On Eagles Wings - Ron Hutchcraft Ministries

Video Hope Stories from the On Eagles' Wings Team

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On Eagles' Wings Summer of Hope Update

The Summer of Hope 2010 On Eagles' Wings Native American team has been impacting many lives this summer.

The spiritual breakthroughs on reservation after reservation have been simply amazing! Hundreds of Native young people have been making commitments to Christ over these past four weeks.

Forty-nine (49) young Native warriors have visited multiple reservations throughout the month of July. Directed by the father-son leadership team of Ron and Brad Hutchcraft, this "Summer of Hope" has seen many amazing breakthroughs for the Gospel in some very difficult environments.

Here is a quick look at the Native communities the OEW team has been to this past month:

"Stoneridge"

Kids don't go out at night in Stoneridge. The streets belong to the gangs, the drug dealers and others who deal death to their people. The park with the basketball court is more like a battleground some nights. Stoneridge is the most notorious community on the poor and often violent Lanapi Reservation. So notorious that it's been the subject of national network news stories. The Lanapi Reservation is reeling with a suicide rate even higher than the rest of Native America. Nationally, Native young people have a suicide rate four times that of the rest of America's young people. For the Lanapi, it's seven times higher! ...

"Burnt Hills"

Only a few years ago, the Burnt Hills Reservation was a poor reservation on a dirt road. Not anymore. Their casino changed all that. Now tribal members receive regular checks and the reservation is blessed with impressive programs and facilities. If only money could heal broken lives. A tribal leader gave this sad report on their next generation..."We've lost a lot of our young people."...

"Elk Valley"

1500 suicide attempts in eight months! It's unimaginable that there could be that much despair among any community of just 10,000 people. But according to the reservation hospital, that's the awful reality of life on the "Elk Valley" Reservation. What's more unimaginable is that we've never heard about this recent suicide epidemic. Sadly, it shows how totally invisible Native Americans can be in this country.

Elk Valley is a fortress of one of the strongest traditional religions in all of Indian country. Plus, there is a violent gang culture. A proud people, once known as some of the greatest Indian warriors, are now killing themselves or killing each other...

"Branch River"

The road to the "Branch River" reservation dead ends at the rez. Like so many of the young lives who call it home. It's an easy place to forget because you can live a few miles from there and never go there. We saw white cross after white cross alongside that road - silent testimony to so much dying, often so young. The local guys told us that the crosses are there for people who died drunk, drugged, or by their own hand. Sadly, Branch River is a reservation without a church.

And Yet...

On reservation after reservation, Jesus has broken through in powerful ways through this team!

One local leader said she couldn't believe who was there that night. "Guys I've never seen sober before....Six of the eleven biggest drug dealers on this rez are here tonight – and they're never seen at the same place!"

One night, the colors of two powerful gangs were very visible. Normally, that would be a recipe for trouble. Locals told team members they were just waiting for something to happen. It never did. The peace of Christ was more powerful than any violence or hate.

Every night, crowds of Native young people show up to experience the "On Eagles' Wings Summer of Hope" multi-reservation tour. This powerful team of Native warriors has already been to numerous basketball courts, playing hip-hop music, basketball, and some fun games. Then, a team member shares a hope story of his or her transformed life . . . and people listen.

Softspoken Brittany commanded everyone's attention with her moving Hope Story of how "the devil turned the sweetest girl into a complete opposite person that no one knew." Drugs caused her to "lose myself." Then she was raped on her 16th birthday. Everyone was listening as she described how Jesus has replaced her tears with His joy, forgiven her sin, and enabled her to forgive those who've hurt her. Later that evening, Brittany led to Christ a young rape victim like herself.

Maria (Navajo) was first runner-up in a recent pageant for Native young women. Much to her surprise, two contestants she knew from the Lanapi Reservation showed up in the park that night. One is Miss Lanapi Nation. Maria knew them to be deeply into their tribe's traditional beliefs. But somewhere during this amazing night, God changed their hearts. Maria helped them give their hearts to Jesus at center court!

