Success Stories: June 14, 2023

We continue to work the HTHSOE model and develop it to fit the needs of our congregation. This has taken some time as the original seminar was about a year ago. Placing the right people in the right places and continuing to train the congregation has played an important role. Changing culture takes time and dedicated leaders and members.

We currently have two individuals in a Bible study. Please continue to pray for these individuals that the word being sown will grow in their hearts.

Our special forces team met last week to assign our contacts who have received cards for multiple weeks and benevolence from our congregation. The benevolence aspect of our plan has worked well. It has helped our congregation to have the courage to talk to individuals and introduce themselves.

One prospect agreed to read the book Muscle and a Shovel. We created a modified welcome bag that contained the book and a card from our special forces team. This young lady has a terminal illness, and we pray the book provides the seed to help her find her way to Jesus. Please pray for that.

In total, our special forces team is working to reach 12 prospects, and we have two ongoing Bible studies. We have sent many cards to each of these individuals, and we have received good feedback of appreciation from them. Our compassion card teams are currently sending cards to 11 contacts that were developed from our gospel meeting. May God be glorified through our efforts.

Congregational Reports

Welcome Southside church of Christ, Grand Rapids, Michigan: We welcome the Southside church of Christ to the House to House/Heart to Heart School of Evangelism. The seminar was well attended, and the congregation was very hospitable. The preacher and his wife are highly motivated, and the congregation is full of talented members ready to work. They have already had two baptisms this year using Back to the Bible!

Glencoe church of Christ, Alabama: David Marker (elder) reports, “We continue to work prospects from the new movers’ program. Three prospects are receiving compassion cards. We are utilizing the invitation cards. As a result, we have two ladies who have visited. We are challenging everyone to remain resolved and vigilant in our evangelism efforts.”

Winfield church of Christ, Alabama: Jerry Spann (member) reports, “Mark Posey preached the second sermon on John 4 Sunday. Compassion Card Group 2 met and wrote 60 cards. Compassion Card Groups are having an average of 60 percent signing cards. Sharon Huguley will set up the evangelism table this week.  Sheila Peoples coordinates our visitor packets. Compassion Card Coordinators (Jerry/Connie Self and Bill Mayhall) are doing a terrific job setting up the card room for signing sessions. Door knocking by Clint/Crystal Beasley brought six children to Bible class and worship. Their parents were receptive and are potential prospects.”

Hatton church of Christ, Alabama: Rob Martin (elder) reports, “A recent convert was in attendance for the first time. He is elderly with lots of health problems and is basically homebound. It was wonderful to see him worshipping with his new family! We are gearing up for VBS next week, which is another great outreach tool!”

Mossy Head church of Christ, Defuniak Springs, Florida (digital): Phillip Gaither (member) reports, “We have started our card campaign with one individual, but we have another contact on deck.”

Lake City church of Christ, Florida: Jim Flegert (elder) reports, “As another week rolls by, more compassion cards are reaching future potential prospects. Our Mission Monday participants have increased, and we are looking forward to our second Mission Monday this week. Our most recent baptized member asked me Sunday if she could participate in sending compassion cards. Just a few weeks ago, she was receiving cards after her mother passed away. She told me that those cards meant so much to her, and she wanted the opportunity to show others the compassion she had experienced. We are thankful to God for our new sister and her example of her willingness to share Christ’s love to other potential future members of the Kingdom.

Monroe church of Christ, Georgia (digital): Charles Harris (regional instructor) reports, “We have gone from waiting for a visitor to come and hoping the preacher takes care of it to expanding our visitation group who visits our growing list of contacts. Our recent baptisms have shown many members that they actually can play a part in leading the lost to Jesus.”

Carrollton church of Christ, Georgia: Dave Leonard (preacher) reports, “Our VBS is going on. Our new normal process with the evangelism program is on a break this week. We are dealing with visitors differently than in the past. We record information about visitors so we can begin prospecting them immediately after VBS. This is a new perspective for us, and we are feeling our way through. We appreciate all prayers.”

LaFayette church of Christ, Georgia: Jesse Teague (deacon) reports, “Our theme for VBS was Jesus’ miracles. We added the plan of salvation to the group meeting before and after VBS classes. By the end of the week, most of the kids knew the Bible gave five steps to salvation. They understood that we cannot skip any of the five steps and still go to heaven. We had a few adult visitors each night as a result of the door knocking (without a child; they just came because they were invited). We were glad VBS was not limited to children. Ken reported several things going on: one Bible study with Lara; one visit with Red and Lecia (from compassion cards); and one planned visit with Jo, a young adult who visited during VBS and is searching for spiritual peace. Curry is following up with Marie, an adult lady who visited during VBS. Group 2 will meet after Sunday to send compassion cards. We added a couple of contacts from the HTH new movers’ door knocking this weekend.”

