News :: Testimonies
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"Crossover is truly a blessing from God. Upon arriving in Colorado I was first blessed by the amazing speakers we had. These messages were seeds planted in me to prepare my heart for going overseas. This was my first time out of the country so I didn't know what to expect. How would I pay for the trip? Would I be culture shocked? How could I tell people about Jesus if I couldn't even speak their language? These were some of the fears and concerns I had. This whole experience has taught me that ultimately God is in control and that He is Sovereign. It also taught me that I am an instrument for Him to use to reach out to His people and advance His kingdom. God is so good, He allowed me to go on the trip, I wasn't culture shocked, and to my surprise most of the people spoke English. I often found myself praying and asking God to allow me to be a blessing to each person I came in contact with. I'm quite confident that God is who He says He is, so I know He blessed my willing heart to serve. It came to my surprise that God blessed me more through the kids, parents, and workers more so than I was probably a blessing to them. It caught me by surprise in Germany that there were people who had NEVER even heard of God or Jesus. I was also swept away when I was told that we couldn't mention God in France unless I was sharing my experience with someone. These people taught me so much and made me realize how I take my relationship with God for granted. My mindset should never be that I have to worship God, but that I get to! It also made me realize that missions doesn't just exist in other countries, but right here in my own community. It was encouraging to me when we had one-on-one time with the kids and shared our testimonies and how some of them responded in hunger and curiosity to know who this God was. It hurt my heart to see how desperate they were just by asking as many questions as possible before we left because they knew that once we were gone, no one else could answer their question. All I can say is that some are seed sowers and others reap the harvest. I pray that someone reaps soon in Europe. Through this trip God has showed me that I have a heart for the people. The trip I took to France and Germany was the final ingredient I needed in my life to make my walk with Him that much better. Thank you Crossover!"
Submitted January 10, 2011
by: Erica Inge (2010 Tour Member)
Submitted January 10, 2011
by: Erica Inge (2010 Tour Member)
"I am a self-initiator. I think by and large most people are, but I am one who has a great desire to be able to measure my productivity. I suppose it makes me feel purposeful to be able to see progress. And it’s only when I feel like I am giving everything I have, exhausting all my resources but can’t seem to get results, (my results) that I sink into discouragement and frustration. With that in mind I also believe the greatest testimonies emerge from the incidents that catch us most off guard. Hence, my testimony from Crossover tour 2010.
My experience with the Romanian kids was super “productive”. What I mean by that is that I could measure my productivity based off of reciprocity; e.g. when I responded to the kids, they responded back. That made me feel good and it was easy to observe that we were making an impact.
Serbia…was different for me. The kids “appeared” disinterested; when I tried to play with them or tease them they looked at me awkwardly and walked away. I admit it rose up insecurities, one because I was feeling shot down by kids that were half my age, and two, it felt like my efforts were met with an unexplainable halt! It didn’t make sense, but all of a sudden I was swept back to recess in the 2nd grade and no one wanted to pick me up for their kick ball team…Awesome.
However I tried to maneuver around it; act like my helplessness wasn’t affecting me when it was! I didn’t know what to do? Typically I don’t find myself uncomfortable in social situations, and if I do I can con my way out of them. But here I was STRUGGLING! No longer could I rely on my competency because my capacity for competency was falling WAY short. Obviously this challenged me to reflect on my identity, and banged on the door of my paradigm raging, “WHO ARE YOU WHEN YOU CAN’T!?”
By default I was reduced to prayer, examination, and complete reliance on Christ. It is clear that God positioned me so I could simply watch Him move. And He did! Without me, method or explanation we left Serbia, but not after dozens of kids hugged and kissed us, shared their contact information, and a young Serbian man named Marko stood up in front of two hundred people and shared his testimony. Although I didn’t understand a word he said, I do remember Marko signaling to the audience and them all rising to their feet and applauding us. Wow. Applauding us? According to my failing eyes I saw no “measureable” productivity. But again, this is only according to my limited sight. In the Spiritual realm I could not be more convinced that I stood by as God- the One true transformer of hearts- moved.
