ANAHEIM, CA (ANS) -- In preparation for the 21st annual Southern California Harvest Crusades with Greg Laurie at Angel Stadium of Anaheim, August 6-8, 2010, some 6,000 volunteers will be mobilized, 100,000 bumper stickers will be handed out, and upward of 12,000 Bibles will be available to be given away.

Greg Laurie

But these multiple efforts all point back to a single message of hope that will be delivered by Riverside, California, pastor and evangelist Greg Laurie during each night of the “2010 Southern California Harvest.”

According to a news release from Laura McGowan Communications, the theme of “hope” will run throughout the three-night 2010 Southern California Harvest, culminating with a special Sunday evening program called, “A Night of Hope,” where Laurie will team up with Grammy Award-winning musician Steven Curtis Chapman to address issues of sorrow and the hope we have in Christ in the midst of crisis. Both Chapman and Laurie lost children in automobile accidents in 2008, and share a common desire to offer encouragement to people who are suffering loss of any kind.
 

Steven Curtis Chapman with his daughter Maria Sue who died in a tragic accident

Focus on the Family founder, broadcaster, best-selling author, and family expert Dr. James Dobson will also join Laurie for an interview on Sunday evening to discuss suffering.

Founded in 1990, the Harvest with Greg Laurie events are known for relating to audiences through contemporary means like top notch music, live Internet webcasts and hosted video podcasts, but the crux of each event is the nightly message presented by Laurie. Called the “evangelist of the future” by Billy Graham, Laurie draws on Scripture, flavored with personal and cultural examples, to describe the relevance of faith in today's world. Laurie's talks encompass topics that appeal to people of any age and answer questions like: “Why am I here?” “Is God real?” “What happens when I die?”

In addition to nightly talks from Laurie, the 2010 Southern California Harvest will feature performances from some of the top names in Christian music, including: David Crowder Band (Friday); Phil Wickham, Sanctus Real, OC Supertones, Revive (Saturday); Steven Curtis Chapman and MercyMe (Sunday); and The Katinas (all three nights).

2010 Southern California Harvest Facts & Figures

* Harvest Crusades with Greg Laurie has given away more than 450,000 copies of the New Believers Bible over the course of its 21 year outreach, and during the 2010 Southern California Harvest will, for the first time, give away copies of the new Start! Bible, instead.
* More than 100 church youth and young adult groups (age 16 - 26) across Southern California are participating in Harvest's G3 evangelism training program so they can share the life-transforming message of the Gospel with people on the streets and in various locations around town in preparation for the 2010 Southern California Harvest. The first training session will take place on July 17, at the Electric Chair in Huntington Beach.
* Some 300 churches throughout Southern California are working together to host the 2010 Southern California Harvest, and 6,000 people are expected to volunteer at the three-night event.
* Some 100,000 bumper stickers and 700,000 invitations to the Harvest
Crusade are being distributed locally.

The overflow crowd at last years Angel Stadium event spills out onto the field as thousands seek to commit their lives to Christ (Harvest photo)

The 2010 Southern California Harvest begins at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights (gates open at 5:30 p.m.), and 6 p.m. on Sunday night (gates open at 4:30 p.m.), and is free of charge. Angel Stadium of Anaheim charges $10 for parking fees for cars and $20 for buses. Each night of the event will be interpreted in Spanish, Korean, Vietnamese, and Chinese. Signing for the deaf will be provided.

A drive will be hosted during the weekend event to collect food for the homeless in Los Angeles County through the Fred Jordan Mission. Those attending are asked to bring a non-perishable food item for the “Boxes of Hope” drive. In addition, backpacks and school supplies will be collected for needy students across Southern California for a “Back to School” drive.

All three evenings of the 2010 Southern California Harvest are free of charge and video podcasts and blog accounts of each message will be made available at http://blog.greglaurie.com/. “Behind the scenes” updates from Greg Laurie leading up to each Harvest event will also be available on Facebook and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/greglaurie. 

With a trademark ability to present a straightforward gospel message in a culturally relevant format, drawing on the latest in current events, contemporary Christian music, and technology, Greg Laurie's Harvest events have drawn more than 4 million people to stadiums and arenas around the world since 1990. Laurie also serves as senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California, one of the largest churches in the U.S., and serves on the board of directors for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan's Purse.

MEDIA NOTE: For more information about the 2010 Southern California Harvest, contact Laura McGowan at (847) 328-8009 or laura@lauramcgowan.com, or access the Harvest Newsroom at www.newsroom.harvest.org.

Dan Wooding, 69, is an award winning British journalist now living in Southern California with his wife Norma, to whom he has been married for 46 years. He is the founder and international director of ASSIST (Aid to Special Saints in Strategic Times) and the ASSIST News Service (ANS). He was, for ten years, a commentator, on the UPI Radio Network in Washington, DC., and now hosts the weekly “Front Page Radio” show on KWVE in Southern California and which is also carried on the Calvary Radio Network throughout the United States. The program is also aired in Great Britain on Calvary Chapel Radio UK. Wooding also a regular contributor to The Weekend Stand on the Crawford Broadcasting Network, and a host for His Channel Live, which is carried via the Internet to some 192 countries. He is the author of some 44 books. Two of the latest include his autobiography, “From Tabloid to Truth”, which is published by Theatron Books. To order a copy, press this link. Wooding, who was born in Nigeria of British missionary parents, has also recently released his first novel “Red Dagger” which is available here