Woodstock church of Christ, Georgia: Greg Garner (deacon) reports, “Last week we sent ten compassion cards. We have two Bible studies in progress. Our new converts class has 20 students, and the Application BTTB class has seven. We were blessed with two baptisms: Sherry Perry is from California; she was visiting her daughter. Matt Amos baptized her. Bob Jenkins baptized his son, Bryce Jenkins. We are overjoyed about these two new souls being added to God’s family.”

Baconton church of Christ, Georgia (digital): Austin Fowler (regional instructor) reports, “On Sunday, Baconton church of Christ finished watching the last lesson of the seminar during Bible class. Sunday afternoon, I reviewed the congregational plan and the evangelism model. The lessons went well, and the congregation is excited about getting started. They were already talking about who they can add to their bookmarks so they can share the gospel with more people.”

Honolulu church of Christ, Hawaii: Tagiilima Esene (regional instructor) reports, “Our first students from our new converts’ class have graduated. Each received a certificate and a gift for encouragement. We currently have three Bible studies ongoing. Sunday, we honored all those who graduated from high school and college. We invited all visitors to a wonderful meal. We are now gearing up for our VBS in July. We appreciate all prayers.”

Jerseyville church of Christ, Illinois (digital): Jake Medford (preacher) reports: “We hit a record attendance of 30 yesterday for the first time in a few years! On Saturday, we shared our excitement about two baptisms at our building. An elder of a St. Louis congregation who lives closer to us hosted a family for lunch and then studied with them. The father was baptized a month ago; his bride and son were baptized Saturday. It was beautiful and a great encouragement to the Christians here. We also have a steady stream of cards going out each week. We keep our lists updated weekly and continue to press on! We have two events planned that will focus on finding contacts. I had a long discussion about the evangelism program with a close friend who is an elder at another congregation. I sent him the video of our meeting. He will present the information to his eldership. I told him that it is a game changer.”

Beloit church of Christ, Kansas: Dustin Doughtery (preacher) reports, “We are cultivating prospects and praying studies will come from them. We worked hard to prepare for our upcoming summer evangelistic outreach venues and events. One recent convert was back yesterday and agreed that he and his wife, a new convert, would like to continue their studies with the Growing in Christ book with another brother.”

Parkway church of Christ, Fulton, Kentucky: Will Hester (preacher) reports, “I will meet with Colette tomorrow; I am praying for a Bible study. We have several potential prospects, and we look forward to seeing what God does to open hearts!”

Paintsville church of Christ, Kentucky: Zach Collins (preacher) reports, “Another Bible Study opportunity has presented itself! The nephew of Brady, a new convert, began attending Bible class and worship. He desires to know more about the Bible. He has some learning disabilities and struggles with comprehension. He lives in a center that helps adults with disabilities and disadvantages to become self-sufficient. In our study, we will be using the Back to the Bible series, but I will make some accommodations to the material to account for his struggles. I received a call this evening about four other friends from the same center who want to attend Wednesday. We appreciate all prayers for this opportunity!”

Blanchard church of Christ, Louisiana: Pat Cella (elder) reports, “Erin, the young lady who was baptized last week in North Carolina, went to Louisiana with Lindsey who led her to Christ, so our congregation could meet the one they had been praying for so fervently. We wanted to show her the love and support that a new Christian should receive. No doubt her new church family in North Carolina will also provide the love and support she needs as she grows in Christ. Since Erin left home, many cards had not arrived, but between Wednesday and Thursday she had received a total of 54. She has been truly overwhelmed by the love from all over the brotherhood. The church is amazing, and we would like to thank everyone for the support. Only God knows the amazing growth that the church will see in the coming years if we can continue to work together. We had a couple visit Sunday who moved into our area from out of state. One member visited them to invite them to services and give them a new movers basket. They said that they enjoyed the service and “loved the singing without a piano or organ.” Some of our members took them to lunch, and they said they would be back. Cards are going out today to thank them for visiting us. This program works!”

