Shaka Dickson felt overwhelmed. Hundreds of people flooded around him. Some even reached over his shoulders to snatch what was in his hands. Dickson was standing near an exit at the Promise Keepers convention in Fresno, Calif., handing out free tracts with his church’s literature distribution team. Half an hour later 4,500 pieces of literature had been handed out and Dickson’s passion for literature evangelism was born.

Not coincidently, his new found ministry had also been the means for his initial conversion several months earlier. In the summer of 2006, Dickson was sitting in his living room when he heard a faint knock on his front door. Thinking it was a salesman, he ignored it. Then there was another much louder knock. Finally another resounding knock brought him to his feet.

He stomped to the door ready to deliver a rather harsh rejection. But when he saw who was standing on his doorstep, his demeanor softened. Standing there were two young women, Ashlee Bohlman, 16, and Sachi Kleiman, 20.

They were student literature evangelists, part of the California Youth Rush program which is designed to reach people with the last-day message while helping students with their school costs.

He stared at both of them, wondering how such small women could knock so hard, and listened patiently as they shared what they were doing and decided to give a donation for the Final Events DVD. Before they left, the two evangelists asked, “Would you mind if we had prayer?” Dickson says that as they prayed, his heart was touched by the sincerity of the prayer.

“After I heard them pray, I wanted to learn to pray like that. They knew Jesus,” he remembers. Afterward, Bohlman and Kleiman offered Bible studies and he signed up. Encouraged, the two students left, but had no idea what the results of this encounter would be.

Bible worker Jeff Bentley from the Clovis church followed up with Dickson and his wife Stephanie. “Do you believe Jesus is Lord?" Dickson asked Bentley. "Do you believe in the Bible and the Bible only?” he asked. When Bentley replied yes, Dickson said, “Well, come on in.”

For the next few weeks both Dicksons soaked up the Bible lessons. When they learned about the Sabbath and other topics, their first reaction was shock. They felt like the truth had been hidden from them all their lives.