Success Stories: March 13, 2024

Glencoe church of Christ, Alabama: David Marker (elder) reports, “As I have mentioned before, several folks have placed memberships in the last several weeks. We were blessed to add two more to that number this past Sunday. As a result of the additional members, we added another group to help with the work, and especially with the compassion cards. This will allow us to rotate the groups every month. We have three ongoing Bible studies, and our newer members are discussing additional contacts they can submit. We still have numerous visitors, and more members are getting involved with visits and sending cards. The progress board is an excellent tool for keeping everyone informed and updated on the work.”

Hatton church of Christ, Alabama: Chris Miller (preacher) reports, “I am extremely excited for the many who are beginning this process of evangelism; it unifies the congregation, refocuses priorities, and brings the joy that comes with soul winning.  I met with a fellow worker from another congregation who went through the school last week, and we had a long meeting today about the whole process and the excitement of it. We continue to work toward our goal to win souls.  During our elders/ministers meeting last night, we found ways to adjust our efforts to make them better. It is a joy to find others working in this same effort and linking up to encourage one another. I would encourage everyone to do this when possible. The work continues.  We will focus on the transition and try to do a better job asking the three questions.”

Rison church of Christ, Arkansas: Keden Shrum (preacher) reports, “Sunday evening, we watched the video on compassion cards. Afterward, Team A wrote cards for five contacts. Each contact will receive 15 cards from Team A, and Team B will begin next Sunday evening, Lord willing. The ladies of the congregation have been taking meals to one of the contacts who is battling health issues. It is a blessing to see the efforts being put forth by the congregation to make this work successful. To God be the glory! In the first picture, the brother in the lower left corner is Art Leeper. He was baptized on January 9, and he is already helping the work by sending cards and doing all he can.”

West Huntsville church of Christ, Alabama: Paul Owen (associate preacher) reports, “On Sunday morning, Glenn Colley preached on John 4 as we began our first step of finding contacts.   I presented the Contact Lists (bookmarks). On Sunday evening, we watched a training video by Rob Whitacre, and Mark Bailey presented the Evangelism Model. Glenn Colley preached from Acts 10-11, noting that “Some of our contacts will be close to the kingdom.” Glenn Colley studied with Dylan Herndon’s girlfriend Sunday after services, and she was very receptive.  I believe she will become a Christian!”

Lake City church of Christ, Florida: Jim Flegert (elder) reports, “Our mover team was excited today to have the opportunity to deliver nine mover baskets. One of the pairs reported that they spent 15 minutes conversing with their new mover tonight. This retired couple lives less than a mile from our building, and their names were turned in on a contact card, so they will receive compassion cards in the weeks ahead. Another one of our members is conducting a Bible study with several of the members at his community center. Several of these participants have received compassion cards recently.”

Niceville church of Christ, Florida: Joe Palmer (preacher) reports, “This week, we mailed 33 cards and had three Bible studies.  We had two local visitors on Sunday and gave out five welcome bags. We had one returning visitor, Pete, with whom I have a potential Bible study set up. Pete visited because his teenage son had visited, and he came to Bible class on Wednesday and returned on Sunday night. When I talked to Pete, he said he wants to learn more, and his wife is interested in coming with him.”

Kissimmee church of Christ, Florida: Marc Aristide (member) reports, “I came to the proper understanding and meaning of baptism after studying Back to the Bible from a brother in Christ years ago. Through this study, I realized there is only one VALID baptism into Christ. For the baptism to be valid, I had to understand the purpose of baptism, and my heart and intent must be in the right place, knowing the truth.

“I have now used this study to bring one to Christ. My good friend, to whom I posed the question and a brief study about “Why are there so many churches?” months ago, reached out to me. She had many questions, having been confused by the nondenominational congregation she was attending and friends who are Jehovah’s Witness members. I told her that it can be confusing to understand the Bible without a foundational context. She agreed to a Bible study, and we used BTTB, which, through the Word, dispelled many of her questions and confusions. After completing almost all three lessons, she responded to the gospel. She realized what she needed to do and why before we finished Lesson 3. She was baptized this past Monday.

