We Had to Ask – Hector Guzman

Posted by: in Interviews, We Had to Ask on July 25th

InsideOut: What does your youth group name FLAYME stand for?
Hector Guzman: The name is actually an acronym for Fearless Living Apostolic Youth Messengers… Extreme!

IO: How does it apply to your group of students?
HG: The name “FLAYME” represents our desire to share the awesome light of Jesus to this cold and dark world (Matt 5:16).

IO: On what night of the week do you have your youth events, and how often?
HG: We meet every Friday night for Heatwave service and youth outreach on Saturdays.

IO: What was the last game or activity you introduced FLAYME to?
HG: Recently, our city hosted the AYC project. We had a blast!

IO: Please give a description.
HG: The FLAYME struck up an instant connection with the AYC team in friendship, and more importantly, in ministry! Not only did we enjoy some great fellowship, but we also partnered in sharing the gospel to hundreds of lost souls in Quebec.

IO: Where does FLAYME go to hang out in your city?
HG: Though our youth group is based in the city of Saint Laurent, we hang out all over the island of Montreal. If there’s something awesome happening where we can represent Jesus, the FLAYME wants to be there!

IO: What has been your most productive fundraiser?
HG: Our last SFC “Rise Up and Walk” fundraiser was probably one of most impressive to date. We shattered our goal as we marched through our community proclaiming the name of Jesus.

IO: What one event does your youth group look forward to every year?
HG: Whoa! You mean besides Heatwave? There are so many! From the declaration of “A Call to Arms”, to the earth-shaking “Prayer Summit”, through the awesome “Youth Fellowship Bash”, into our deployment of “Operation: Full Contact”, leading to our yearly youth convention “Shockwave”, and many more events, there is just no picking one.

IO: Why do you think that is?
HG: It’s God – He’s in everything we do. The FLAYME won’t respond to anything else. They want the real deal… and He’s it!

IO: We all know that most youth trips or events don’t go without one crazy incident happening. Can you think of an incident that you laugh about now, but were crying about when it happened?
HG: This is definitely one that I don’t laugh about, but it did help me realize how quickly things can slip out of control. At one of our winter retreats a number of years ago, there was a tubing accident that involved a handful of our youth. The tube they were on veered off course and slammed into some trees. I ran over to see if anyone was hurt, but what I hadn’t noticed was that my oldest son lay motionless in the snow. I was called over and I was gripped with fear for his life. I will never forget what happened next. The youth stopped whatever they were doing and instantly gathered to pray. As we did whatever we could to revive my boy, the FLAYME called on the Great Physician. My son jolted to life and began to recover immediately! There is power in the name of Jesus and the FLAYME are not afraid to use it. That day showed me how much our youth work had served to lay down a foundation that would not be moved – even in the face of tragedy.

IO: What has God been speaking to your group of students lately?
HG: Last year, the Lord impressed the FLAYME to take the power that we have with God out to the city in a more aggressive fashion – to “compel them to come,” according to Luke 14:23. So, we spent the beginning of this year preparing our plan of attack and are now seeing the results of answering the call.

IO: Obviously, you have a burden for your students in your church as youth pastor and in Quebec as youth president, but if you could say one thing to this entire generation of Apostolic students, what would it be?
HG: Take Jesus everywhere! We need to respond to the urgency of this late hour. There are so many things that compete for our time and energy, but God’s will must prevail. If Jesus’ unending passion was to minister to a lost humanity (Luke 4:18), then our mission—our purpose—must be to bring this salvation message to the every soul on the planet!

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