Jesus at the Beach Festival Invites the Holy Spirit to Ocean City, Maryland

"It’s not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit says the Lord.”  Zechariah 4:6

Every year, 8,000,000 people visit Ocean City, Maryland

If you are vacationing in Ocean City next summer, you may want to attend the “Jesus at the Beach” festival.  I can assure you that the blessings of God the Father and the love of His Son, Jesus, will be with you as His Spirit is very much present on the Atlantic Ocean boardwalk and beach.  The twentieth annual Jesus at the Beach Music & Ministry Festival is planned for July 28, 29, and 30, 2014

The 19th annual Jesus at the Beach Music & Ministry Festival recently took place on July 29, 30, and 31, 2013.   Each day at the Ocean City, Md. Convention Center there was praise, worship, dance, drama, testimony, preaching, prayer, and Holy Spirit ministry from 10 AM to 1 PM.  The late afternoons were open to enjoy fellowship with one another.  Each night from 7 PM to 10 PM on the beach at North Division Street, the ministry team invited the Lord to minister through praise music and one-on-one sharing.  The festival organizer, Son'Spot Ministries, made a practice of not announcing the names of musicians and ministries participated in the evening meetings. This way, they say glory goes only to Jesus and not to men or ministries.

A baptism service included a dozen new converts to Christ on the Wednesday, following the meeting at the convention center, at 1 PM in the Atlantic Ocean surf.  The service included praising the Lord in song and preaching the Word about salvation, baptism and living in God’s Spirit.  As the people were led into the water, each one was counseled and prayed over.  A crowd gathered, listened to the praise music, and was a witness to the public demonstration of becoming a new creation in Christ. Praise the Lord.  It was glorious.

My wife Nancy and I participated at the festival in 2012.  We experienced hours of sharing the Word and our hearts with many of our beloved brothers and sisters.  We both enjoyed the blessed testimonies and heartfelt expressions of the Father’s love, joy, peace, and comfort which were spoken by so many at the convention center and on the beach.  Praise to God our Father for His work in our lives and for bringing so many together for such a wonderful happening. 

The Festival began in 1995 with the purpose of lifting up the name of Jesus through praise and fellowship at the Ocean City Convention Center and on the beautiful Atlantic Ocean shore.  Psalm 22:3 says, “He is enthroned on our praises!”  Essentially, it has been an opportunity for Dick Sands and Gary Steger, Ministry Overseer and Founder, to minister publicly for three days in the same manner as they do every day at their related ministry, The Son'Spot Christian Fellowship Center. 

The Son'Spot is a missionary outreach of the Body of Christ that began on July 3, 1981 when the Son’Spot vision manifested and Steger opened the doors for the first time.  The schedule includes much evangelism, praise and worship, fellowship, and outreach ministry.  Many different ministry teams participate with Son’Spot all year round.   Son’Spot does not present ministry, concerts, or entertainment.  Instead, they invite God's Holy Spirit to minister through them, primarily through praise, worship music and testimonies.

Sands and Steger keep the festival events simple. Each program is designed to bring honor and glory to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! During the festival some are healed, others receive restoration, and others receive great peace and rest for their souls.  Some weep and others laugh.  It is in His presence that we are broken, changed, healed, transformed and empowered.  In between the times of worship and intercession there are opportunities for fellowship, sharing with one another, and ministering to the Lord in other ways. 

Sand and Steger informed me that “This year in the prayer tent we saw many more young people surrendering to the Lord and many asking the Lord for direction in their lives concerning their future and their relationships.  Families, father and sons, and mother and daughters came for deliverance from generational curses, fear, anger, and other bondages that Jesus touched.  Even young boys without their parents came, knelt near the prayer tent and prayed.  When we approached them and asked if they needed prayer, they said, ‘No, we already prayed” (Children’s pure faith!).

The Son’Spot receives letters and calls from past attendees and their comments have been encouraging.  They testified of health for their bodies, marriages renewed and refreshed, and the experience of a place of intimacy and worship with the Lord for the first time.

“God’s work here in Ocean City goes on daily year round,” said Steger.  We meet at The Son’Spot every day except Wednesday at 10 AM and 8 PM (7 PM starting in October) for prayer, worship, Bible, and encouragement.  We have outreach ministry most every day at 5 PM on the boardwalk.  We feed people free meals daily, deliver food bags, visit homes, go on the streets and preach, distribute literature and praise the Lord,” Steger explained.

When visiting, don’t forget to walk down Ocean City's three mile Boardwalk to see the sand sculptures that Randy Hofman creates in front of the Plim Plaza Hotel on the beach at Second Street. The sculptures are 8 to 20 feet across with favorite biblical themes such as Christ on the Cross, The Last Supper, and Noah and the Ark.

Hofman, an ordained minister, began sculpting biblical scenes and messages in 1981 in a remote corner of Assateague Island. Hofman, at 61, says he's probably got another decade of sculpting ahead of him. After that, he'd like to pass on his knowledge to the next generation.  He views the sand sculptures as his ministry.  According to Hofman, the messages demonstrate to people that God is reaching out to us.

A few years back, Hofman told the crowd on the boardwalk, “Look, the Lord can get along without me.  I count it as the biggest privilege of my life to have created these sand sculptures.  That sand pile out there has been the biggest event of my life.”

If you need a list of area hotels or campgrounds for lodging, want more information, or would like to see pictures of prior festivals, please visit the Son’Spot web page at www.JesusAtTheBeach.org.  For more information, email info@JesusAtTheBeach.org or call 410-289-1296.

The Son'Spot ministry and Jesus at the Beach volunteers thank each of you for your prayerful, financial, and ministry participation. “We pray that God blesses you because of your faithfulness to Him”, said both Gary and Dick.

And, if I be lifted up...will draw all men unto Me. John 12:32