“I am currently studying with four others, and I can tell that they are eager to learn. We use BTTB to establish Authority in God’s Word, the Church, and Salvation. With this tool, I can more easily plant the seed by using God’s word. After they receive the right teaching, it is up to them to make a choice. However, I am confident that BTTB clearly presents the truth from the Bible, which helps us bring more people to Christ.”

Carrollton church of Christ, Georgia: Danny Spain (member) reports, “Dennis, our coordinator, helped us subscribe to HTH; we will receive our first issue in May. Also, we will receive 1000 copies of the Coming Home issue.
“We had one visitor on Sunday and signed cards. We should receive our tract order for the evangelism table this week. We have three or four prospects and have sent 50-60 cards.  Two Bible studies are active. We had one baptism (Ruth Yim). Brother Joe encouraged us to begin scheduling visits to those on our prospect list; we hope to transition to Bible studies.
“On Saturday, we knocked on doors (about 144) and passed out invitations to our gospel meeting that begins Sunday. We gave HTH to the individuals who interacted with us. We met several who were friendly and may come. We appreciate prayers for the seeds planted in our community. There will be another door-knocking effort this Saturday.”

Fayetteville church of Christ, Georgia: David Gulledge (associate preacher) reports, “Compassion card group #2 wrote cards to one prospect. We will send those cards this week.”

Lafayette church of Christ, Georgia: Jesse Teague (deacon) reports, “This week the church received a request from a community member asking for help. A tree had fallen on his house, and he did not have the money or ability to remove it. Two of our elders visited with the man, and, with the help of the sons of one of them, they were able to remove the tree. It was not a small tree; these men made a tremendous effort. The man’s sons will be able to help with the repairs. We sent cards to this man, hoping to impact his soul by helping with his needs. It is evident that the community knows the Lord’s church in Lafayette cares about people’s needs.”

Woodstock church of Christ, Georgia: Greg Garner (deacon) reports, “During our ACTS (Actively Caring Teaching & Serving) Evangelism Program, we reported 16 in our New Convert class. The Greeter Group reported that we had four visitors on Sunday.  We are also engaged in two personal Bible studies. We appreciate all prayers for our work.”

Honolulu church of Christ, Hawaii: Lima Esene (preacher) reports, “Aloha from the Honolulu congregation! We continue to study the Bible with a total of seven souls. We have had many local visitors through personal invitations from our church members. We are still prospecting for these visitors. We are going through a series of lessons on church discipline, hoping to establish a way to ensure accountability in our congregation. The highlight for us last week was our second group of new converts graduating from the new convert’s class. All of them are actively participating in the work of the church. To God be the glory!”

Beloit church of Christ, Kansas (remote): Dustin Dougherty (regional trainer) reports, “We had another great service Sunday morning; three visitors attended class and worship. Visitors included a father and his young daughter, who had attended last year’s VBS. We had recently been prospecting the dad with compassion cards after he had a car accident. It was the first time someone who had received our cards came to church. It was a great feeling.

“Last Wednesday, I dedicated the entire study class period to the pre-Bible study survey. We had a very good discussion regarding the surveys and the variety of answers we may have. This Wednesday, we will revisit the surveys for a recap and then begin working through the Back to the Bible booklets as a congregation.

“This Sunday, I will be with the congregation in Scott City, Kansas. I am looking forward to worshiping with them, teaching class, and presenting a lesson. We appreciate prayers for safe travels. To God all honor, glory, and praise.”

Central church of Christ, Paducah, Kentucky: Adam Faughn (preacher) reports, “We rejoice with Larry Maddon. Two of our men have been studying with Larry, who is in a long-term care facility, for a few weeks. He had been immersed as a young man but had fallen away from the Lord for many years. After studying a bit of an “altered” Book 3, Larry wished to be restored. They prayed with him, and we had a special prayer on his behalf on Wednesday night. Larry hopes to join us via livestream and is praying he can occasionally attend worship in person. He also tells everyone who comes to his room about “that church” that sent him all those cards and has shown him such interest.

