Christians Aim to ‘Harvest’ Believers

Thousands are expected to flock to Seaside Park this weekend for contemporary Christian music, skateboard exhibitions and a car show, along with the chance to learn more about the Gospel.

A total of 121 churches from Santa Barbara to north Los Angeles County are participating in the three-night Harvest Crusade, which ends Sunday, said Alex Field, the local representative for the Christian revival.

While the event helps to reinforce the beliefs of practicing Christians, it also tries to “harvest” others into the fold, Field said. Many attendees try to bring someone they think might benefit.

“We’re trying to get people excited about God,” Field said.

For the past decade, the nonprofit group Harvest Crusades has hosted about four events a year across the country, said John Collins, the organization’s executive director. Most are about the size of the Ventura event, while the annual crusade in Anaheim draws some 150,000 people.

At about 7 p.m. Friday, two giant screens above the stage exploded to life with a video of a Christian rock band. The crowd got to its feet and began singing along.

The crowd was filled with teenagers.

“I’m expecting a lot of people to be saved tonight, to know Jesus Christ and know the truth,” said Greg Reynolds, a soft-spoken 15-year-old from Oxnard. “I was saved when I was 8.”

Preparations for the Ventura event began about a year ago, after Camarillo resident Jeremy Wells, then 18, e-mailed the Harvest Crusades headquarters in Riverside.

The Ventura event “really started with this young man’s faith in his community,” said the Rev. Greg Laurie, pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside and main speaker at the events. “That’s the most grass roots of all our crusades’ origins.”

Wells, who said he had been involved with alcohol, drugs and tobacco through most of his teen years, was seeking a way to show others the life-changing possibilities of Christianity.

Tonight the crusade will feature its “youth jam,” including a demonstration by Christian professional skateboarders and young bands, Field said. Visitors will hear about two hours of Christian music, followed by a 30- to 45-minute talk from Laurie.

Laurie said he modeled his crusade after those of his hero, the Rev. Billy Graham.

The Harvest Crusade runs from 7 to 10 p.m. today and Sunday at Seaside Park in Ventura. Gates open at 6 p.m. Tonight is the youth jam and skating exhibition, while Sunday’s event will include a car show. Admission is free, although parking is $3.

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Times staff writer David Kelly contributed to this report.