Gideons And Auxiliary Share God’s Word During USA Scripture Blitzes

In April, Gideons and Auxiliary placed copies of God’s Word into the open hands of tens of thousands of people during metropolitan Scripture blitzes in Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky and Fort Worth, Texas.

Reaching the lost by serving in distributions like these are why Christian business men and their wives join The Gideons International. During these blitzes, Gideons and Auxiliary share God’s Word at a variety of approved locations including schools, universities, hotels, nursing homes, hospitals, medical offices, and jails.

The Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky blitz was carried out by 336 Gideons and 147 Auxiliary from seven different states. More than 126,000 Scriptures were distributed, passing the blitz goal of 125,000 Scriptures.

“Almost a year of planning has seen results in an awesome and tremendous way,” said Dr. Glenn Casteel, a Gideon who served in the blitz.

Within two hours of receiving a copy of God’s Word from Gideons in Cincinnati, a police officer was able to use the Scripture to witness to a victim in a domestic abuse incident he was investigating. He told Gideons he was able to share some verses from the New Testament with the victim while she was being cared for in the hospital. “Through her tears she asked me if she could have that New Testament,” says the officer. He gave the Scripture to her and watched as she signed the Scripture’s decision page indicating she wanted to receive Jesus as her Lord and Savior.

Overall, people were very receptive to Gideons sharing Scriptures with them. During Gideons’ distributions to the next generation at the University of Cincinnati, several students were so moved by the Gideons’ faithfulness in sharing God’s Word that they stopped and prayed over the distribution teams.

Auxiliary member Mary Ann Fickenwirth expressed her gratitude for the experience of serving with other the Auxiliary in the blitz. “As we prayed, organized, talked with drop-in’s, packed lunches, shared our lives, and laughed, we grew closer as women in service. I sincerely thank our Lord for that opportunity.”

Fort Worth, Texas was the location of another Scripture blitz. There were concerns about the weather. The local weather forecast called for an 80-90% chance of rain on Monday and Tuesday, the main two days of the blitz.

 

“The Lord showed His power and faithfulness regarding the weather,” says Glenn Doughty, a Gideon who served in the blitz. The blitz team lifted a number of prayers to the Lord regarding the looming clouds. 

“Although we did have a few sprinkles on those days, the rain seemed to go around the area,” says Doughty. “It did not inhibit the distribution of His Word. In fact, the clouds probably helped keep the temperatures at a comfortable level.”

Gideons were sharing copies of God’s Word on the campus at the University of North Texas when a woman began to talk with a Gideon named Sam. After some discussion, the lady expressed she was having fears of dying, following the recent death of one of her own friends.

“I asked if we could sit down on the nearby bench so I could share what was in the New Testaments we were handing out,” says Sam. The woman agreed.

Sam then led the woman to the verses in the back of the Testament.

“You do not need to be afraid of dying if you know you are going to be with God in Heaven when you die,” he told her.

He then read to her the verses in the plan of salvation that reveal how we can be assured of receiving eternal salvation when we accept Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for our sins. In response, the woman prayed aloud to receive Jesus as her Lord and Savior.

By the end of the blitz, an estimated 140,000 Scriptures were placed and distributed in the Fort Worth area.

We thank our Gideons and Auxiliary for their faithfulness in serving in these blitzes. And we thank all our supporting pastors and their church members whose prayers and gifts helped make these blitzes possible. Most of all, we praise God for each and every single Scripture distributed and for these early testimonies. Please pray there will be many more testimonies to come.