“A good number of visits are currently being made. One person has agreed to come to services after she returns from an out-of-state family funeral. She is a prospect due to our new mover baskets and cards. We also have at least two Bible studies ongoing and pray for honest and good hearts.

“At our PM services, we spent a few minutes training the congregation by reminding them of some of the “non-Back-to-the-Bible” materials we have available for them to utilize from our Evangelism Center.  These items include our DVDs, business cards, and copies of Does it Matter? among others. After services, we set aside about ten minutes to give an update on our congregational evangelistic work over the previous month, and we plan to do this about once each month to help inform and motivate the congregation. The work is slow but rewarding because we all work together on the most critical work. To God be the glory!”

Grissom church of Christ, Kentucky (remote): Rick Webb (HTHSOE graduate), “Using the Nextdoor app, I posted an offer for a one-on-one Bible studies with Back to the Bible. Before my post was taken down for supposedly violating their rules, I secured two studies. In the past few weeks, I have baptized two people. I am ready to move to Huntsville and have much more work to do in the Kingdom.”

La Plata church of Christ, Maryland (remote): Eric Sykes (regional trainer) reports, “We had another good week at the La Plata church of Christ. While training the congregation on the use of an ‘Organized Bible Study’ and the conversion process, one of our members became concerned and questioned the validity of his baptism. After reviewing the details of his baptism, we discovered that his baptism was indeed unscriptural, and we baptized him Thursday night.

“We sent out 38 compassion cards and visited four prospects. The ‘Back Door Bible Study’ homework assignment results are in: we have ten people in Bible studies. Five have completed Lesson 1 of BTTB, and those five have been scheduled for Lesson 2. Of the remaining five, we have started Lesson 1 of BTTB with four, and the other study is scheduled to start tomorrow. We also have a couple who completed Lessons 1-3 of Back to the Bible, but they still had questions. We moved to Does It Matter? That Bible study stalled, but they called on Friday and said that they want to resume the Bible study this Thursday. We request prayers for completing this study.

“We installed the accountability boards in the auditorium today. The brothers are meeting tomorrow afternoon to start assigning coordinators. We granted access to the HTHSOE website portal to ten new brothers whom we will assist with the various coordinator positions.

“This Saturday, we will have a men’s meeting to go over coordinator assignments and training. Six people are attending the new converts training classes. We appreciate all prayers as we strive to do the Lord’s will.”

Southside church of Christ, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Freddie Klein (preacher) reports, “Southside took steps toward reaching our community in several ways this week. We wrote cards to visitors and new movers. We encouraged members to be active taking prepared bags for the new mover’s program, and we promoted the HTH newsletter as a way to make contacts.”

Iuka church of Christ, Mississippi: Robert Wimbish (elder) reports, “We are still working here at Iuka to expand the borders of the Kingdom. Our fifth baptism, resulting from our SOE training, occurred last Wednesday. This blessing was a product of our last door-knocking campaign conducted in November. We have two Bible studies ongoing and hope to have at least one more soon. Our ladies’ class has been meeting every Tuesday at lunch for several years; now the class is dedicated to evangelism. The effort they are putting forth is inspiring the entire congregation. This beautiful group of ladies is showing Iuka the love of God.”

Foristell church of Christ, Missouri: Rod Jackson (elder) reports, “We recently had a Friends and Family Day and are following up with our visitors with compassion cards and visits. We currently have two Bible studies underway. The first is with a young couple who visited recently. We have just completed Book 1 of Back to the Bible. They love the little books and the simplicity of the Scriptures. Two of our ladies are studying with a lady who is a coworker of theirs. Both studies are going well. We appreciate prayers as we continue our studies with them.

“We are encouraged by members at Foristell who continue to jump in and help with anything needed, like sending compassion cards and making food to help shut-ins, but there are also areas that need to grow. We appreciate all prayers for the Lord’s church who meets at Foristell, including her elders, preachers, deacons, and members as we try to let our lights shine in our area.”