LaPlata church of Christ, Maryland (digital): Eric Sykes (regional instructor) reports, “We sent 64 compassion cards last week, an increase of 20 cards. We have five new converts in training class. They are studying Growing in Christ. We have seven open Bible studies. Two of those five have just completed Lesson 3 of Back to the Bible. Both prospects have similar questions. We pray that we can answer them and resolve their concerns soon. Gail Malnati’s caregiver just asked if she could join Gail in her Bible study, so we started over with Lesson one of Back to the Bible. Gail is excited about sharing the study with her caregiver who is also her friend. One sister volunteered to be a silent partner in that study, giving us the opportunity to train another Bible study teacher. The family here at La Plata is extremely excited about the process. Everyone is joining in to make it happen. We appreciate all prayers.”

Edgewood church of Christ, Maryland (digital): Mitchell Bennett (associate preacher) reports, “We are worshipping with a sister congregation for two weeks while our home is being renovated.  We have one Bible study ongoing. We appreciate prayers for that effort as we hope to have a baptism soon.”

Looxahoma church of Christ, Mississippi: Blake Hawkins (deacon) reports, “This week is our VBS, so all hands have been on deck for it. We look forward to making new contacts with the community and are excited about its potential. The elders, preacher, and I continue a separate weekly meeting on Tuesday nights to make sure evangelism is remaining at the forefront. The elders are working on creating a larger space for compassion card writing so that can be a smooth transition. All members have been assigned to teams, so we are trying to keep the momentum up and keep everyone excited.”

Iuka church of Christ, Mississippi: Robert Wimbish (elder) reports, “Lance preached his first sermon Sunday using the Back to the Bible booklets. We expect those to run for the next four or five weeks. Our next Men’s Breakfast is scheduled for the 24th, and several prospects have already been invited with more to be added. We hope this week will be better.”

Fordland church of Christ, Missouri: Josh Romo (preacher) reports, “We have two ongoing Bible studies, and we have assigned several visits. We had a Bible study Thursday night with a couple who has now completed Back to the Bible. They are extremely receptive and hungry for the Word!”

Samford church of Christ, Steele, Missouri: Kyle Imel (deacon) reports, “We had one study this week. The couple is very receptive to the church; however, his mother who lives with them is Methodist. She is giving some push back. We ask for prayers for the Dodds. Thanks to compassion cards sent recently, we have several visits scheduled in the coming weeks.”

West Hwy 160 church of Christ, West Plains, Missouri (digital): Marvin Hatley (elder) reports, “One personal Bible study progressed through Book 1, and we plan to study Book 2 this week. Compassion cards Group 1 wrote 64 cards for mailing. Members remain vigilant by moving contacts to prospects. The congregation has approximately 16 active prospects; some are recent returning visitors. One new convert is extremely motivated to convert his family. He is active with his mentors and has begun attending weekly worship and Bible study opportunities regularly. May God continue to bless the efforts of those desiring to plant and water.”

Foristell church of Christ, Missouri: Rod Jackson (elder) reports, “T-Roy and I completed Lesson 1 with Debbie. It went extremely well and lasted three hours. I asked her if she needed a break or if she wanted to continue later, she was eager and excited about continuing. When we finished, I questioned her about the lesson, and she answered correctly and with conviction the summary points of Lesson 1. I was able to ascertain that she has a scriptural right to be married to her present husband. T-Roy and I believe from her answers her husband also has that right. We appreciate all prayers.”

East Flushing church of Christ, New York (digital): Clarence Jenkins (preacher) reports, “By the grace of God, we were encouraged by presenting a Certificate of Completion to our first individual graduate of the HTHSOE. To God be the glory. We are continuing to send compassion cards. We are looking forward to the fruit of our ongoing Bible studies. We are thankful for all prayers.”

Carthage church of Christ, North Carolina (digital): Randy Chambers (preacher) reports, “The congregation had VBS Saturday, and we set up two Bible studies. Cynthia completed a Zoom study using BTTB with the daughter and son-in-law of a member who had obeyed the gospel in January. Since they live in Virginia, I contacted the preacher at the congregation about twelve minutes from where they live. Someone from that congregation will visit soon. We thank the brethren for prayers and support.”

Coweta church of Christ, Oklahoma: Keno Shrum (elder) reports, “Thursday we had a study scheduled with Linda. As we were preparing to start, her adult daughter Danielle asked to join us. We started on Lesson 1.  After two questions, Danielle’s boyfriend Tyler came in and asked if he could join as well. So Jamie and I completed Lesson 1 with the three of them, and they were very receptive. This week, they are coming to our house for dinner and Lesson 2. Tyler had to work yesterday, but Linda and Danielle worshipped with us. We pray they will accept the call soon and dedicate their lives to God.”

