Evangelism is not the responsibility of one person. It is for everyone! Many times, people think that the pastor is the only person that should be out evangelizing. But no, each person has the task of going and reaching another, telling him who Christ is and what He did. We provide training and discipleship for all church members so that they are well equipped to share with others.
Even the children in our schools and orphan care program are learning how to share their faith. Every Monday, the children attend a meeting with the Headmaster. There is a time of prayer, and the Headmaster teaches a lesson or sermon. We make sure the children know that they are the servants of tomorrow. As they grow, they are asked to assist with the lesson. Youth attend discipleship training to make sure they have a firm foundation in their faith. We want them to be bold and confident in sharing.
Young or old – if only every believer shared! Imagine how many people would become sons and daughters of the King!
This program is about three months old and focused near two preaching points. One of our evangelists, Sam Atyeng, also has medical training and experience in the treatment of common tropical diseases. He is God sent! Along with medical care, we provide health education addressing basic principles such as washing of hands, proper waste disposal, boiling drinking water, and using mosquito nets. We can tell that this teaching is taking hold as villagers now request up to bring soaps.
As part of building the capacity of our leaders and evangelists, we have developed Impact Seminars. The aim of the seminars is to expand leaders’ knowledge of the Word and doctrine and to develop and sharpen skills for ministry. We set goals, define and communicate our purposes, and cast our vision. The backbone of these seminars is the five New Testament purposes we want every leader and church to implement – worship, ministry, evangelism, fellowship, and discipleship.
already have a combined attendance of almost 300, and the number is increasing each week.
Masha and Alina currently live in a government orphanage in Russia. Recently, they called Zhanna, our director, asking for her help. They were being bullied by a boy in the orphanage. They told Zhanna they had enough and were thinking of running away from the orphanage! The only good reason they could find to stay was that they knew they were on the list to go back to the Christian camp they attended last year. Zhanna prayed with them, and a local church youth pastor was able to visit and encourage them.
In this article, I would like to focus on the open-air crusades. While this method seems to be costly financially, logistically, and physically, it’s definitely worth the investment! When planning a crusade, my major target areas are those that are less reached and unreached. My mission team will make a survey of these locations to determine the needs. Other times, I am contacted by the area pastors and asked to speak. In most cases, our church alone cannot meet all the expenses for an open-air crusade, so we do engage our host pastors not only to plan, but also to support the cause financially.
Three years ago, there was a group of four men that would ride bicycles for 18km (11 miles) to our church. One day, they asked us to bring a crusade to their village. After the three-day crusade, they began a church that met under a tree. The number has since grown from 16 people to between 130 and 150 people each Sunday. It has now moved from the tree to a permanent building. Through the church, 130 children from the community receive free, quality education.