and I look forward to partnering with you to make the Richmond Acquire the Fire  a life transforming event for you and your youth.  Please contact us with anything that we can help with or pray for.

From one world changer to the next,

Rhonda 

Published on Thursday, November 5, 2009 @ 11:33 AM CST
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Here are some testimonies from Pat, a youth leader in Amelia, VA, about what God did in the lives of her youth at the Richmond ATF!!

Many experienced the freedom of Worship!  They even demonstrated to the church what and how it can be done.  This was a blessing to me (I am one who can get lost in worship and sometimes get a little carried away, comparatively speaking, more than people around me).  This was also a blessing to the pastor, as he has been trying to knock down these barriers that so many folks who walk in the door with.  They also learned that it’s ok to get crazy for Jesus and feel good about it!  They learned to not be afraid of stepping out in the darkness with His light and to not be afraid to share God’s word and love with their friends.  It was also reaffirming to be with so many kids their age who were on fire for Jesus and not afraid to show it!  This was wonderful for these teens, since Amelia is a small, rural community with not much going on for our kids.  It meant a lot for them to be surrounded with such positive energy.  Of course, the music was awesome.  One 14 year-old girl said “the music was so powerful you couldn’t stand still.  I felt my heart was so full of praise it would explode!”

*If you have any testimonies you would like to share, please leave a comment or e-mail me at rebecca.long@teenmania.com*

Published on Monday, April 20, 2009 @ 3:47 PM CST
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I pray that you are all recovering from last weekend, from lack of sleep, lack of hearing, or lack of a voice!  Hopefully, though, it was all worth it!  As I think back over the event, there are some things that God keeps pressing on my heart, which I would like to share with you:

Frist of all, please either send me an e-mail or leave a comment here with your feedback!   I want to be able to share some testimonies on here from the weekend, as well as pictures from the event, as reminders of the miracles God did.  If you have any of them, please send them my way! 

Now, I know that the event is over, but that doesn’t mean that the Lord is done working.  In fact, this is just the beginning!  God wants to use the things we all learned and the decisions we made at the event to change us for the rest of our lives!  Whatever you do, DO NOT look back at this as a “nice event,” but allow God to make it a turning point in your life.  He is calling us to be Troublemakers, not just at an event but for the rest of our lives!

So, write things down.  Keep a journal of what God is doing in your life.  Tell the people around you about the decisions you’ve made.  Use these stories to encourage believers and challenge the unsaved.  Whatever you do, don’t go back to the way you used to be.

Here is a testimony from Mary, a leader from Bethlehem Baptist Church:

This was our youth groups first time attending an Acquire the Fire Rally. I was so impressed at how organized it was. And I was so amazed at the fact that you would be experiencing great rock bands playing and the next minuet, kids would be down on their knees crying and praying for a close relationship with the Lord. God’s presence was certainly there, in that place. My youth group can’t wait to go again. It was truly a blessing to be there and experience God’s mighty power. It was an experience I will never forget.

Published on Monday, April 20, 2009 @ 3:46 PM CST
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One week … that’s the amount of time we have left until the Richmond ATF!  I don’t know about you, but I can’t believe how fast the time has gone!

I’m sure you all are busy planning last minute details, like places to stay overnight, food for your students during the event, chaperones, transportation, and all the other fun things that go into taking a group to an event!  I want to make sure that you are all set up to win, so I will do everything I can to help you. 

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

 Tickets:  If you haven’t ordered tickets yet, please continue to get a count of how many students you will be bringing, as well as collect money.  A few of the sections have sold out, but we still have seats left in the floor and bowl.  You may register online or over the phone at the door price until the end of the day Thursday, January 29.  After that, you will need to purchase your tickets at the door.  Those tickets will go on sale starting at 4pm, Friday, January 30.

Transportation: Bus, car, van, train?  There are so many options for transportation to ATF.  If you are struggling last-minute to find a way to get your students to the event, don’t give up!  Ask the other churches in your town to let you borrow their church van or bus, and keep praying!

Lodging: I’ve posted hotels online which have offered discounts to those attending Acquire the Fire.  For most of them, the deadline for reserving rooms has passed, but feel free to check them out anyway.  Also, if your church is near the venue you may want to have your students stay overnight at the church.  If you have extra room at your church, please consider allowing another youth group to stay overnight with your group.  This is a great way to help out another group, as well as form lasting friendships!  My youth group always did that since we live 3 hrs from ATF.  Now, we partner with that church every year, and both youth groups enjoy getting to spend time together!

Food: This is one area that you will NOT want to forget, especially when it comes to teenagers!  Depending on your budget, you may want to plan on packing meals, or grabbing food from the vendors at the Coliseum or visiting one of the restaurants in the area.  Also, if you have a large group and do not want to overwhelm a restaurant, you may want to consider ordering pizza.  Most places will give you a discount and deliver it to the venue.  Just make sure you are there when they deliver!  Lord willing, weather will not be too cold so that you can have a picnic outside.

Chaperones:  As you order tickets, please be sure to include your chaperones in your count.  Also, adults may feel free to volunteer during the event.  Volunteers help us with ushering, running the merch tables, and security.  They get into the event for free, have some meals provided, and get a free t-shirt.  If you have anyone interested in volunteering, please let me know.  If you have any parents coming with your group, they can register their tickets for $35.  Don’t forget that we have a parent session Saturday, which we would love to see all the parents attend.  For more information about that, give me a call!

Parent Consent/Medical Forms: Be sure to have your students fill out a parent consent form before you leave.  Also, it may be a good idea to have a medical form as well in case anything happens while you are gone.   Keeping parents informed is very important, not only with a consent form, but also with any other information you feel they should have.  You may want to put together an instruction sheet for them, especially if they will be dropping off/picking up their teens before and after the event.  E-mail me if you would like to see an example of any of these forms.

Rules: Most people hate to be the “bad guy” on youth group trips, but you may want to put together a list of rules that you and your chaperones agree to before you leave for ATF.  Then, before you load the bus, read your students the rules and have them all agree to them.  That way, if you have to enforce them, the students cannot say they didn’t know they were breaking a rule.  As you form your rules, think of the specific students that will be going on your trip - depending on the group, your rules may be more strict than other groups’.  Once again, if you would like an example of this, let me know!

Published on Monday, April 20, 2009 @ 3:35 PM CST
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