Foundation in Scripture crucial, speaker's tournament winner says

On Aug. 3 the 2005 Youth Speaker's Tournament winner Olivia Neeley presented her award winning speech to staff of the Georgia Baptist Convention during their weekly chapel service. The home-schooled high school senior is a member of Harp's Crossing Baptist Church in Fayetteville.

J. Gerald Harris

Olivia Neeley, 2005 Georgia Baptist Convention Youth Speaker's Tournament winner, stands with Maria Brannen, left, and Dennis Rogers. Brannen serves as a consultant and Rogers as specialist in GBC Discipleship and Family Ministries, which sponsors the tournament.

Neeley is one of four children in a family that is heavily involved in many different areas at Harp's Crossing Church. Her parents have faithfully provided a wonderful Christian atmosphere for the home and have positively influenced their children for Christ.

At age six she remembers being frightened during a thunderstorm and praying for God's protection. In that moment she realized that she had not yet asked Jesus into her heart and called upon the Lord to save her from her sins. God answered. Her mother encouraged her to wait to be baptized until she was older so that she might fully understand the significance of her decision.

Music and missions

Like most high school students, Neeley is involved in many extracurricular activities. A good portion of her time is devoted to music. She plays the clarinet, piano, and organ, participates in the church orchestra and sings in the youth choir, as well as works for the minister of music in taking care of the orchestral music.

Not only is Neeley engaged in music but she also has a heart for missions. This summer she spent a week in Quito, Ecuador on a World Changers mission trip. She emphasized that her involvement with the Speakers Tournament helped prepare her for being bold in sharing her faith. While in Quito, she prayed with two young girls to receive Christ.

From as early as the fourth grade Neeley dove in to God's Word because of her involvement in the Children's and Youth Bible Drill. Over a span of six years her thirst for Scripture increased and memorization became an integral discipline in her life.

After writing a competition speech for the Youth Speaker's Tournament in the tenth grade, Neeley was unable to participate. Her father suffered his third heart attack just prior to the church tournament. However, with renewed enthusiasm, she returned this year to win the church drill, associational drill and then regional drill. She claimed victory at the state competition with her speech, "Guarding Your Mind."

A personal topic

When choosing her topic from the provided list, Neeley emphatically stated that God clearly showed her the subject He wanted her to pick. She contended that she had just been dealing with this issue personally and in writing her speech she was able to explore it further.

Neeley's longstanding devotion to learning and memorizing the Word is clearly evidenced in her speech when she says, "Guarding our minds by feeding them properly, filtering what goes in, and staying focused on Christ brings changed lives. Right living comes from right thinking."

According to Neeley, involvement in the Speakers Tournament helps in preparing youth for college and mission opportunities by improving writing and speaking skills. She also says that it will help one to grow closer to Christ and challenge one's faith.

For more information on the Speaker's Tournament contact Discipleship and Family Ministries at the GBC at (800) RING GBC ext. 270 or (770) 936-5270.