Hundreds Worship Jesus at 'Powerful' Small Town NC Crusade: 'The Start of a Movement'

The organizer of a small North Carolina crusade says people "felt God's presence" during the event that took place last Friday. 

Pastor Charles Hines led the Union County Crusade at Cane Creek Park in Waxhaw, North Carolina, to advance God's Kingdom. 

More than 500 people showed up to the site, which was once the landmark of a small-town revival centuries earlier. Despite thunderstorms, the crowd was "jumping and dancing in the rain,"  especially the children, Hines shared. 

"It was a really joyful, joyful time in the midst of the storm," he described. "They were enthralled and so many people came up and said, 'You know, I really felt like this is the start of a movement that we have to continue.'" 

Hines told CBN News that 15 people made decisions for Christ and requested to be baptized. 

"Many people have told me ever since then they just felt God's presence. It was just so powerful. They said we hope that this goes on for many more years," he said. 

Hines argues that although those numbers may seem "small," this is only the beginning and should be an encouragement to smaller congregations. 

"It's an encouragement to the small local church. You [may] feel like, 'I can't do anything' or it feels like that, '[we] are powerless and we don't have the people.' But you know what? The body of Christ is the body of Christ. We're not Presbyterian. We're not Pentecostal. We're not Baptist or Methodist. We're the body of Christ, and you know what, maybe people feel like they're helpless and 'I can't do anything' but when we come together for the Great Commission, then things are happening...I'm excited for what God's doing." 

Members from these churches had been seeking God for the vision, direction, and connection for the outreach. 

"Our goal is to reach the lost and connect them to a church," Hines initially explained to CBN News, adding that Waxhaw, a surrounding town near the county, has grown exponentially over the years and provides an opportunity to reach thousands with the Gospel message. 

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"[The town] went from 1,000 people to 20,000 in a span of 10 years. It's just been a lot of growth and it seems like the world's coming into Union County," he said.

According to Hines, this is not the first time that thousands of people have been drawn to the town of Waxhaw. 

In the 1800s, on the heels of the Second Great Awakening, "people came from all over to come to this (town's) revival," the pastor of Prospect Southern Methodist Church told CBN News. 

"People would pitch tents and they came out and they were crying out to the Lord," he explained. "5,000 to 8,000 people came out and it was just a really powerful story."

Hines says Friday's revival was less than 5 miles from where that revival took place in the 1800s, and that unique part of the town's history serves as a foreshadowing of what is taking place across pockets of the nation. 

"I think there's a lot of growth of young people, especially young men in the churches. We're seeing more revival and so I believe that this particular event is going to be a real rush of momentum for Christianity in our county," he shared.  

Hines believes God is stirring the hearts of men in this season, and he is not alone.

Pastor Jack Graham of Prestonwood Baptist Church recently wrote on X, "We are seeing the fires of revival burning and are on the cusp of Spiritual Awakening. Young men in particular are experiencing a hunger for God...it is a Jesus movement in the making." 

Pastor Greg Laurie recently told CBN News he is seeing more men coming to Harvest Christian Fellowship, based in California, also.

"I think one of the reasons for it is just men have been so beaten down in the last decade or so. They're tired of being browbeaten and young men specifically being told it's bad to be a man, it's bad to be masculine. And there's been a reaction. And I think it's a good reaction," Laurie said.

"I can't explain it other than the fact that it's a God thing and that God is stirring the hearts of men," Hines said. 

Meanwhile, Laurie believes there will be signs of revival continuing across the country and encourages the church to focus on the Great Commission.

"And the Great Commission, of course, is going into all the world, preaching the Gospel and making disciples of all nations. And I just urge everyone that these are effectively the final words of Jesus, if you will, before he ascended to heaven. And so, this is important to Jesus. It should be important to us," Laurie said. 

Hines tells CBN News he doesn't want the outreach to stop after the revival. That is why he developed a digital discipleship course that will allow people to jump right into their newfound relationship with Jesus Christ. 

"We know that one of the pitfalls of crusades, traditionally, has been that people, you know, have this experience, they get saved or they come forward, but they don't end up going to the church," he explained. "We actually put together a 21-day discipleship training course."

Hines shared that people will learn how to study the Word of God, maintain a prayer journal, and understand the importance of spending time with God. 

"In the 21 days, there will be three Zoom calls to be able to build relationships among the pastors and the new believers," he explained. 

Hines added, "I'm just somebody who wants to get to work right away and if I just receive the Lord, I don't wanna wait till Sunday, and so one of the cool things about that opportunity is that you can learn how to connect more with the Lord in your bed that night you know." 

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