Fordland church of Christ, Missouri:  Josh Romo (preacher) reports, “We continue to see success and response from the compassion cards. We had our first baptism of the year this past Friday. Fred Zimmerman, brother of Rita Graven (one of our members at Fordland), obeyed the gospel after receiving cards and studying with Rita and Dwight Kibby. Fred has been fighting cancer and was unresponsive yesterday morning. We are so thankful that we were able to baptize Fred, and we appreciate the efforts of all involved. Fred was/is in the hospital, and we needed the help of several folks and approval from doctors, nurses, and administrators to make it happen! We could see the providence of the Lord in making sure this baptism was able to happen!”

West 160 church of Christ, West Plains, Missouri (remote): Marvin Hatley (elder) reports, “Three personal Bible studies are scheduled for this week. A prospect who progressed to using Does It Matter? still maintains belief in Holy Spirit baptism. He is willing to continue the study, but he is reluctant to follow the Bible teaching of one baptism. “Another study finished BTTB with the prospects stating that their previous baptisms were not according to Scripture. One recognized that she was baptized at a young age and did not understand the true purpose of baptism. The other prospect was baptized in a denomination after believing he was saved by prayer. The prospects requested an additional study relating to their current life situation before being baptized, as the Bible instructs. “We have been blessed to have prospects who honestly desire to study God’s word, and we pray that His word convicts them to obedience. Compassion Card Group 1 completed twenty-two cards to be mailed this week.” We appreciate everyone at the HTHSOE!”

East Flushing church of Christ, New York (remote): Clarence Jenkins (preacher) reports, “For March thus far, we have had six visitors, including one first-time visitor this week. To the glory of God, we made five visits last week. We are prospecting ten people. We have filled out 40 compassion cards to be sent out incrementally this week, bringing the total number of cards to 80 thus far for this month. By faith, we are looking toward adding more precious souls to the Lord! We appreciate all prayers.”

Cary church of Christ, North Carolina: Larry Fife (preacher) reports, “What an incredible week of blessings we have received from the Lord! Our Gospel revival commenced on Sunday with Hiram Kemp at the helm, and it was heartening to see one of our young members respond to the invitation. The Friends and Family Day brought numerous guests, to whom we distributed several visitor bags—so many that we need to prepare more! This event allowed us to make countless new connections with those who visited, and many stayed to enjoy the fellowship meal with us, filling our fellowship room to the brim. It was a heartwarming sight.

“Due to the focus on Friends and Family Day, we did not send out compassion cards this week. This Wednesday, one of our members will continue her Bible study with a young lady visiting with us. Her eagerness to learn is inspiring, and witnessing her enthusiasm is a joy. We eagerly anticipate another fantastic week in the service of the Lord’s Kingdom!”

Streetsboro church of Christ, Ohio: Ralph Price (preacher) reports, “We are working with five good contacts in the compassion card program. This past Sunday, our sermon focused on maintaining a sense of urgency as we realize that we have a limited amount of time to work. We want to make the most of that time. Our members remain focused and determined in their work. Two weeks ago, we started the new convert’s class. There is only one member in it right now, but we trust we will add more soon.”

Greenville church of Christ, Ohio: John McGiffin (preacher) reports, “We continue to prospect. We have taken some time this week to make sure coordinators have the tools to be successful. We have asked what they need to take our efforts to the next level. Some are going the extra mile, and some need prompting and coaching. The focus this past week was on training, as there will be a change in leadership soon. We want to ensure the program continues with the enthusiasm and success to which we have grown accustomed.

“This week, groups are focused on providing rides to anyone in the community to attend the gospel meeting at Tipp City, where Don Blackwell will talk about ‘Where will we go when we die?’ and ‘The Day of Judgment.’ So far, one non-member and nine members have been scheduled to attend.”

New Concord church of Christ, Ohio: Terry Townsend (preacher) reports, “We continue to be encouraged by the uptick in visitors. Twenty-three residents have visited our services since January, and 11 of those individuals continue to come. We have begun the transition phase with most of them.

