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Health & Fitness

Preaching Jesus to the Nations at Ocean City, Md.

Every year, 8,000,000 people visit Ocean City, Maryland

If you are vacationing in Ocean City this summer, you may want to attend the “Jesus at the Beach” festival. I can assure you that the blessings of God the Father and the love of His Son, Jesus, will be with you as His Spirit is very much present on the Atlantic Ocean boardwalk and beach.

Many of the people attending will be from other nations. The Son' Spot Ministry will have Bibles and tracts available in different languages. Last year God used people to minister through music, song, preaching, prayer, passing out tracts, witnessing, sand sculpture, dramas, dance, and fellowship. It is awesome to watch the Lord minister to the thousands on the boardwalk. Thank you, Lord, for the opportunity to lift up the name of Jesus in Ocean City.

The 20th annual Jesus at the Beach Music & Ministry Festival will take place on July 28-30, 2014. Each day at the Ocean City, Md. Convention Center there will be praise, worship, and Holy Spirit ministry from 10 AM to 1 PM. The late afternoons are open to enjoy fellowship with one another. Each night from 7 PM to 10 PM on the beach at North Division Street, the ministry team will invite the Lord to minister through praise music and one-on-one sharing. The festival organizer, Son' Spot Ministries, makes a practice of not announcing the names of musicians and ministries which will participate in the evening meetings. This way, they say glory goes only to Jesus and not to men or ministries.

A baptism service is planned for Wednesday, following the meeting, at approximately 1 PM or so, in the Atlantic surf near the Convention Center.  The service includes praising the Lord in song and preaching the Word about salvation, baptism and living in God’s Spirit. As the people are led into the water, each one is counseled and prayed over. It is a most blessed time and a highlight of the three day journey.

My wife Nancy and I participated at the festival in 2012. We experienced hours of sharing the Word and our hearts with many of our beloved brothers and sisters. We both enjoyed the blessed testimonies and heartfelt expressions of the Father’s love, joy, peace, and comfort which were spoken by so many at the convention center and on the beach. Praise to God our Father for His work in our lives and for bringing so many together for such a wonderful happening.

The Festival began in 1995 with the purpose of lifting up the name of Jesus through praise and fellowship at the Ocean City Convention Center and on the beautiful Atlantic Ocean shore. Psalm 22:3 says, “He is enthroned on our praises!” Essentially, it has been an opportunity for Dick Sands and Gary Steger, Ministry Overseer and Founder, to minister publicly for three days in the same manner as they do every day at their related ministry, The Son' Spot Christian Fellowship Center.

The Son' Spot is a missionary outreach of the Body of Christ that began on July 3, 1981 when the Son’ Spot vision manifested and Steger opened the doors for the first time. The schedule includes much evangelism, praise and worship, fellowship, and outreach ministry. Many different ministry teams participate with Son’ Spot all year round. Son’ Spot does not present ministry, concerts, or entertainment. Instead, they invite God's Holy Spirit to minister through them, primarily through praise, worship music and testimonies.

Sands and Steger keep the festival events simple. Each program is designed to bring honor and glory to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! During the festival some are healed, others receive restoration, and others receive great peace and rest for their souls. Some weep and others laugh. It is in His presence that we are broken, changed, healed, transformed and empowered. In between the times of worship and intercession there are opportunities for fellowship, sharing with one another, and ministering to the Lord in other ways.

The Son’ Spot receives letters and calls from past attendees and their comments have been encouraging. They testified of health for their bodies, marriages renewed and refreshed, and the experience of a place of intimacy and worship with the Lord for the first time.

Don’t forget to walk down Ocean City's three mile Boardwalk to see the sand sculptures that Randy Hofman creates in front of the Plim Plaza Hotel on the beach at Second Street. The sculptures are 8 to 20 feet across with favorite biblical themes such as Christ on the Cross, The Last Supper, and Noah and the Ark. Hofman, an ordained minister, has been sculpting biblical scenes and messages in Ocean City since the 1980s, with the help of volunteers from the Son’ Spot ministry. Hofman views the sand sculptures as his ministry. According to Hofman, the messages show people that God is reaching out to us.

To attend the festival on any day, you can drop people off downtown at North Division Street (the same street as the Route 50 Bridge) for the evening ministry, then park at the convention center (located on 40th Street and Coastal Highway). Also you can park free at the Park and Ride in West Ocean City and ride the city bus for three dollars. If you park at the convention center in the evening, put a JESUS AT THE BEACH flyer on your dashboard to identify you are attending the ministry. If definite rain is known in advance, the evening ministry will relocate to the convention center.

If you need a list of area hotels or campgrounds for lodging, want more information, or would like to see digital's of prior festivals, please visit the Son’ Spot web page at http://www.JesusAtTheBeach.org For more information, email info@JesusAtTheBeach.org or call 410-289-1296.

Although all the ministers are volunteer, funds are needed for the Convention Center rental, sound equipment, security, and other related expenses. Please prayerfully consider participating financially in this opportunity to communicate the Good News of Jesus to the thousands walking down the boardwalk each day. There is no charge to participate at any of these ministry events.

Ministry Opportunity: From early September to November Son' Spot Ministries will host a 10 week Missionary Training Gathering for people who desire to seek the Lord, study the Word, pray and fast, and go out and do what Jesus did. The team will gather daily, except Wednesday, day and night for prayer, teaching, and worship, with outreach each afternoon. If the Lord is speaking to your heart about a missionary journey, consider this opportunity.

"May He give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. We will shout for joy when you are victorious and will lift our banners in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests" - Psalm 20: 4-5.

If anyone is interested in publishing a faith article, contact Mark Gunderman at gunderman2001@aol.com.

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