GTS Update February 2010

Urbana 09 and Phoenix, AZ and Africa

 For anyone who has ever been to Urbana, I’m sure they will say it was an experience of a lifetime! Where else can you go and meet up with 20,000 college students who are all gathered together to seek what the Lord has for their lives and 450 Christian trained professional workers with ministries trying to direct these young people into the Lord’s work? For Gospel Trick Shot Ministries, Inc. it was indeed an experience of a lifetime December 26—31! We had a GTS Booth with a Thomas Aaron Pool Table, and plenty of room to set up shop. Rodney Fontaine and (BRBC) Blue Ridge Bible College student Caleb were on hand to share BRBC info and help with GTS Shows. Devra and Fred Robledo (pictured to the right, front and center with the gang) of Bobble Ball and www.SourcEnterprises.net where also on hand to help. Steve and Camille Lillis rounded out the GTS staff for this fantastic event which happens once every three years in the downtown convention center in St. Louis, MO. GTS shows were done continuously for 5 straight days by Rodney and Steve with thousands of students and ministry vendors stopping by. The result was that we received about 350 contacts from students and vendors who would like to partner with GTS in some way, shape, or form. Please pray with us as we hope to be invited to many of their college campuses and places of ministry to work along side them with GTS Shows to share Christ to the lost and needy. We also plan to go to Africa in June where a Thomas Aaron Pool Table shipped through (AIM) African Inland Mission will be waiting for Steve and a team to arrive in Nairobi, Kenya.

 Next stop after Urbana was Phoenix, AZ for the first 16 days in January of the new year. Steve and Camille shared some precious time with Steve’s Mom Ellie and step Dad Ron who have lived there since the 1990’s. During the past 15 years Steve has developed many relationships with people and ministries in the Valley. The people of Phoenix call their area the Valley, because it is hemmed in by vast desert mountains. Devra and Fred came to town during the visit to lead some Bobble Ball tournaments at a local billiard room and a Boys and Girls Club. Steve , Camille, Mom and Ron participated in the tournaments with Steve doing two GTS shows as well. God sightings with regard to the Africa trip happened throughout the trip. Two years ago Steve’s home church the Hawthorne Gospel Church had invited him to join a mission team in 2010 to Tanzania. Steve met an African pastor last April at the CSRM Summit at (CCV) Christ’s Church of the Valley in Phoenix who had invited Steve to come to Nairobi, Kenya. Tentative dates for Tanzania and Kenya where set for June 2010. Thomas Aaron wanted to join by sending a pool table which left the USA this past month bound for Kenya through AIM. Then at Urbana Steve miraculously heard the call to come to Kenya through a pastor speaker from Nairobi. Then in Phoenix Steve went to CCV for Sunday service and found out that CCV is sending a short term mission team to the exact location at the exact time where Steve and the pool table will be in June to minister Christ. God is putting this trip together for His glory and honor. Please pray with us!     

 Salvation Bracelet Story—One of Steve’s favorite GTS shots is the Salvation Bracelet Shot which he performs and then hands out the bracelets. Thousands have been given out over the past few years and the ladies of Serving Hands at Hawthorne Gospel Church keep GTS well stocked! Well in Phoenix Steve trained an entire Bible study group how to share with the bracelet and then trained a Christian pool player to do the shot.    

International Update!

We recently received permission from African Inland Mission (AIM) to have a Thomas Aaron pool table placed in a shipping container out of Pearl River, NY bound for Mombasa, Kenya with final destination being Nairobi, Kenya. This pool table will be used by Steve and the GTS Team next summer to do a series of Gospel Trick Shot Shows in and around Nairobi as pool is one of the fastest growing sports among young people in that area. The picture to the right has a group of young people participating in a soccer camp run by sports pastor Kennedy Salano of Kenya who Steve met in Phoenix, AZ earlier this year at the Christian Sports and Recreation Ministry Summit. They will be working together next summer sharing Christ using billiards.

Go to www.cbn.com/700club and click on the "Media Center" tab on the left side of homepage. Then when the "Media Center" page opens type in the white textbox area "Steve Lillis". Then click on the "video" button and enjoy the broadcast.

Steve Lillis was featured in a news article written by the Billiard Congress of America in October 2006. Please go to the following link to read more about his life as a pool player, educator, and minister:
http://www.bca-pool.com/industry/membership/06updates/update_v3n19.shtml