Philadelphia BattleCry Event

BattleCry Roars Through Philadelphia

On May 12-13, BattleCry invaded Wachovia Spectrum as the fight to save this generation came to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the same time, all across the country, teens and adults organized BattleCry rallies to take a stand against the corrupting influences of the media and culture.

Rallies Across the Country
Throughout the country, thousands of people made their voices heard about what they believe in. From large cities like Atlanta, Georgia and Chicago, Illinois to towns like Coos Bay, Oregon, and Lapeer, Michigan, people met on May 12 at 4 P.M. for their own BattleCry Rally.

Scheduled to coincide with the rally in Philadelphia, each rally gave teens the opportunity to demand that the media, advertisers, and the government to be held accountable for how they are affecting this generation.

At 4 P.M. in each time zone, a wave of support and prayer swept across the country. Rally participants met in front of city halls and held signs with messages like “When You Market To Us, Respect Our Future" and "Instead of Porn, Show Us Godly Relationships,” telling their community, local and national politicians, and advertisers that they were tired of the excessive violence, profanity, and sex in media being pumped into the culture.

One at a time, teens at each rally read the Teenage Bill of Rights as their battle cry for this generation, a declaration and commitment to stand by biblical values in spite of the influence of culture.

All over the country, rally participants joined those in Philadelphia signing the Teenage Bill of Rights. As a generation, these teens committed to pursuing a life based on standards such as, “we recognize that God, our Creator, is the source of all truth” and “we refuse to be absorbed with our own comforts and desires.” Rather than simply watching their generation self-destruct, they have committed to take action.

Bonus features! See photos from the BattleCry rallies, and sign the Teenage Bill of Rights online.

Teens Meet God in a Life Transforming
ExperiencePowerful things happened as 15,000 teens and adults filled the stadium for the BattleCry Stadium Event and expectantly waited for what God was going to do.

As the worship band played Friday night and Ron Luce preached about following Christ, teens were called on to make a decision: Would they continue living as a cultural Christian, or would they pick up their cross and truly live for God? Scores of them accepted the challenge.

Tony Roberts, one of the workers with BattleCry, describes what happened. “It was amazing seeing people’s faces during the altar call. They were broken before God. When the teens had to stand out and scream, ‘I want the cross,’ I saw a lot of looks from people. But one by one, people no longer cared about what others thought and they chose to become a follower of Christ instead of a cultural Christian.”

For eighteen year old Jessica Turner the event was unforgettable. “My life has forever changed because of what I learned at the Battle Cry event. It had such a strong impact on what I think and what I want to do; it made me re-evaluate my relationship with my God and personal Savior Jesus Christ. It made me think about the influence society has on me and that I don’t want to be influenced by them anymore.”

“At the event, everything got more real for the teens about what’s going on in society. It got them thinking, ‘Yes there are people shaping me and my society. This is junk, I want what’s real.’ The message really connected with them,” explained Tony.

Eye-Opening Experience for Adults
For many adults, the most memorable part of the event was not the flashy fireworks, the booming concerts by top Christian bands, or even the powerful messages from speakers like Franklin Graham or Steve Saint. Instead, their eye opening experience was seeing the conviction of the teenagers. According to Bryan Dumire, a volunteer at the event, “What clicked for the adults was seeing how serious the teens were about taking back this generation.”

John Klein, a youth pastor from Myerstown, Pennsylvania, brought over 200 teens to the event. He told BattleCry, “Many of our teens are not church background kids and they never experienced anything like it. We had several teens accept Christ. There is a definite desire in the hearts of our kids to be impacting the lives of their peers.”

When asked about the adults that were there, Tony said, “For them there was a realization of what’s been going on, seeing everyone go down for the altar call and going there with them. It definitely makes the adults step up as leaders. The kids need someone to be there for them.”

On the Verge of Something Big
Out of the generation of 33 millions teenagers, only 4% are expected to follow Jesus as adults. But those involved with the BattleCry know that statistic does not have to stay that way. Tony agrees. “From just watching the effects of what’s been going on, I am really exited to see what will happen with BattleCry. I think the 4% percentage will jump up. I definitely see it happening.”

Tony continues. “Whoever’s voice shouts the loudest is whoever’s voice is heard. It has been the world that has shouted the loudest. The teens are saying, ‘No more! This is our time to stand for what we believe in. We have dropped the ball in the past; it is our time to pick it up to show them what real Christianity is about.’”

Though the Philadelphia BattleCry event is over, the BattleCry campaign is just getting started. Breakthrough is on its way. In 2007, BattleCry will return to the West Coast, Midwest, and East Coast regions of America. As the swell of support grows across the country, expect revolutionary change and more transformed lives as BattleCry relentlessly sounds the alarm for this generation.


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