“And the Master said…‘Go out into the highways and hedges and compell them to come in, that my house may be filled.” (Luke 14:23)
Dear ND Alumni & Friends,
One of the uniquenesses of the ND’s was our ability to go out into the “highways and hedges” of life and use music to compell people to “come in” to the Kingdom of God. That’s why one of our signature songs was: “Takin’ It To The Streets.” When we started doing that, there were few other groups going into the places we went to. Or in the famous words of Star Trek, we were “…going where no one else dared to go!”
Obviously, it was not our musical expertise, equipment or looks that made us successful! It was a combination of faith, love, youthful zeal, contemporary music, interracial complexion and joy in the Lord that God so wonderfully used to bring thousands into the Kingdom of God. While we were usually in a church service every Sunday morning and evening, the rest of the time we were “in the streets.” And oftentimes the Sunday morning church services were just a means to the end of getting out into the market place with the Gospel. It mattered not whether it was a street corner…shopping center…city park…prison…beach…parking lot…race track…high school auditorium or college quad – we went there with the love of Jesus! And through the years our “uniforms” and “hair styles” changed – but not our passion!
Quite frankly, we should not have survived some of the places we went to! Places where an interracial Christian group had never been before. But God was gracious and always brought us back with “fruit for our labors.” However, most of those “street ministries” were just times of seed sowing that we will only know the full results of when we get to heaven. But God showed us enough tangible fruit to know that “His Word never returns void” (Isa. 55:10-11).
So, I hope the following pictures that I have picked from hundreds in our files will bring back some wonderful memories. I also hope they will remind you to continue to be “radical for Jesus” – regardless of your age or sphere of influence!
Finally,
please send this on to any ND Alumni that you have contact with – along with other family and friends who might enjoy this “walk down memory lane” with us…
In His Faithful Love,
JL & Patt
PS: Don’t forget to
mark off the first weekend of August to be with us for our exciting “40th Anniversary Celebration.” It will be Friday evening through Saturday evening with some free time in between to visit local family and friends. So PLEASE be with us for this wonderful time of meeting old ND friends, singing, sharing, eating, laughing, crying and rejoicing over all God has done in and through our lives! And bring your children and grandchildren!
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