RMCNews with Samantha Nelson – Cody, Wyoming … Creation, the Flood, and dinosaurs were at the center of two community event seminars held in Cody and Worland, Wyoming, in early September.
The event, presented by Creation Truth Foundation, an independent ministry based in Oklahoma, hosted 150 community members combined at two separate five-evening presentations. The uniqueness of the programs came from the life-size dinosaur fossils and casts set up for the presentations.
Reflecting on the planning and organizing done for the program, Samantha Nelson, spouse of Pastor Steve Nelson of the Cody district, said four words were the catalyst of the process. “’ In the beginning, God’ are the words that kept coming to my mind as Steve and I thought about possible ways to reach our community. Many Christians today believe the evolutionary lie or some amalgamated version of it, such as God started Creation, but then evolution took over.”
She added, “How can Bible-believing individuals believe these lies of the enemy of our souls? In my mind, the only way to be able to share Bible truth with others effectively was to get back to the basics and build a common foundation upon the truth of God’s Word, which tells us that, ‘in the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.’”
In Worland, the middle school auditorium was transformed as dinosaurs were set up on stage. Youth occupied the front rows, getting a better view of the dinosaurs and actively participating in the discussions. Some of them were able to assist with dismantling the dinosaurs and packing up fossils.
The event was live-streamed, giving those unable to attend in person the opportunity to experience the informative series. “I started watching the Creation Truth Foundation seminars done in Worland a couple of weeks ago. After the first one, I couldn’t stop. I watched all five seminars today! I highly recommend them,” Traci Pike, teacher at Mountain Road Christian Academy in Casper, enthusiastically expressed.
During the meetings, the guest presenters of the seminars visited SonShine Academy and met with students allowing them to look at some of the smaller fossils they brought and get answers to their questions.
Nelson recalls an interaction with a community member in Cody that made all the planning, organizing, and hard work worth it.
“One of the biggest blessings to take place was meeting a family who was searching for truth and a safe church family. God arranged this interaction. One of our Facebook ads stated the programs would start at 1:30 p.m. Saturday instead of Sunday. None of us caught the error. A little before 1:30 p.m. Saturday, a family walks in. I apologized for the error and the fact that none of us were aware of it. Then, we just started talking.”
Questions were asked, recalled Nelson, “Did we believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior? Were we Mormons or Jehovah’s Witnesses? Were the presentations biblical? Did we believe God created everything?” the family quizzed.
“In the moments together, God knit our hearts together as only He can do. This family attended every program and promised they would see us in church, too. God led this family to see the erroneous ad and to come to meet with us privately.”
–RMCNews with Samantha Nelson, wife of Steve Nelson, pastor of the Cody district; photos by Steve and Samantha Nelson
