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Valerie Martin, Linda Owen / Aimee Herd reporting : Aug 12, 2005  SAWorship.com

Texas' Christian Boot Camp is bringing new hope for some young people whose lives might otherwise end in a jail sentence. For some time Charles Flowers, who spent 12 years in the U.S. Air Force and now pastors the Faith Outreach Center International on the north side of San Antonio, wondered if he could put together a combination of the Gospel with a form of military boot camp to help troubled teens.

"The military takes men and women from all over the country with a variety of racial, cultural, family, and economic backgrounds, and drills them through a powerful time of change, during which they commit their lives to a transcendent cause," explained Flowers.

Believing young lives would be dynamically refocused, gaining a right perspective on God and morality, Flowers established the Christian Boot Camp in 1995. Since then over 1,000 graduates have participated in the 32-day in-residence summer program for young people ages 13-19.

"I hated it at first," said Mike Vargas, who was sent to the camp at 17 after being arrested twice. "I didn't like the authority and wanted to hit the instructors more than once. But I calmed down and reminded myself, ‘If you don't do this, you're going to jail.' When it was over, though, the instructors and I shook hands and hugged, and I was glad for the experience. If you're not walking a straight path, it's a helpful experience; and it's something in your life that you will always remember. Commandant Flowers is an awesome man."

Since its inception 10 years ago, Christian Boot Camp (CBC) has become a place where young, troubled lives are transformed. Pastor Flowers calls it "rescuing a generation." When it first began, the camp was voluntary, many of the early graduates are instructing there today. Now however, most of the participants are ordered to attend by the court.

Key ingredients to CBC's accomplishments are discipline and love in the context of the Word of God. The Camp's Youth Offenders Program has the amazing success rate of 85 percent, according to the APD. Mike Vargas is one of those whose life was transformed.

"When I left the camp, I couldn't speak to anyone without saying, ‘Yes, sir,' being polite was embedded in me, as was everything I'd learned about God," recounted Vargas who is now working in the lawn business with a former instructor.

He learned a great deal about God's Word, but even more important, Vargas had an encounter with God Himself. "I could recite every book of the Bible when I left. Even if you didn't want to believe, God touches you through these men teaching you-and suddenly you understand that God is real."

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