North Meadville church of Christ, Pennsylvania: Dick Moore (elder) reports, “We have been blessed with the baptism of two additional people, including one of our teenagers, following studies conducted by members. We continue to provide a first principles class on Wednesday mornings with seven or eight attending. We use the Sunday afternoon service for evangelism updates and lessons geared toward evangelism. We are planning our annual clothing giveaway. We gathered last week to plant our garden. Both of these events should increase our contacts in the community so we can continue to reach out to the lost and share the gospel with as many as possible.”

York church of Christ, Pennsylvania: Mark Raschke (deacon) reports, “We send compassion cards, give gift bags to visitors, visit our prospects at their homes, and include evangelism in all of our classes and sermons. We are working to turn contacts into prospects, and we have some long-time attendees that we hope will soon transition to studies. We are mindful that vacation season is coming up, so we are trying to prepare ways for the work to continue while individuals are on the road. We set the date for a church picnic in September and created flyers to invite contacts among friends and family.”

Corinth church of Christ, Portland, Tennessee: James Parker (elder) reports, “We baptized Dan Pageuette Thursday! He is the husband of Laura and the son-in-law of Nick Pietro, one of our elders!”

McKenzie church of Christ, Tennessee: Chance Steen (preacher) reports, “Group C met after the morning service to receive card assignments for the week. We noticed changes that need to be made on our part to make the program more effective. We have set up one Bible study for the week thus far.”

Covington church of Christ, Tennessee: Jeff Phillips (associate preacher) reports, “We had VBS. We will follow up with several non-Christian visitors. We had several visitors to our Sunday services. We are prospecting these and hope to have Bible studies soon. Jeff and Jennifer will have a first Bible study with Zach Tuesday. Zach is the husband of one of our members, Claudia. We ask for prayers for a good study. Another family who has visited several times told us their young child has asked to be baptized. This is the opening we have been looking for with them. I will be contacting them to set up a study with the dad and grandmother. God is blessing us with many opportunities to reach the lost.”

New Hope church of Christ, Middleton, Tennessee: Cole Wade (preacher) reports, “We recently received the names of two families who are not attending church currently. We know that one family grew up in the church. They live fairly close to the other family, and we have delivered meals to them along with the new movers’ basket. My wife and I plan to visit them soon and talk about the church with them. We appreciate all prayers.”

New Union church of Christ, Manchester, Tennessee: Paul Fulks (elder) reports, “This week we had five contact cards submitted. Card Team 2 completed 65 compassion cards. Four members made six follow-up visits and contacts. We conducted Bible study Lesson 3 with a young man and his fiancé. We made progress, but they are struggling with many issues. We will continue to maintain contact and study with them. Presently, we have four other individuals in various stages of progress.”

Dellrose church of Christ, Tennessee: Mike Hovis (member) reports, “Last week was Vacation Bible School week. We had classes for all ages, including adults. Attendance was good. Group 2 prepared 87 cards. On Tuesday evening, Scott’s oldest daughter and my oldest granddaughter was baptized into Christ. We are so grateful for her decision to become a Christian.”

West End church of Christ, Knoxville, Tennessee: Adam Wilson (member) reports, “Mark Newby (elder) and Adam Wilson (member) spent Monday evening at the MacDonald church of Christ in Knoxville. They were able to present the six steps of the evangelism model, discuss best practices, and identify the areas that West End needs to work on with their preacher Eric Bonner and three of their members. Everyone left the meeting excited. The members of the MacDonald congregation are going to discuss the information and return with questions and plans for implementation. The revival is spreading!”

Karns church of Christ, Knoxville, Tennessee: Terry Clark (elder) reports “We are happy to report three baptisms this past week! Maddie, one of our teens, has been studying with her good friend Evelyn. Evelyn obeyed the gospel, and Maddie’s dad Walt and one of our deacons baptized Evelyn. Two of our youth were also baptized last week. Adalynn was baptized by her father, Dan, who is also one of our deacons. Colson was baptized by his father, Donovan. We are so happy for each of these young Christians for making this decision. Adalynn and Colson were busy this week learning and participating in the 20th Annual Southeast Leadership Camp, which is hosted each year at Karns.”

Rogersville church of Christ, Tennessee: Ethan Tate (preacher) reports, “Among hospital patients, visits, and caring for the sick, we spent time in prayer for the sick. Our Bible study was moved to Saturday due to health concerns last weekend. We are planning more summer events planned for evangelizing.”