“We have added seven new contacts to our compassion card ministry; we will send 73 cards this week. Since January 1, we have mailed 683 cards. We are beginning to get some positive feedback from some of those who have received cards.

“We have added one new Bible study this week. Our Mission Monday team met again last evening and were assigned names of prospects we pray will lead to Bible studies. A follow-up report of how these visits go has been scheduled for the end of this month.”

Sullivan Village church of Christ, Lawton, Oklahoma: Steven Hill (preacher) reports, “We are continuing our efforts to create new contacts so we can move them to actual Bible studies. A lady who has been coming to Sullivan Village for months came forward yesterday to place membership. We continue to work on the new movers list and let our visitors know they are our special guests. We have been seeing new visitors almost every week and are grateful to have these opportunities. We give God the praise for all He is doing, and all He allows us to do through Him.”

Coweta church of Christ, Oklahoma: Keno Shrum (regional trainer) reports, “This Saturday, several of us will be hitting the streets with our New Movers information from House to House/Heart to Heart. We will offer $10 gift cards from Sonic and Quiktrip to those who are busy getting settled and might enjoy a quick lunch or drink. We will then follow up in about three or four weeks and make sure they are receiving the House House/Heart to Heart issue.

“Our study with Charlie has been postponed several times, but we are hoping we can complete the study. His heart is in the right place, but the pull of this world is strong. I am still optimistic about the study, though. We are continuing to see growth in our new converts. Especially those who have been going through the Growing in Christ book by Bobby Bates. Mentoring is such an important step of the process and will certainly influence retention rates. We will review our bookmarks on Sunday and identify more people to send compassion cards.”

Carthage church of Christ, South Carolina (remote): Randy Chambers (preacher) reports, “This past week, we had three Bible classes rescheduled for this week. We were encouraged by two visitors during our Sunday worship services, and we took out them for lunch after the services. The visitors stated they enjoyed the services and plan to return after they return from a planned visit with her mother. We also wrote cards expressing our gratitude for their visit. We pray that our relationship will develop and lead to a Bible study.
“We are preparing New Movers baskets to deliver this week. We had a productive meeting as we discussed our program and planned ways to encourage all the members to become involved. We emphasized the fact that all members are essential, and everyone can do something. We continue to pray and encourage all members to follow the plan, trust the process, and glorify God in the work!”

Union church of Christ, South Carolina (remote): Terry Hale (preacher) reports, “We followed up with the prospect who reached us through House to House/Heart to Heart. We started Back to the Bible and look forward to next week. Two other Bible studies used Back to the Bible last week, and three of the ones with whom we studied attended services. The training continues two days a week, with members gaining confidence and unity. To God be the glory.”

East Ridge church of Christ, Chattanooga, Tennessee: Austin Fowler (regional trainer) reports, “Charlie and I continue to go visiting on Thursday. We had a good visit a few weeks ago, and we plan to go back soon to transition that contact to a Bible study. Last week, I started teaching the Wednesday night auditorium class. I am taking this opportunity to train the church in evangelism. In the first class, I reviewed the five W’s of evangelism. This week, I will review the seven principles of the HTHSOE. I am excited to get others involved in evangelism.”

Charles Cochran reports, “We had a recent Back to the Bible study. His name is Tack, and he is from Cambodia. He and his wife recently visited East Ridge with us. We look forward to continuing our study. We had a great ladies’ day recently. One of our ladies invited a friend who is not a member, and she came!  I hope all is well with you and your family.”

Hillsboro church of Christ, Tennessee: Chris Sliger (member) reports, “We had two new visitors this week (neighbors of John/Cathy Welch). We have added them to the card list, along with two other contacts generated from new movers/referrals. We sent compassion cards to a total of six contacts this week. We continue to discuss the evangelism program in our Sunday morning class, and we also plan to meet with the congregation before the March 13 Wednesday service for additional RTL training.”

North Bradley church of Christ, Cleveland, Tennessee: Keith Wilson (preacher) reports, “This week, we will continue three studies using Back to the Bible. We have a few hot contacts that have been coming to services regularly, and we hope to have more Bible studies soon.”

