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Each year, followers of the Christian faith share the gospel to other nations by mission trips. However, Christians in Manchester, and surrounding areas, follow this command to share the love of Jesus Christ at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival at The Jesus Tent in Outeroo, an area surrounding Centeroo that includes camping, parking and so on.

Volunteers come from all over the area and vary in every way except one: they’re all Christians. Through a cooperative program, 3,000 churches support the tent in a way with 219 physical volunteers spanning four states.

One of the youngest volunteers, Isabella Miles, is serving in her first year eligible. She attends First Baptist Church Manchester.

“Often, I think people hear the term “Jesus Tent” and assume we’re preaching to them,” Miles said. “[Serving in The Jesus Tent] has been good. I like serving people and it’s one of my favorite mission projects. The people are so eager to hear and learn.”

The Jesus Tent was not always at Bonnaroo though. Back in 2002 during the first year of Bonnaroo, traffic in Manchester was severely backed up, with cars piled up all the way back to First Baptist Church at 1006 Hillsboro Blvd. Cyndi Cox, wife of lead pastor Dr. Brenton Cox, passed out leftover popsicles from Vacation Bible School, while her husband and Dr. Kerry Walker, then Trinity Baptist Church pastor, gathered together to pass out water. As the infrastructure of Manchester improved, there was no longer a need to pass out water on the side of the road, and the church leaders knew they needed to get on festival grounds, and that’s when Walker found a piece of private property in the middle of Bonnaroo property.

Maggie Few, a lifelong friend of Miles and member of New Vision in Murfreesboro, said they were able to build connections with people that night and watching experienced volunteers.

“We don’t even to bring up Jesus, but showing it through our actions,” Few said.

Miles and Few’s statements correlate with another goal of the tent, which is to share the love of Jesus Christ with everyone, citing 1 Peter 4:8-11 ESV, which serves as the unofficial presentation of The Jesus Tent. Veteran Volunteer Lizzy Hunt shared that her favorite part is sharing the love of Jesus with people who may have not had a good church experience.

“This could be their first good experience with ‘Church people,’” Hunt said. “I love hearing people come back and tell us how The Jesus Tent changed their mind on Jesus and church people and its positive impact on them.”

Hunt’s statement clearly displays the instruction found in 1 Peter 4:8-9, “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.  Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.” Instead of hatred for unbelievers, Hunt and the tent love them fiercely without complaint. That is a mission of The Jesus Tent.

Also present in the tent was Misti Garrett, a certified massage therapist, setting up her massage table, and Angela Seals Leftwich working her second day braiding hair of tent visitors.

These women, and many others, were serving the Lord with their gifts, following 1 Peter 4:10. The the mission of the volunteers at The Jesus Tent is to use their gifts to serve God and others while giving him the glory. The Jesus Tent also amplifies Bonnaroo’s motto “Radiate positivity.” As attendees enter the tent, they can feel the unity of everyone from involved, from the free supplies and food to the theology books and Bibles covering every covered table. Each table was covered by disposable plastic tablecloth drowning in artwork, drawings and the message of Christ.

Dr. Jake Dorak, Coordinator of The Jesus Tent and Associate Pastor of First Baptist Church, said the origin of his passion for The Jesus Tent came from reaching out to people who were like him, who are not in the church or who do not yet know Christ.

“I love opportunity to step in to where the nations come to Manchester and we get the opportunity to a give them a positive church experience, share the gospel and share the love of Jesus Christ,” Dorak said. “If you talk to most people and see they have a church background but their Christian experience has not always been positive. And it’s about equipping the local church to think this way too.”

He said that The Jesus Tent would not have been possible with the generous donations of local churches, Duck River Baptist association, and the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.

“We’re grateful for their emerging generation’s specialist Dr. Ryan Keaton,” Dorak said. “Ryan comes out every year to serve as a TN Baptist Mission Board representative.”

Keaton said the mission board were excited to see local churches and the next generation coming together.

“As Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, we have a heart with sharing the gospel with the next generation and it’s awesome to see all these churches coming together to do that.”

Now the tent floods with people each year: returning friends, loving volunteers and new visitors. The Jesus Tent is a small gem that both Bonnaroovians and Manchester Christians hold dearly.