Three Days In Dayton To Make A Difference For Eternity

People everywhere are in need of the hope found only in Jesus Christ. So in April, 156 men and 51 women who serve in The Gideons International spent three days distributing more than 48,000 Scriptures in the city of Dayton, Ohio.

As with all such events, months of advanced preparation had gone into this Scripture blitz. “The local members did a great job of organizing the distributions,” says Tom Trotta who was the team leader. “Everyone was ready to do whatever they were asked.”

The weather forecasters were calling for rain for all three days of the event. But the Gideons were calling on God for clear skies—and God responded—the rain held off until the three-day event was complete. They also prayed for open doors—college campuses that have been closed to distributions in recent years actually welcomed the opportunity for Gideons to come and share Scriptures.

God Organized Who We Were Going To See

At one school, the distribution team saw words inscribed into the building’s exterior. The words reflected the values of the mid-20th century age when the building was constructed:

“Religion and education are the foundation of our culture.”

And as the Gideons distributed approximately 600 New Testaments to the students crossing the sidewalk to board the school buses, teachers and parents alike thanked the men for sharing copies of God’s Word with the students.

“We organized where we were going to go. God organized who we were going to see,” says Trotta.

While standing outside a rehab center as a Scripture distribution concluded, Trotta noticed a man nearby. As it turned out, the man was one of the rehab patients. Trotta gave the man a New Testament, then opened it to the “Helps” pages and pointed to one of the specific topics.

As the man looked down and saw that the topic was addiction, he said, “Yeah, I can relate to that.”

Please pray that this man will read his New Testament and allow God’s Word to speak to his heart in regard to committing his life to the Lord.

Trotta encourages other Gideons to serve in future blitzes adding, “Look at your calendar and plan to go at least one day or even a few hours… and just have your life changed.”

By the end of the week the teams had distributed Scriptures at schools, universities, hotels, hospitals, nursing homes, medical facilities and police precincts—48,723 Scriptures total.

Trotta says opportunities like the Dayton distributions were why he joined The Gideons International. “It’s the opportunity to fulfill the Great Commission. And to us for those three days, the whole world was Dayton.”