More than 13,000 students and leaders converged for this year’s Hearts on Fire Student Conference (HOF), where hundreds of young attendees made life-changing decisions to follow Jesus Christ.
The two-day gathering, which drew participants from 20 states, took place Nov. 21–22 at the LeConte Center in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.
HOF founder Scott Carter told The Christian Post that the weekend produced a significant spiritual response: 290 students professed faith in Christ for the first time, 260 recommitted their lives to Him, and 52 expressed a desire to be baptized.
Carter said his greatest encouragement comes from witnessing students respond to the Gospel personally. “There were many highlights, but my favorite is when I see students reaching out to Christ for a personal relationship,” he shared. “That is the reason HOF exists; our goal is to evangelize the lost.”
He described one poignant moment from the final evening, when he prayed with two high school boys who had been interceding for months for a friend who did not know Christ. “These two guys worked together and had been praying for months for their friend to be saved. They invited their friend to HOF, and God moved in his life, and he gave his heart to Christ,” Carter recalled.
An offering taken during the conference raised more than $19,000 to support a Tennessee-based food bank.
Carter believes the long history of Hearts on Fire contributes to the strong turnout, noting that the conference has been held annually since the 1980s and continues to grow in influence.
According to the ministry’s website, Hearts on Fire began in 1987 with approximately 150 students. Since then, it has hosted well-known speakers including Louie Giglio, Tim Tebow, Kirk Cameron and Will Graham.
“We have many youth workers bringing their youth to the conference who attended when they were teenagers years ago,” Carter explained. “I think having great communicators of the Gospel is a draw as well as dynamic praise and worship music.”
He emphasized that the central message of the event never changes. “The message of HOF never changes: Christ crucified, risen and coming again. We always share the love of Christ by sharing the Gospel. In comparison to previous conferences, [this] remains the common theme.”
For those who made the decision to follow Christ at last weekend's event, Carter told CP that his ministry has a process to help disciple new believers as they continue their walk of faith.
Each decision-maker fills out a duplicate form—one copy stays with the ministry, and the other goes to the student’s pastor for follow-up—and participants receive Billy Graham’s “Steps to Peace with God” tract along with the North American Mission Board’s “Welcome to the Family” booklet.
