VILONIA, Ark. – New Orleans, Louisiana, is a city of rich culture, historic neighborhoods and is known for its distinctive music, cuisine, and annual celebrations.
However, the city is also reported to have one of the highest crime rates in the United States, which is one of the reasons Landen Mills moved to Vilonia two years ago.
“I moved up here because of football, but on top of that one of my friends had gotten killed getting on a school bus. I thought I needed to move because I wasn’t sure if I would have been next,” Mills, a junior at Vilonia High School, said. In addition to losing his friend to gun violence at 13, he was dealing with marijuana and alcohol and battling with mental depression and loneliness.
Looking for a restart, Mills and his mom made the decision for him to move to Vilonia to live with extended family.
Not too long after his move to Arkansas, Vilonia Baseball Coach Brad Wallace invited Mills to church at The Summit Church in Vilonia.
“I have always done things a lot on my own and I was tired of always getting the same results. I thought why not give it a shot and see if I can get something different. It was a good thing,” he said. “Listening to the first message there, it just kind of spoke to me.”
Student Minister Carmen Lane, who has known Mills for about a year now, said Mills was extremely closed off at first.
“At the very beginning, we had a lot of really hard moments with Landen of him trying to push us away,” she said. But they invested in him, loved him, and shared about Christ and His steadfastness.
“He is not going anywhere. When you put your faith in Him, He is going to hold you,” Lane said.
“… Fast-forward a little bit and he ended up coming to know Christ and got baptized. He started coming faithfully and did not miss a Sunday or Wednesday. He comes in and sits on the front row and over that period of time I have just seen the Lord continually shape him.”
Last summer, after Mills received Christ into his heart and was baptized, he attended Super Summer. Lane said she could see the summer camp strengthen Mills’ faith in Christ and relationships with others in the church.
“After Super Summer, you would see him on the front row taking notes feverishly,” she said, adding he would send her devotions every day. Recently, she said Mills started what he calls preaching on Instagram Live.
“He just wants to tell people about Jesus,” she said.
In a video shared by The Summit Church in Vilonia, Mills said, “God took me out of a mess, and He brought me into a place of joy I didn’t realize I needed. The people He has put in my life. The mentors He has put in my life. It just made me realize, why shouldn’t I live for a God who is willing to help me no matter how many mistakes I’ve made. I can make a bigger impact on people and lead them to Jesus, a bigger impact on people who just want to live for the wrong things.”
Mills has since went on to lead a friend to Christ and even got to baptize him. Mills said to be able to do that was a sign that Jesus was using him more than he thought.
“It was just a really sweet moment,” Lane said. She said Mills is leading others to salvation through his passion for Jesus.
As his relationship with God strengthens, Mills is also becoming more comfortable praying in front of people. At football, before they leave, he prays the team out.
It is not always easy. Mills said it’s hard trying to do the right thing all the time. He said one of the hardest things to do is to let go of the people who are a negative influence on your life.
“I think the more I go into Christianity it was a battle between do I want to cut these people out or do I just keep them and keep on doing me,” he said.
“You’re playing a 50-50 game with Satan. I had to cut people off and stop talking to them for a while just to focus on myself. … God is going to place the right people for you. You’ve just got to take those distractions out.”
Lane touted Mills’ deep desire to know Christ and to walk with Him.
Mills said the biggest change since moving to Vilonia has been himself.
“Jesus changed my life. I was going down a road of destruction, sin, and guiltiness. Jesus has given me a new identity and a future of hope and joy. No matter what hardships you face in life, I promise it’s the greatest thing that you’ll ever do,” Mills said in The Summit Church video.
To watch the full video, click here.
One Response
PTL for this young man, and his Christian support team. May God get the glory, and many more saved by this active witness for Christ.