6:20 p.m. Tonight the Festival de Esperanza Villahermosa is full of joyful sounds: The choir is singing “Just As I Am” in Spanish; cars are honking as they pass over the Carrizal River next to the venue; and volunteers are cheering as they greet people who enter the two large gates at the far end of the lot.
6:49 p.m. Emcee David Ruiz steps up to the podium; he’s always smiling.
He says, “We’re going to have a party tonight!” (or he says “fiesta!”)
Behind him, the band Zachiel starts playing, and their strong, bass beat reverberates through the park. A breeze blows into the white sheets in the background of the stage, filling them up like sails.
7:32 p.m. Countless vendors line the streets outside of the Festival site, filling the air with distinct smells: hot dogs, tacos, homemade fries, crepes with cream, and soda.
Many Festival attendees stop to buy a snack before entering the venue.
8:08 p.m. The sun has set, and Lilly Goodman, a young singer from the Dominican Republic has the crowd up on their feet, singing along to a song she wrote: “Cover Me.”
She’s wearing a bright, pink shirt, and she’s not much taller than the podium. A powerful, clear voice emerges from such a small person!
8:24 p.m. The choir sings “Fairest Lord Jesus” in Spanish. Imagine 1,300 voices in unison, all ages.
8:40 p.m. Emcee David Ruiz says, “Franklin Graham just spoke in Hong Kong in front of thousands of people in a stadium, and then he was in Ireland. He’s going to be in Romania in a couple of weeks.
“And tonight we have the opportunity for him to be with us in Villahermosa. He’s going to come in just a few minutes to bring us a message of hope that many of you have not yet heard.”
8:45 p.m. Marcos Vidal is now onstage with the Tommy Coomes Band. They’re singing the Lord’s Prayer in Spanish.
The end of the prayer and song say, “Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, amen.”
8:52 p.m. Franklin Graham steps up to the podium with his interpreter, Galo Vasquez.
Franklin Graham says, “I want to thank the choir [they cheer]. You don’t know how fortunate Villahermosa is to have such a wonderful choir. You probably thought that I brought them. They are from right here.”
The crowd laughs with Franklin Graham. But he becomes serious:
“God has a plan for your life,” he says. “He wants you to experience joy; he wants you to have peace in your heart.
“Sin separates us from God. All of us are guilty of sin. So what do we do? Tonight you can have your sins forgiven; you can have your life changed if you’re willing to trust [Jesus Christ] tonight.”
He begins telling the story of the prodigal son, a young man who was wasteful with his inheritance.
8:58 p.m. We’ve just heard that attendance here tonight is more than 28,000. A few thousand people are seated in an overflow section.
Earlier a dog walked across the empty space in front of the stage; he wanted to see what all the fuss was about! 28,000 people and one dog. That’s the attendance tonight.
9:04 p.m. Franklin Graham tells the crowd more about the prodigal son.
“You see,” he says, “this young man was running. He didn’t just go to the next city; he went to another country. …”
He speaks about how people often search for happiness in other things, places, or people, yet they are never satisfied. The satisfying gift that people are searching for is Jesus, His forgiveness, His grace, His life.
Franklin Graham continues: “His father was watching the highway, and he saw him a long distance away. [The father] runs with compassion, he puts his arms around his son, his kisses him and welcomes him home.”
Just like the loving Father, God can forgive any person who asks.
“Jesus Christ is alive and He’s here tonight, and if you invite him He’ll come into your heart and change you. Come home tonight.”
9:17 p.m. At the invitation, a young mother with her baby boy in her arms walks forward in the crowd of people. An older man walks by himself into the throng assembling at the front. Brothers, friends, and couples walk forward, some confidently, some looking down at the ground, some slowly.
There are hundreds. A man walks holding his hat at his side. The crowd at the front repeats a prayer of salvation after Franklin Graham. There was a fiesta here tonight, and a party in heaven, too, for all the sons and daughters who have returned home to their heavenly Father.
More than 1,700 people surrendered their lives to Jesus Christ tonight.
Read a blog from the first night – Festival of Hope Villahermosa