East Main church of Christ, Murfreesboro, Tennessee: Brad Rowley (elder) reports, “This past week, I placed the following article in our bulletin:

Are you involved in the mission of the church? If not, why not? Below are some reasons people do not evangelize. 1) Some cannot overcome fear itself. 2) Some confuse defending against false doctrine as evangelism. 3) Some had internalized America’s idea that “everyone is okay.” 4) Some do not believe in the power of God’s word. 5) Some feel that Americans are too resistant to the Gospel. 6) Some have lost the fear of the Lord. 7) Some feel it is the elders’ and preachers’ responsibility. 8) Some feel they do not have the talent or the time to contribute. All of these reasons can be overcome with the help of your church family and God! ‘Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; yes, I will help you’ (Isaiah 41:10). We have a place and job for everyone. If you have any questions, please ask one of the elders.

“We rejoice in the baptism of Luke Mayberry (picture attached) by his grandfather Dan Mayberry. Proud parents are Eric and Megan. When Luke was asked what impacted his decision most, he commented that Bible camp had a significant influence. East Main attends Short Mountain Bible Camp and Indian Creek. Bible camps have such an impact on our youth.

“Last week, we had two contact cards, 33 cards written, two follow-up visits, and 25 new mover baskets delivered. Last week was our best week since we started the baskets for new movers. “We had four ongoing Bible studies last week. We had 63 people present for Mission Day. We shared the results of the HTH and East Main evangelism effort. Gerry Whitacre shared the Spanish ministry activity with HTHSOE. Mike Weeks explained the new method of distributing the new mover baskets. We had open discussions regarding the invitation cards. To God give the glory!”

Madison County church of Christ, Jackson, Tennessee: Steven Sprouse (preacher) reports, “We now have four visitors who continue to come. Members are earning the right to study with them. We are delivering baskets. We are continuing to train and practice evangelism. On Saturday, we studied planting and watering, sowing and reaping, and what each soil lacked in the parable of the sower.”

McKenzie church of Christ, Tennessee: Randy McAdams (elder) reports, “On Sunday, March 10, we sent out our fourth week’s cards for February and March to nine of our contacts, which included a few of our elderly and shut-ins. One exciting event occurred after Sunday evening service when one of our eleven-year-old girls put on Christ in baptism. Lola has wanted to do this for some time, and with careful discussion and study with her parents and youth minister, she made a beautiful commitment to Christ. We are making a few adjustments and will restart our compassion cards on April 1^st with full steam ahead.”

Brushy church of Christ, Centerville, Tennessee: Kevin Johnston (preacher) reports, “Progress continues as we are reaching out to new movers. We have set a goal to contact everyone who moves into our area and greet each one with a new movers basket and an invitation to worship with us. We have placed a couple in charge of the latest movers list to ensure we achieve our goal. Compassion Team 2 met this morning, and we sent out 73 cards to nine previous souls. Tonight, we revisited John 4 to remind ourselves of how Jesus approached people. We are so proud of all the work happening thus far!”

Mountain Creek church of Christ, Chattanooga, Tennessee: Michael Tomshack (elder) reports, “On Sunday, our Compassion Card Team 4 (Cathy Scarbrough), completed their writing for distribution this week. All teams have completed their first round, and we have learned a lot. Next week, our Visitation Team, led by Kenneth Chambers, will begin direct contact with those who have received four weeks of cards. Danny and Jennifer Ellis, the New Christians and Mentoring team leaders, have planned our first joint lunch meeting with our new Christians and those who will serve as mentors.”

New Union church of Christ, Manchester, Tennessee: Paul Fulks (elder) reports, “We had five visitors from the community last week. We made six visits and delivered three new mover baskets. Our members submitted six contact cards this week and wrote 58 compassion cards. We have one personal Bible study that is ongoing.”

Chapel Hill church of Christ, Tennessee: Matt Jones (deacon) reports, “Recently, we made some minor adjustments to our compassion card writing, and the adjustments have been well received the first week back. The changes have allowed us to focus on the quality of our cards; also, members can select who will receive the cards they write so they can add personal touches based on interaction with prospects they know.  We are beginning another round of visits to those recently received their last round of cards.

