We left Fruitland Park and headed towards Bonita Springs in SW Florida. On our journey we were able to stop outside of Tampa and connect with the Will Galkin Evangelistic Team as they were driving north to Clearwater Christian College. We had such a wonderful time. Thirty of us (including men, women, children and any thing else that could breath) sat down to eat at a local Cheddar’s restaurant. We were able to be with former team members (Galkins, Coffey’s, and Reba Snyder) along with my son, Stephen, who is traveling with them this year. When you are with friends, you never have enough time! The moments flew by and we had to say goodbye to drive to the Gospel Baptist Church.

This was our fourth meeting with Pastor Bill Lytell and the “Gospel” as he calls it. It was 1995 when we first came to hold meetings with these dear folks. It has always been an incredible blessing. The Lord has always done some special things during these meetings. This week was no less! The church always fasts and prays before the start of the services. There is a spirit of anticipation in the atmosphere. Throughout the week, the house was filled with people. The people have an unusual grace in the realm of giving. There support of missions is outstanding. They are very evangelistic and the people give out over 200,000 tracts per year in the community. During the winter season, the church swells in attendance because of the number of retirees who are here during this time of the year. The church has a number of wonderful retired Christian servants who come and go throughout the year (Dr. Wendell Heller, Dr. Bob Taylor, and others).

Again, the pastor felt like there was a touch of revival during the week with the people responding to the Word. It seems like some significant decisions were being made in the area of confession and restitution. The people were challenged to instant obedience to the powerful promptings of God within the human heart. May the Lord give us revival in our day!

We leave with a deep sense of gratitude for the gracious people of Gospel Baptist Church. We were honored to serve with two wonderful assistants, John Boutchia and Marty Moon. We were especially grateful for the leadership of Bill Lytell whose passionate heart and love for the Word, consistent stand, and gracious generosity will never be forgotten.

More pictures from the week