Russ Cantu

Speaking Engagement: Prescott Senior Elementary School (grades 6-8)

Today I had the opportunity to speak to a group of students, deemed “at-risk” by their district. God’s been giving me incredible inroads at this school, and here was another way He can come on campus to share His love. Every time this happens, I feel honored and encouraged that this will make a difference. I spoke… but not how I wanted to.

The intention was to get up for a half an hour, share who I was as a child, life circumstances and all, what made a difference, and my tag-line: you don’t have to be a victim of your life’s circumstances; you can be a conquerer. I never got there. We spent the first twenty minutes just sharing life- stories, life’s ups and downs, etc… We even talked about a student who messed up and might be expelled because of it. Not how I wanted it to go… but even better than what I imagined.

The vice principle, who is doing an awesome job with this group, told me she was sorry for the lack of adequate time to get my full message in. I told her this- “It’s more important to share life with these kids than to speak to them. It’s more important to open up your life, so they can see in; see what they can become.” There’s an adage I shared with her- no one cares how much you know, until they know how much you care. True words there. She thanked me, invited me back, and we went our seperate ways for the day.

But think about it- God got on campus, shared life through His servant Russ, and is coming back again. Awesome opportunities to share Christ to kids who probably need to hear His message the most. They are doing a great job over there with that group. Just think what could happen if God got a hold of them. Wow.