The crowd of boys is rowdy, respectful, pumped up and sweaty.
Nine hundred young men from high schools all across South Carolina show their enthusiasm during a rally at Palmetto Boys State, held June 11-15 at Anderson University.Nine hundred of them are packed into the Henderson Auditorium at Anderson University on Thursday afternoon of the week-long convocation for the best young leaders in South Carolina. They are rising seniors at nearly every high school in the state.
The assistant director of Palmetto Boys State, Seth Buckley, minister of students at First Baptist Church of Spartanburg, is addressing issues such as citizenship and devotion to the “citizens” of Boys State.
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” Cited only as a great quote from a great writer to the secular gathering, Philippians 2:3 is one of many biblical truths shared by Buckley with the group.
During the more than 32 years he has worked with Boys State, Buckley said he has had the honor to lead several boys to Christ each year as they seek him out with questions in the waning hours of the night.
“Just Monday, I had the opportunity to lead a young man to Christ,” Buckley said. “They come up asking questions. This boy just said bluntly, ‘I know I’m lost and I need help.’?”
Unlike the dozens of Christian camps taking place across the state each summer, Palmetto Boys State is about patriotism, citizenship, and leadership, but the themes of devotion and giving one’s self to a greater cause inevitably lead to greater questions, and Buckley sees the huge annual event as a mission field.
For Seth Buckley, talking about citizenship at Palmetto Boys State leads naturally to biblical themes of devotion and giving one’s self to a greater cause.“I’m talking to two more boys tonight,” he added. “Boys State is not an evangelistic organization, but when Congressman Trey Gowdy addressed them Tuesday night, he gave a very powerful witness to the importance of a relationship with Jesus. The questions stirred up by this event lead many of the boys to ask questions about Christ.”
Buckley is quick to add that the new location for Boys State – Anderson University – has had a big impact in that regard. The organization can’t say enough about what moving to Anderson has meant to the staff, the counselors, and the boys themselves, he said.
“Anderson University is a great testimony of our South Carolina Baptist institutions,” he said emphatically. “The witness of this university has blown us away. The spirit of the people is unbelievable. The servant attitude of everyone on campus is tremendous. It makes me proud to be a South Carolina Baptist.”
And it causes even more questions for the boys who do not come from Christian homes – questions Buckley is eager to answer at every opportunity. It may not be the exact type of youth ministry he performs the other 51 weeks of the year at Spartanburg First Baptist, but he wouldn’t trade it, either.
– Ray is director of marketing and communications at Anderson University.