It was good for me to be reminded that God does not NEED me; that His power transcends all things. Although I’ve read scripture after scripture testifying to the magnitude of Gods’ power, I somehow still manage to forget. I’m not sure why I tend to rely on my limited capacities? Fallen habit I suppose. But in my heart of hearts I desire to be one who makes the Lord her confidence, and is astonished at watching Him move. As the Word says, “’Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit’, says the Lord. Indeed, it is the Lord who has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.
Amen."
My experience with the Romanian kids was super “productive”. What I mean by that is that I could measure my productivity based off of reciprocity; e.g. when I responded to the kids, they responded back. That made me feel good and it was easy to observe that we were making an impact.
Serbia…was different for me. The kids “appeared” disinterested; when I tried to play with them or tease them they looked at me awkwardly and walked away. I admit it rose up insecurities, one because I was feeling shot down by kids that were half my age, and two, it felt like my efforts were met with an unexplainable halt! It didn’t make sense, but all of a sudden I was swept back to recess in the 2nd grade and no one wanted to pick me up for their kick ball team…Awesome.
However I tried to maneuver around it; act like my helplessness wasn’t affecting me when it was! I didn’t know what to do? Typically I don’t find myself uncomfortable in social situations, and if I do I can con my way out of them. But here I was STRUGGLING! No longer could I rely on my competency because my capacity for competency was falling WAY short. Obviously this challenged me to reflect on my identity, and banged on the door of my paradigm raging, “WHO ARE YOU WHEN YOU CAN’T!?”
By default I was reduced to prayer, examination, and complete reliance on Christ. It is clear that God positioned me so I could simply watch Him move. And He did! Without me, method or explanation we left Serbia, but not after dozens of kids hugged and kissed us, shared their contact information, and a young Serbian man named Marko stood up in front of two hundred people and shared his testimony. Although I didn’t understand a word he said, I do remember Marko signaling to the audience and them all rising to their feet and applauding us. Wow. Applauding us? According to my failing eyes I saw no “measureable” productivity. But again, this is only according to my limited sight. In the Spiritual realm I could not be more convinced that I stood by as God- the One true transformer of hearts- moved.
It was good for me to be reminded that God does not NEED me; that His power transcends all things. Although I’ve read scripture after scripture testifying to the magnitude of Gods’ power, I somehow still manage to forget. I’m not sure why I tend to rely on my limited capacities? Fallen habit I suppose. But in my heart of hearts I desire to be one who makes the Lord her confidence, and is astonished at watching Him move. As the Word says, “’Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit’, says the Lord. Indeed, it is the Lord who has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.
Amen."
Submitted December 8, 2010
by: Kirby Beneventi (2008, 2010, 2011 Tour Member)
by: Kirby Beneventi (2008, 2010, 2011 Tour Member)
"I just want to say- thank God for Crossover. Crossover has shown me how the Power of God can move in life changing ways. God + Basketball has always made the most sense to me and Crossover being international is icing on the cake. I have been on two tours now, the first was Romania and Czech Republic in 2009, and then Romania and Serbia in 2010. With the work that’s being done by God through Crossover international, God will have me on more tours in the future. I can say this, when you are at work for the Lord, seeking Him and going forth with Him, there is such a powerful sense of contentment. I have learned that when you offer up your life as a sacrifice and submit to His calling, He will reveal things in your life you never thought you would be capable of comprehending. And whoever you’re around will be blessed, because you have chosen to operate with God.
