r Men who can bench press in excess of 400 pounds will show their strength on May 5 in Payson and Mapleton schools and on May 6 at the Payson City Center.
The Lifted in Faith strength team of Louisiana, led by Brad Hornback, will also be hosted by Hope Baptist Church of Payson and First Baptist Church of Pleasant Grove on Sunday, May 7, where they will perform during the 11 a.m. worship time.
“We are excited to return to Utah,” emailed Hornback while traveling on the team’s fourth mission trip in as many years to El Salvador. “When we were in Orem two years ago, we found the people to be friendly, helpful and amazed by our feats of strength.”
In addition to bench-pressing, the Lifted in Faith team squashes frying pans, bends rebar, tears license plates, blows up water bottles and chops through several blocks of wood.
“Growing up, I was full of pride, had a bad attitude and found myself always getting into fights,” said Keith Nelson, who has been with Lifted in Faith since 2011. “Today I fight for the Lord and feel blessed each and every day to know Him.
“God not only changed my conduct, He saved my life,” said Nelson, adding that several of his cousins died violent deaths. “God took my bad attitude and pride and brought joy and humility.”
The Lifted in Faith team is scheduled to perform at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, May 5, at Mt. Nebo Junior High School in Payson and between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. that evening at Mapleton Junior High in Mapleton.
“We use our abilities to create powerful displays of strength that cannot be forgotten,” Hornback said. “We use these feats of strength not solely for entertainment purposes, but to capture the attention of our audience.”
At the schools, Lifted in Faith plan to showcase their feats of strength and to talk about issues pertinent to teens such as the benefit of a good attitude, respect for all people and obeying those in authority, which together make up people who are mentally strong. The topics of bullying and suicide will also be discussed.
From noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday, May 6, Lifted in Faith will appear in the gym-sized community room at Payson City Center. This event is free and open to the public. Billed as a “Good News Celebration” for families by organizers, the day will also include performances by Carl Moore, a Native American hoop dancer, and Chris Murray, also known as CDZthemessenger, a Christian rapper.
Shaun Dee will be emceeing the Good News Celebration. While the event is free, Little Caesar’s will have pizza available for purchase and Hope Payson will have hot dog combos available for purchase.