“This past Sunday, we recognized several new converts with a Bible and a certificate. Also, we had many visitors, which is always encouraging. We have a few last-minute items for our new movers’ baskets, which will go out soon. Many arms and legs are working for a common goal! All praise be to God!”

Covington church of Christ, Tennessee: Wayne Dalrymple (elder) reports, “Last week we had our gospel meeting with Mark Posey. We had several visitors from the community in almost every service. We are continuing our prospecting efforts with several. We wrote several cards to our prospects. We will be making visits this week to several of them, hoping we can transition to Bible studies. We still have about four Bible studies ongoing. We also had two couples place memberships with us this week. We will get them involved in the work as soon as possible. We are encouraging many who have not been as involved to become involved. We are continuing to work on the plan.”

New Hope church of Christ, Middleton, Tennessee: Cole Wade (preacher) reports, “We just ordered new cards to be sent since we have been utilizing them frequently! We have also prepared new baskets for new movers and are looking forward to delivering them. Next week, we will deliver over 100 meals to families in the area, and we plan to take some of the new mover’s baskets that same day. We appreciate all prayers for our work and growth!”

Southwest church of Christ, Austin, Texas: John Garza (regional trainer) reports, “We have four studies in progress. Additionally, we have two others that are scheduled to begin soon. This week, the students and I will deliver new mover’s baskets. Finally, I will continue teaching a Personal Evangelism class this Thursday. To God be glory in all of His good works.”

Northern Oaks church of Christ, San Antonio, Texas: Mel Hutzler (elder) reports, “We have wonderful news; Crystal Villa was baptized Sunday afternoon after studying with our intern Michael and his wife. Her dad, Ivan, baptized her into Christ.

“On Sunday, we also had two come forward requesting prayers. We also welcomed Brandi, who placed membership recently. Several Bible studies are in progress. Some of them are moving slowly and taking longer to complete. We hope to schedule more soon. Our card teams seem to be running better, and the new mover’s program is going well, although I need to make my own visits. We hope to have more baptisms and more great news to report in the near future.”

Shenandoah church of Christ, San Antonio, Texas (remote): Tim Ayers (preacher) reports, “We have studied two lessons from John 4, with the third one set for this Sunday morning. So far, we have studied ten of the seventeen points from John 4. We are going to survey the whole program this Sunday evening so everyone knows what we are trying to do and where they all fit into it. I believe this will help encourage the congregation to see the big picture.

“One of the elders and I visited with his neighbor last week and had a very good conversation. She is recovering from surgery and has not been able to clean up the outside of her house. We sent compassion cards to her, and she said she appreciated getting them. I offered to come back and clean her porch, and she agreed. An elder and I worked for about an hour and cleaned up some of it. We will return soon to continue the work, and we hope to have another conversation as we get to know her better. We appreciate prayers for our efforts to bring a harvest of souls! May God be glorified in all that we do!”

Crosby church of Christ, Houston, Texas (remote): Jon Wheeler (elder) reports, “This week, a new couple joined our new converts’ class. The lady appreciated the small class setting where she could ask questions. “One of our members is using the BTTB series with three people he met in a coffee shop while studying his Bible. He reports the studies are going very well. One of our ladies told my wife and me that she is concerned about her husband, who is having health problems and is not yet a Christian. I told her to tell him we wanted to meet them for lunch. She was grateful we would work with her on his salvation. We are praying for his heart to be open to meet us.”

9^th and Main church of Christ, San Angelo, Texas: Bryan Braswell (elder) reports, “We have had our fourth baptism in four weeks. We are aggressively teaching the evangelism material in our Bible classes. We are engaged in present Bible studies. Our groups are almost established with leadership in place to help coordinate the contact list we are building. Our welcome bags and new movers’ bags are assembled and being utilized. The congregation is greatly enthused.”

