It is now Easter weekend and I have a special treat for the gangs on Resurrection Sunday. Earlier in the week the college students that I speak to on Monday and Tuesday nights had a gift for me. They had purchased a bunch of plastic eggs at the dollar store. Inside of each egg they put a single Bible verse. They used either John 3:16 or Jeremiah 29:11. Before they closed each egg up, they put in a chocolate Kiss on top of the verse. When I came to speak to them they handed me this bag with all these eggs in it. Before I had a chance to deliver the eggs to the gang members God had me put money in them. God had me withdrawal $245 in ones earlier in the week. I thought it was for the students. God said, “No, I want you to put money in the eggs.”
There was extra cash, so some eggs had $2 or $3 in them. On Sunday morning I arrived at the park early and began to hide the eggs. One thing I didn’t have to worry about is kids finding them since this park was in a dangerous area. When the gang members showed up they already had been looking for me. They were hungry as usual and we had Dr Pepper and burritos to eat. After we finished eating, I had them sit in the bleachers that the park installed because the soccer season started. I told them all to sit down. After they finished sitting they looked at me intently. I said, “I have a surprise for you. I hid Easter eggs in the park to find.”
With that “you are trying to treat me like a baby look”, they said, “Sonny we don’t do Easter egg hunts anymore.”
I said, “Well then, you are going to miss out on a prize. We will have to have somebody else look for them.”
They were looking at each other to try to figure what their peers might think if they did this. Finally, when they started thinking about the surprise, one man jumped up and began running the course. Then they all decided to give it a try. One man open his egg right away and yelled, “Wow! This egg has $3 in it.”
That really got them all looking. It did not take long to find all of the eggs. When they begin reading the Bible verses and the fact that they were on an Easter egg hunt brought them back to memories of home. They soon began asking more questions about Jesus Christ and they all decided that they wanted to give their hearts to Jesus Christ and go home. But as usual they wanted to make sure that their home environments were safe to go back to. They always remember their homes like it was when they left. Usually, it is the dads who cause the problem why their sons left. Those dads began to realize that they need to make a life change and many times that is done by serving Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ has the power to take you away from any addiction. There is great fear when the gang members call home because they feel like nothing will be different. Many times they asked me to stand by them when they call home because they feel more secure. It always makes me cry when I see the son ask for forgiveness from their fathers. The father’s then ask for forgiveness for what they did to make their son leave. When the gang leaders and members see that they’re parents have changed, they are excited to go home.
Again God orchestrated all this through the college students that this Easter egg hunt would be the catalyst for them turning their lives over the Jesus Christ. God gets the glory into victory.