November 19, 2009
Angry Preachers or Gospel Musicians?
What types of witnesses are our churches forming?
by David Swanson
There wasn’t much that could have distracted me on the way to the train station on a recent Saturday evening. After two days at an outdoor music festival—in the rain one day and under the blazing sun the next—I wanted nothing more than to return to our apartment for a long shower and some blessed quiet. Lollapalooza was a blast, a great opportunity to see some new bands and observe Chicago’s diverse youth culture. I might have stayed for the day’s final acts, but I’m a pastor and my ringing ears and tired legs needed a good night’s sleep before Sunday morning.
Before I’d walked even a block from the festival, I bumped into a small crowd whose attention was fixed on two men speaking loudly to the bedraggled onlookers. One held a handmade sign that read—I kid you not— “TURN OR BURN!” He spoke into a bullhorn, warning the young people of God’s coming judgment and listing in vivid detail the sins that would lead them to an eternity burning in hell. The other man held an open Bible and vigorously debated anyone who disagreed with his companion’s portrayal of God. Continue reading “Angry Preachers or Gospel Musicians? “… David Swanson is Community Life Pastor at New Community Covenant Church in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood
Posted on Nov 13, 2009
by Sherri Brown & Joe Westbury
WOODSTOCK, Ga. (BP)–Despite a day of record rainfall, Georgia Baptists forged ahead with a major evangelism campaign in conjunction with their 188th annual meeting at First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Ga., Nov. 9-10.
The remnants of Hurricane Ida moved over the Atlanta area Tuesday, dropping four inches of rain and limiting the massive scope of ministry through LoveLoud planned for the afternoon. Local meteorologists said the day made this the single wettest November on record.
Against that soggy background, many of the 1,125 volunteers fanned out to 87 ministry sites — some decked out in rain ponchos to rake leaves — to spread the Good News. By the time the event came to a close, an unofficial 22 professions of faith were recorded.
“God’s hand was on the whole project,” Doug Couch, who oversees the Georgia Baptist Convention’s youth ministries, said, adding that he was “very pleased with the cheerful servant attitudes of the volunteers. You would never have known it was raining. We are extremely appreciative to everyone who participated.”
Preliminary reports indicate that during the afternoon nearly a thousand volunteers made 1,144 contacts including 190 Gospel presentations. They ministered to 830 senior citizens and helped distribute 2,400 boxes of food to 785 homes from three semi-trucks.
Steve Parr, the convention’s vice president for evangelism, served on a team that saw six people accept Christ. He said it was “refreshing, in the midst of the business and the annual reporting session, that everyone experienced worship and service in the name of Jesus.”
“The experience this year, however, was highlighted by the fact that lives were changed as several people trusted Christ as Lord and Savior,” Parr said. “It is fitting that a gathering focused on missions and partnership in the proclamation of the Gospel had immediate results as many were obedient in responding to the Good News during the course of Tuesday’s ‘Light it Up’ ministry projects.”
“It was worth it. We had more than a thousand people doing ministry in a downpour with nearly two dozen people saved. It was a great day.”
Innovative Evangelism Conference to encourage hundreds of evangelists
Hundreds of evangelists will gather next week, but this time not to evangelize. Instead, participants in the Innovative Evangelism Conference will be soaking up encouragement and training to get rejuvenated to do the Lord’s work, reports MNN.
The conference will last from November 10 to November 13 in Portland, Oregon. It is being hosted by Next Generation Alliance, a branch of the Luis Palau Association.
“NGA exists to encourage, to equip and to network evangelists, sharing from the experiences that Dr. Palau and all of our team have had over the last 40 years,” says NGA Director Tim Robnett. “We just want to help other people reach more people for Jesus Christ.”
NGA was formed in 1998 with only 10 participants at first, as an opportunity for evangelists to learn under the instruction of the entire Luis Palau staff. Since then, the group has grown to include more than 200 ministries and has branched off into two other ministries: Livin It, a ministry with an extreme sports focus and about 40 members, and a growing Creative Arts ministry.
The Innovative Evangelism Conference is only one of NGA’s initiatives, but it is certainly an important one. The conference will serve to teach evangelists by means of 75 to 80 workshops. Luis Palau and others on the staff will speak to encourage evangelists.
“[The conference is for] encouragement of fellowship, training, and then the third major thing that always comes out of these conferences is just the networking that occurs — people meeting new people or renewing old friendships, things that people could do together, along with creative ideas and new ways of doing evangelism,” says Robnett.
The Greg Laurie Evangelistic Outreach for Chicago
has been announced for Sept 24-26, 2010.
http://www.harvest.org/crusades/
There is an email sign up if you want further information.
http://www.harvest.org/contact/
RECOMMENDATION:
Get a copy of Greg’s book, Upside Down Church, Tyndale 1999…good read and will give you a look into the evangelistic heart of this man.
HOT BUTTON ISSUES Greg Laurie
Southern California pastor Greg Laurie took on some “hot button” issues from the pulpit on Sunday, covering everything from capital punishment and homosexuality to Tiger Woods’ apology.
Commenting on the professed faith of pro golfer Woods, he stated, “Here’s the problem with Buddhism: they don’t believe in a personal God that is there to forgive a person.”
CHICAGO, November 13, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Mauck & Baker, LLC, and the Thomas More Society in Chicago have announced that they reached an out-of-court settlement after joining forces to preserve the constitutional right of Moody Bible student Matthew Rivera and his classmates to share the message of Jesus on Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) train platforms.
In July, Rivera was told by a CTA security guard that he could not preach at a subway platform without a permit. He was told he would need to pay a $10 fee, wear a badge and do his preaching in a small designated area where he may or may not have an audience.
Rather than risk arrest, Rivera stopped talking about God and offering people reading material. Another Moody student with Rivera was also evangelizing on the platform. He was told that his Texas driver’s license was not acceptable identification to obtain a permit and that he would need an Illinois license or ID card to be licensed.
Mauck & Baker attorney John Mauck exchanged communications with Eugene Munin, the CTA’s first deputy general counsel, seeking a peaceful accommodation. Mauck convinced Munin to send a letter confirming that preaching is allowed on the platforms and not subject to licensure. The attorney emphasized that it is important to be able to preach where people congregate and that the First Amendment protects preaching.
In the end Munin acquiesced and provided a letter that states that “preaching” does not constitute “oration” (which requires licensure under a CTA ordinance), thereby confirming that Rivera and those who wish to spread the truth of the Gospel will be able to continue to preach without fear of arrest.
Rivera, Moody Bible Institute students, Jews for Jesus and other groups who wish to evangelize should now carry both the letter from the CTA and a supplemental letter from Mauck & Baker with them, said Mauck, which will ensure that there are no further incidents.
“Our objective,” said the attorney, “is always to preserve and extend the freedom to communicate the great message of God’s love rather than litigate. This experience with the CTA demonstrates that sometimes good communication and good will on both sides can avoid costly and time consuming court battles.”