Buda-Kyle church of Christ, Texas: Ronnie Scherffius (preacher) reports, “The work at Buda-Kyle is rapidly moving forward. Nearly 90 compassion cards will be mailed this week. Additionally, four new contacts will be placed on the Prospects List for next week. We reviewed our past classes last night during our Congregational Evangelism class. This review provided an opportunity to reinforce the works and principles that have been recently introduced and clarify any uncertainties.

“We also noted the next two critical components of the work to be introduced to the church: Back to the Bible studies and New Converts. Rudy Cain will begin an eight-to-ten week training class for our Back to the Bible studies next week. This is in addition to a class he is already teaching that will train members to begin conversations that will direct others to Bible studies. Also, Deric Merz is organizing pew greeters and door greeters. We are reaching the point of having key components fully in place, and the activity among the brethren is incredibly encouraging.”

Graceton church of Christ, Diana, Texas: Johnny Williford (elder) reports, “We continue to reach out into the Diana community with our compassion cards, new movers contacts, and personal evangelism work. Our Group B met Sunday afternoon before evening services to write 30 compassion cards to three new contacts.

“The new movers’ group will be delivering welcome baskets this week. We had one family visit with us on Sunday morning services. Last week, a family visited, saying they had been receiving the House to House Heart to Heart mailouts. They are receiving compassion cards this week. “We are in the process of choosing an additional elder for our congregation. Please pray for Keith regarding his wish to become an overseer for the family at Graceton.”

Canyon Lake church of Christ, Texas (remote): Jesse Stuart and Raoul Ferris (evangelists) reports, “We continue to offer our class on the topic, “Coping.”  This class has blessed those in attendance and enabled us to make contacts and establish relationships. On Tuesday, we went to the nursing home and gave out bibs that our ladies made for those in the home. We went from room to room, talking with people and letting them know who we were. We left our information with each of them. We hung banners for our upcoming Mental Health Seminar and started mailing flyers for our meeting. In addition, we made follow-up visits to some of our contacts.”

Wheeler church of Christ, Texas: Garrett English (preacher) reports, “My study on Book 2 of BTTB was moved from last week to this Wednesday. We had one visitor to our “End Times” class last week and hope for more this week that we can prospect. Our New Converts class has intrigued many within our church and is growing in number. We have sent many cards to a man who recently told us, “I am coming to your church.” We await his arrival here and hope to turn it into a Bible study.”

Granbury Street church of Christ, Cleburne, Texas: Ryan Cowan (deacon) reports, “We rejoice to announce the baptism of Paula Diane and Rolando in their decision to be baptized last week. Louis Howard helped Paula Diane connect with Kerista for a Bible study. Rolando is a cousin of Cynthia Ramirez who herself was recently baptized. Rolando was baptized after studying with John Haffner.”

Itasca church of Christ, Texas (remote): Justin Hopkins (preacher) reports, “We sent out 152 compassion cards and made six visits. We have three Bible studies that we need to schedule. We have delivered one new mover basket, but we had trouble locating a couple of our new movers and not been able to catch the rest at home yet.

“We received an excellent thank you card with a contribution from one of our contacts. This week, he is getting a follow-up visit from a family that knows him. We also received a thank you phone call from another contact. He had requested prayers for his niece with cancer. He said our prayers have been answered, and she is now well. The cards were much appreciated, and he welcomed a visit. My wife and I visited him this weekend and took him a jar of our fresh honey. We are scheduled to study with him tomorrow morning.”

Bridgeport church of Christ, Katy, Texas:  Doug Suggs (deacon) reports, “At Bridgewater, one of our members, Andre, is studying with a prospect, and he is praying that he becomes a Christian soon. We had a good number of the congregation who filled out forms indicating areas of involvement they can join in our work program. We will have a group meeting Sunday evening to send compassion cards.”

Charles Harris (regional trainer): “We have lots of excitement with the New Hope Road church of Christ. We are counting down the days until our HTHSOE training. Several members from nearby congregations will be in attendance as well. My family and I have worked with this church for a few months. We can hardly wait until we are able to go all in on the Evangelism Model.”