Freewill church of Christ, Gainesboro, Tennessee (digital): Andrew Scott (preacher) reports, “Christy Breedlove, who is one of our new converts, had been talking with her daughter, Destiny Newport, about the gospel. After services, we took them out to lunch (always eat)! We went back to the church building and had the Bible study using Does it Matter? After the study, Destiny was baptized into Christ. We thank God for the increase and to Him be the glory.”

Bargerton church of Christ, Lexington, Tennessee (digital): Robert Pruett (member) reports, “We gave visitor bags to visitors, and we will send them cards this week. Several new mover bags were delivered, and we had two good responses. We prayed for our prospect list and started going through the Back to the Bible Lesson 1 at our evening service.”

Bridgewater church of Christ, Houston, Texas: John Seifert (elder) reports, “We continue to involve more people in evangelism efforts. We had another family place membership May 28. I believe we will have Doug Suggs as a new point of contact, and we will work closely with him.”

Southwest church of Christ, Austin, Texas: John Garza (regional instructor) reports, “We are having our summer camp, and this year, we decided to teach the kids using the Believe the Bible series. I am teaching the fifth-grade boys, and it has been rewarding to listen to them reason through the existence of God, and then, better affirm their faith in Him. I know that all the campers must be appreciating the lessons as their belief in Him is solidified.”

Northern Oaks church of Christ, San Antonio, Texas: Mel Hutzler (elder) reports, “We have a Book 3 Bible study tomorrow with one of my son’s friends. We request prayers that it goes well. There are a few other studies going. Our new converts class is starting soon, and our Summer Youth Nights program is underway. Evangelism training, card writing teams, and new movers’ program are going well. At the moment, many of our kids are at camp studying evangelism. It is great to see this being taught!”

Midtown church of Christ, Victoria, Texas: James Cammock (deacon) reports, “Our youth devotionals this year are centered on evangelism. Sunday, I taught on sharing the gospel with friends. Our Fundamentals of the Faith Bible class is focusing on teaching people how to conduct personal Bible studies. We continue to have many visitors each Sunday, and we are doing our best to fellowship with them and follow up with them.”

Graceton church of Christ, Diana, Texas: Johnny Willeford (elder) reports, “Seventeen members of Group B met to sign compassion cards for ten new contacts. We will mail 148 cards. Our mission Monday group has started home visitations for our first group of contacts. All contacts should be visited by this weekend. Two of the first contacts that received compassion cards last month have started attending regularly. One family that we visited last week said that they were grateful for the cards and stated that they are eager to learn more about the church. A new couple that is building a new home in our area visited both services Sunday. We gave them visitor’s bag, and they went to the home of one of our deacons for lunch. They are members of the church in Dallas and are now looking for a new church home in the Diana area. They told us that we made a very good first impression. We ask that you pray for the Yandel family. She is one of our teachers at Diana. She and her husband lost their unborn daughter Friday. She was 20 weeks along. She will be receiving compassion cards in the next few weeks. I have known this young lady since she was a small child. My heart is broken for her and her family.”

Timberville church of Christ, Virginia: Elliott Asbury (preacher) reports, “We had someone who obeyed the Gospel Thursday, June 8. His name is Josh; he studied all three BTTB lessons with Andy Viola.  At the completion of the studies, he was not ready yet. Andy was out of the country last week (and unreachable), so Josh (another brother) approached Andy’s dad Mark at work about his need to be baptized. Josh told Mark that he thought he needed to be baptized, but he wanted to wait until Sunday. I spoke with Josh later and expressed to him the urgency regarding his obedience to the gospel. I met with him after he got off work and baptized him. We then studied some more after his baptism, and he said his girlfriend wants to study as well. She is not yet convinced that baptism is essential to salvation. We are prayerful and hopeful that she will be obedient as well. They are both in their mid 20s.”

Central church of Christ, Martinsburg, West Virginia: Robert Veil (preacher) reports, “Our Vacation Bible School began last evening with a tremendous attendance of 205. Many of these are neighborhood children and their parents, who represent personal evangelism prospects. We have instituted an improved registration process to track all contact information so that we may follow up after VBS.”

NOTE: These reports are from Christians and congregations enrolled in the House to House/Heart to Heart School of Evangelism. These emails are sent to teach and provoke one another to remain focused on the mission of Christ. Each week, we share several reports and highlight one with more details. We hope you enjoy reading them.

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