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Report From Tacf Freshwind Youth Conference 2005
April 5, 2005
From Steve Eastman
Raleigh, NC
Our 15 year-old daughter, Jolie, recently returned from the Freshwind 2005 Youth Conference at Toronto Airport Christian Felowship. I asked her to write a report.
Report from Freshwind 2005
When I left for Toronto this year I thought I knew what to expect. This was my fourth visit to Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship’s Freshwind youth conference, and I had mistakenly assumed that this year’s conference would resemble the previous three. But this year God decided to move in a different way, and I’m very glad He did.
Like every other year, I arrived in Toronto exhausted and quite grubby looking (as did my peers). I also had a cold and hadn’t smelled anything in a few days. When I walked into the church like I had in years past, I knew that God had something very different planned.
On that first day of the conference it felt like there was a haze separating me from the presence of God. I could barely hear Him, see Him or feel Him. I sensed that He was there, but I couldn’t quite find Him. That night I went back to my hotel room still searching for Him. The next evening I was standing in worship and I heard God say to me that I was harboring some resentment and unforgivness towards a few people. So I replied, “God I’m sorry, I repent,” Immediately it felt like something had clicked and I began to feel God. To my surprise I smelled something! God had just opened my nose for the first time in days! I began to laugh and cry at the same time, which I must admit had an interesting effect on my running nose. God began to show me just how many people had hurt me and I needed to forgive in order to hear, see, and feel Him properly. I was reduced to a puddle of tears. I sobbed and shook for about 45 minutes, while God began to clean me out spiritually.
After I stopped crying I thought that we were done with that issue and I was ready for the next thing. But as you might have guessed, I was wrong. The next morning Pastor Tommy Rostedt from Finland, had just taken the stage when he asked if anybody had received healing in worship the previous evening. My friends urged me to share my testimony. So I stood up and started making my way to the stage. When I was halfway there thoughts of nervousness began to race around my head, but I knew there was no turning back now.
When I got onto the stage I began to tell my story to a lady on staff at TACF before I got up to the microphone. Before the first sentence left my lips I felt the power of God come over me and I began to shake uncontrollably. Although this sensation was nothing new to me, I was surprised at how strongly I felt it. By the time I got to the microphone I had lost all composure. As soon as I had finished giving my testimony, I found myself on the floor, still shaking. I was escorted off the stage (I say escorted because I really couldn’t walk on my own) to a small area where I could spend time with God until I was able to walk back to my seat.
While I was there I heard Pastor Tommy ask if there was anyone else that needed to forgive, and be forgiven. To my surprise most of the people in the church came to the front! It was then that I realized that God may have just used me in a powerful way. Something like that would have made me fall to the floor if I hadn’t already been there!
Throughout the rest of the day God took all the pain that I had been holding in for so long. After crying for two more hours, I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off of me. I felt so good!
God continued to move on the way home, too. It was amazing to see all my friends praying for each other!
It’s been almost two weeks since I’ve been home, and I am completely changed. Friends and family have said that I seem like a whole new person. I’m more cheerful now. I’m so thankful for the things that God did for me while I was in Toronto, and I am excited to see what He’s going to be doing in the days and weeks to come!
sreastman@bellsouth.net
Location: Toronto, Canada
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