At 2:00 a.m., while smoking with friends in an Oldsmobile, Steve Gaskin found himself in a spiritual tug-of-war.
“We were talking about music, about who is the best rapper and what we could do to get money,” remembers Steve.
He had heard it all before. Yet he had heard something different while away at college.
During his freshman year at Indiana University in Bloomington, Steve (above, on far right) had discovered new community through The Impact Movement. This partner ministry of Cru aims to train leaders of African descent to take the message of Jesus Christ to the world.
“Seeing people my age who love the Lord -- it was really exciting,” Steve says.
While sitting in the Oldsmobile over summer break, Steve questioned where his life was headed.
“The drugs that they were selling and the things we rapped about, those are the things that are destroying our community,” says Steve.
The contrast between his 2 lives was stark. Steve silently prayed from his seat in the car, wanting God to redirect the trajectory of his life.
“From that night on I began to make initial changes,” remembers Steve, who over time dropped habits such as smoking, drinking and promiscuity. “I used to think that was it. That if I stopped those, I would be cool in God’s sight,” says Steve. “But God said, Those were just the surface things, I want to get to the core of you.”
Steve continues to look to God to refine his life and ministry. After graduating, Steve began touring with Level3:16, a hip-hop/ R&B group birthed from a 2009 Impact summer musical tour.
Serving alongside 5 other group members, Steve, who has a natural gift for hip-hop rhythm and rhyme, uses his talent to speak the message of Jesus Christ to audiences.
The group’s first self-titled album was released in December 2010 through a partnership with Cross Movement Records. Level3:16 song lyrics recount Jesus’ offer of new life to those who trust and follow Him.
Steve knows that song by heart.
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