The Kids 4 Jesus Story
The summer of 2002 I was working in a van ministry at a church. The route I was working with was cut out. The church was having severe discipline problems with the children, the routes were very long. The parents would not help with the children that gave trouble. God spoke to me, God reminded me that all these children were not giving the church grief. God called me to bring these children to church, I prayed for transportation. I prayed for an eight passenger station wagon. The very next morning the first person I spoke to told me not to look any further, come and get it. A one owner eight passenger wagon he had just put a new set of tires on. I will sign it over to you. Go get those kids.
Three weeks later running three cars transporting 14 children I knew I needed something bigger to drive. I prayed for transportation. I also prayed for the finances to do it. There was no way I could afford this ministry. Three weeks later a bus was purchased selling One Wheel Wheelbarrow Licenses. Cost of the bus, $3000.00. The bus ran about three or four weeks, and it was overloaded. The bus capacity was only 22. I prayed for a bigger bus. One week later God had supplied me with a 66 passenger bus. Cost of this bus was $2400.00. One fifty dollar bill I received while raising the money to purchase this bus that week had in bold letters across it, never underestimate the power of God. Because of being an individual buying insurance on this big bus I had problems buying it. I received cancellation notices twice because of various reasons. I hadn’t had a CDL license long enough and the weight of the bus.
With all of the money tied up in insurance policies, looking at running on Wednesday night. I prayed God if I had $100 I would go rent a 15 passenger van, put it with the 22 passenger bus and pick the kids up. Moments later I arrived at my home. My wife had brought the mail in. One envelope was addressed to me, from me. I opened the envelope, and there was a $100 bill in the mail. God had supplied my need. This big bus ran 360 miles a week at 3.75 miles per gallon. Loaded I figure I was getting approximately 2 ½ children to the gallon. Sundays starting at 7:15 AM finishing the night at around 10:30 PM was 10 hours on the bus. The first kids on Sunday morning talked me into reversing the route going home at night. I had the same children that rode nine hours every weekend for a year.
Visitation on Saturdays is the key to this route running (approx. 50 stops). Going on Saturdays to tell the children what was going on Sundays. We had the children on a points system. 14 weeks of coming bringing your Bible, wearing a Kids for Jesus tee shirt on Wednesday, bringing children with you. Children received points and then we paid off starting with a fifty dollar gift certificate we paid back 10 places. We were not to have a tie. If we had two children that finished third, we awarded both children. This point system was run fair. I had two 4 yr. olds finish second, and third out of 125 children in the program. In Oct. 2003 we had awarded an 11 yr. old named Billy who won the points race. This child took this gift card to his mother. Billy told his mom to spend it on Christmas. Billy had brothers and sisters, and he knew Christmas was going to be hard.
This ministry has traveled a long road since the start on Sept. 11, 2002. The road had quite a few bumps and turns in it. Bus ministry is hard, but it is still the largest outreach in America. This ministry has purchased 5 busses with wheelbarrow licenses, supplied school needs, coats when it was cold, shocks, food supplies, shelter, helped pay for funerals, supplied transportation to hospitals and doctors’ offices, helped pay utility bills, rounded up refrigerators, stoves, other household needs, and mainly just showed the awesome love of God.
We had a lady call Mr. Dan, a man driving at one of our churches. Dan went and met this lady. Her husband was in jail. She had two children that ate school lunch because there was nothing to eat until they came back to school the next day. Also, this family was about to be evicted. Dan took a food order, and went to get the food for the family. As he left, he asked the lady, how she knew to call him. The lady said one of the kids on the bus told her daughter at school to call Mr. Dan/Mr. Ronnie, they would help her.
Our bus family has grown quite a bit, now transporting 200+ kids to church weekly with one sixty passenger bus. Three other bus routes have been started for other churches. One church in Lancaster, SC wanted to start a route. Kids for Jesus ministry gave them a bus that runs every Sunday now. Another church needed a bus. The cost of the bus was $1.00 (One Wheelbarrow license). This bus ran the first time. This church delivered over $3500 worth of groceries to needy families. Now they are running an average of 40 on Sundays, and praising God for what He is doing. Now we are transporting to five different churches running over 1600 miles a month. Prayer has been the key. We pray, we knock on doors, and we don’t care who opens the door. Our oldest bus kid, Mrs. Betty, was 79 yrs. old. We have had as many as 6 three year olds on the bus, as well. To God be the Glory!
I asked the kids to write what the ministry meant to them. I would like to share one of those letters I received.
Believing in Us
A lot of people stopped believing in us, but you didn’t. You started with a station wagon with me and 7 more. Then more people wanted to come. So the van came and the bus. You never stopped believing in us. You kept faith in God. People at church don’t understand why you do this, but I do. You want to make a difference, and you have, at least with one. I love you Mr. Ronnie and nothing will change that.
Amanda Kay Williams
This story has no ending. I write a bus newspaper that will be published on this site monthly. We have not seen anything yet. Jesus says, “Follow Me, just follow Me.”