I want to share a quick story of Gods amazing work. I was in Romania for the 2010 tour, and one of my campers assigned to my team did not talk at all. I would send him through drills, include him in all the games (because he was very talented), and I spoke specifically to him in Bible hour and loved on him as much as I could. But because I wasn’t getting much feedback from him, I felt a little discouraged. Three days of camp had gone by and on the last day, I prayed for my campers. That night we also played our last game. We played a great game, and every camper was invited to come, so we had a great turn out. After the game, I said my goodbye’s to the kids, and I went back to the bench to take some of my gear off and drink some water. When I turned back towards the court, I saw my camper who hadn’t talked all week, and he was pulling his dad over to me. I gave him a hug and his dad grabbed my hand and shook it with a smile on his face. He said, “ I want to thank you for being such a positive impact on my sons life. He talked about you every night and what he learned about God from you. Thank you, and my son and I wish you the best of luck!"
I want to share a quick story of Gods amazing work. I was in Romania for the 2010 tour, and one of my campers assigned to my team did not talk at all. I would send him through drills, include him in all the games (because he was very talented), and I spoke specifically to him in Bible hour and loved on him as much as I could. But because I wasn’t getting much feedback from him, I felt a little discouraged. Three days of camp had gone by and on the last day, I prayed for my campers. That night we also played our last game. We played a great game, and every camper was invited to come, so we had a great turn out. After the game, I said my goodbye’s to the kids, and I went back to the bench to take some of my gear off and drink some water. When I turned back towards the court, I saw my camper who hadn’t talked all week, and he was pulling his dad over to me. I gave him a hug and his dad grabbed my hand and shook it with a smile on his face. He said, “ I want to thank you for being such a positive impact on my sons life. He talked about you every night and what he learned about God from you. Thank you, and my son and I wish you the best of luck!"
Submitted December 8, 2010
by: Nick Moultrie (2009, 2010, 2011 Tour Member)
by: Nick Moultrie (2009, 2010, 2011 Tour Member)
"Prior to the trips this year, we experienced an abnormal amount of Spiritual Warfare. As we know, when the enemy is fighting you before you even leave....he is scared!! During Training Camp, we had numerous teachers and many of them shared about facing opposition and standing strong in what you believe, even if it results in bad situations. Many of the teachers referenced Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the Book of Daniel. We knew that we were walking into a "fiery furnace" of opposition, but we were looking for our God to deliver us. As a leader, the tour was very difficult due to circumstances and interpersonal issues among the teams. HOWEVER, God moved in amazing ways. We had to FIGHT for unity, but as we Chose God each day, He moved in the lives of our team members and the children and communities where we were working. On Tour A, we saw 50 people commit their lives to the Lord, and numerous others said that they had never experienced such love and friendship. I fought against discouragement because my Perfectionistic side wanted all the details to go smoothly. One of our tour members challenged me to take a step back and look at all the things that God did....IN SPITE of us!! WOW!!! It was amazing! Lives were changed. Godly Friendships were built, the kingdom was expanded and we were all forever changed. When we are Faithless, HE remains FAITHFUL!!!
Praise God for His grace and His willingness to walk with us in the fire. :)"
Praise God for His grace and His willingness to walk with us in the fire. :)"
Submitted August 21, 2010
by: Heidi Theiss (2008, 2009, 2010 Tour Member)
by: Heidi Theiss (2008, 2009, 2010 Tour Member)
"There are sooo many stories i could tell, but i will just stick to 2 for now... A couple of years ago I had knee surgery and the doctors told me after my surgery that i would never run or play basketball again, and that had been true, for the last year and a half i had not been able to be as active as i had.. but the first day of camp in Romania i started running like a normal person and jumping in on drills. And i know now that it wasnt a coincidence that God waited until now to begin healing my knee, I really believe a big part of it was to teach me patience, and because i was also able to use it as part of my testimony and to really connect with one of the campers...
Second- through this trip, God really taught me trust and depend on him again. I shared in my 6 Hs that after "momma" becky passed away i lost alot of my faith and trust in God to hear my prayers and handle my problems... but watching as He opened sooo many doors and opportunities, and answered so many prayers, he really showed me that i can trust and depend on him for EVERYTHING.
I pray that God will continue to use me with Crossover for years to come in whatever way He sees fit!"
Submitted August 13, 2010
by: Amber Satterfield (2010, 2011 Tour Member)