Jarrod (Sioux) faced off two dangerous guys who were trying to physically force two gang guys Jarrod was counseling to leave. The two intruders responded with hostility when Jarrod challenged them to consider Christ. They were defiant. The confrontation was a visual embodiment of the spiritual battle that had been raging here for three nights. Jarrod continued to confront those guys with Jesus. The power was too great. They just walked away quietly, and the two young men Jarrod had been sharing Jesus with gave their hearts to Him.

Roxanne (Cherokee) led a young woman to Christ who had left this reservation and ended up as a prostitute on the streets of Houston. When she said, "I have no one," Roxanne said, "That's not true anymore. You have Jesus now – and He'll never leave you."

Travis (Sioux) connected with an old acquaintance from his reservation – who he'd gone to jail with! Travis said, "He led me to jail. I just led him to Christ!"

Another young woman prayed to receive Christ as her violent former girlfriends taunted her and threatened her with physical harm.

One of the veteran team members, Jarrod's (Sioux), boldly shared the Relationship that had rescued and changed 49 Native young men and women from 22 tribes - a brown-skinned, tribal man named Jesus. He explained the brutal death Jesus suffered to pay for our sin. He then challenged Native young people to do "the boldest thing you've ever done in your life - step out on this basketball court and give yourself publicly to the Man who died publicly for you." The response was instantaneous. They streamed from the court, the cars, the shadows to declare the beginning of their relationship with Jesus Christ. It was an amazing sight.

As our team led them behind the bus for personal conversations, one look at the area around the court told the story. There was no one there. While our team sought out a handful of holdouts in the corners, almost every person there was in one of the holy huddles where a warrior was re-explaining the Gospel and confirming commitments. The empty basketball court testified to a sweeping work of the Holy Spirit and what felt like total victory for Jesus.

Later, a missionary who has worked here for years, told us, "I know all these people you've prayed with tonight. We have buried their brothers and sisters. But tonight God used you to answer years of prayers for this people."

No one described the victory better than one team member who had dealt with some who were drunk the night before. Standing amid the holy huddles by the bus, she said..."The people who were drunk over there last night are over here accepting Christ tonight."

Watching the flood of Lanapi young people coming to Christ was a dear lady in her 80s. Sixty-two years ago, she and her husband had started the mission where our team stayed. I asked her how this miracle response compared with what she'd seen in all her many years of serving the Lanapi Nation. She responded simply, "Never in 62 years. There's never been a response like this."

Praise God, life has won where death has won for so long. Through a little army of broken vessels through whom His light shines so brightly.

Thank You for your prayers, support, and encouragement! We've heard from so many of you!

Here Are Some of Your Comments:

"Praise God!! I nearly spilled coffee on myself when I read 51 Lanapi young people come to Jesus Christ! In one night 51? That's the Holy Spirit in action. Praise His name and give honor and glory to HIM only!! Tears of joy for those working to make a difference in the lives of youth! Praying for you all. Go Team Go!!"

"How exciting! You guys once again bring tears to my eyes and joy to my heart. I commit to pray daily for your team and look forward to hearing your reports. May God protect and bring great blessing to all of you!"

"I so look forward to the Summer of Hope tours so I can be praying for these amazing things that God is doing. I read your reports and weep and pray and praise God with you in the victories. We serve the Lord in South America and long to see this kind of ministry happening in tribal areas here, too. Keep on keepin' on Warriors! We are covering you in prayer."

These are just some of the excerpts from a series of reports that have been written over this past month by Ron and Brad Hutchcraft. Please take a moment to read the complete reports (links below). Share them with friends, family, church, Sunday School classes, etc.

Currently you are subscribed to RHM's "E-News." RHM produces a separate email news update we call "On Eagles' Wings." When you subscribe to "On Eagles' Wings," you will receive more frequent updates reporting on the latest exciting activity from the On Eagles' Wings Summer of Hope. (More reports are yet to come!)

Read Complete Summer of Hope Updates

2010 Summer of Hope Updates: One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six

*All names and locations changed for privacy.