Success Stories: October 22, 2025

Welcome, Silver Spring church of Christ, Maryland: We welcome the Silver Spring church of Christ to the House to House/Heart to Heart School of Evangelism. This past week, Marlon Retana, Eric Sykes, and I brought HTHSOE to the congregation. This is an integrated congregation with both Spanish and English speaking brethren united as one congregation under one eldership. The attendance was very good, and the training was received with joy. We are praying for them as they begin to develop an evangelistic culture.

Welcome, Oak Forest church of Christ, Goldsboro, North Carolina: We welcome the Oak Forest church of Christ to the House to House/Heart to Heart School of Evangelism. The attendance was outstanding, and the congregation is full of zeal for evangelism. We are praying as they begin developing the evangelism model.

Glencoe church of Christ, Alabama: Keith Ritchie (preacher) reports, “We had another Sunday filled with visitors, contacts, and prospects. We have four ongoing Bible studies and a new prospect. Our youth continues to grow, and so does our zeal. We are planning more door-knocking days before the year’s end. Part of growth is keeping the saved, saved by taking advantage of fellowship opportunities. Ted and Angela Brooks hosted a congressional devotion at their house this past Sunday evening. These moments help strengthen our relationship with brethren as well as increase our love for one another, and most importantly, our love for God. What a blessing it is to be a part of the family of God at Glencoe.”

Fayette church of Christ, Alabama: Josh Taylor (deacon) reports, “We are gearing up for our Trunk and Treat this Saturday. This has been well received and well attended in the past, and we are looking forward to making this a great evangelistic opportunity, as we expect many visitors from the community. We rejoice that Jason responded Sunday morning, seeking prayers and restoration.”

Central church of Christ, Saraland, Alabama: David Dixon (preacher) reports, “It is amazing to see God’s will come full circle in people’s lives. In evangelism, it is not just about instant results; it is the long haul with patient persistence that pays off. This past week, two prospects contacted me out of the blue, asking for prayers and providing promising opportunities. One is a recent convert who has not been as faithful as she knows she should be. The other is a prospect to whom I had not spoken to in six months. The first repented and was restored. The second should result in a Bible study soon. Also, some of our members conducted a Bible study with their neighbors, who then attended services Wednesday night. Pray for that couple! Another member provided a contact card with a promising lead; we will follow up soon. Opportunities abound! To God be the glory!”

Creekwood church of Christ, Mobile, Alabama: Tucker Presley (preacher) reports, “Trunk or Treat is coming up this Sunday! We are expecting a very big crowd. We hope to collect a lot of visitor information so we can follow up with them and bring them to Christ. We have one Bible study still going. There are two others that should close soon. We have had some good momentum on the prospect list lately, and we write cards every week.”

Cedar Grove church of Christ, Andalusia, Alabama: Josh Holloway (preacher) reports, “We had three great Bible studies this week with Nena, Terry, and Micheal. Nena continually thanks us for studying with her and showing her the truth. We had a meal and a study this week. I think she will obey the Gospel soon. Mrs. Terry has come to the knowledge of the truth. She realizes that her baptism may not be valid, so we have been studying Acts 19 and the many charts in the evangelism booklet. Our study with Micheal was great this week. He has gained so much knowledge that he wanted to take home more of the Bible studies to show his friends. This week we are focusing on our Fall Festival. We will have an evangelistic outlook. We will have a registration table to keep up with contacts. We will also have a ‘stump the preacher’ booth to ask questions and try to make contacts for studies. I will also be giving out packs of the AP Bible trading cards to the kids. Our Fall Festival is this Saturday.

Chase Park church of Christ, Huntsville, Alabama: Pat Cowden (evangelist) reports, “We concluded a Bible study with Barbara and Arnie Galvan; they have been visiting for more than two months. At the conclusion of this study, Barbara, who has been a lifelong Ukrainian Orthodox church member, made the decision to put on Christ in baptism on Wednesday morning. Her husband, Arnie, a lifelong Catholic, still needs a little time to decide, but he is very close to the Kingdom. Please pray for both of these folks. Also last week, Don Blackwell preached a two-day special emphasis meeting on the topic of ‘Life’s Darkest Hours.’ Lesson 1 was ‘Struggling as a Christian Through Life’s Darkest Hours,’ and Lesson 2 was ‘Confidence as a Christian Through Life’s Darkest Hours.’ I highly recommend that each congregation consider having Don present these lessons; they were simply outstanding. At the end of the second night, something amazing happened. The husband of one of our members, Jeff, decided he must obey the Gospel by being baptized. That is cool in and of itself, but, there is more to the story. Several years ago, Jeff developed esophageal cancer, and it destroyed his esophagus. Then he developed necrosis of the upper part of his chest. They had to do reconstructive surgery to be able to construct an airway so he could breathe through a tracheotomy tube. This was different; his esophageal sphincter muscle was destroyed, so there is a direct path from the trachea to his lungs. As a result, anything, including water, that went through this opening would go directly to his lungs and could cause him to aspirate and likely die. Our youth minister’s wife, Colleen Tucker, is an RN, and she spent about 45 minutes on the phone speaking to EMT’s, nurse practitioners, and anyone else she could find to figure out the safest way to proceed. In the end, Jeff was so adamant, he wanted to proceed no matter what it took. His wife Shelley stuffed the opening full and used duct tape to prevent water from going into his lungs; then he held a towel over it all so that no water would enter his lungs. All of this had to be done rapidly because he would not be able to breathe at all during the process. Then three people (Rusty, our pulpit minister, Jeff’s father-in-law Pat Vaughn, and Shelley) were in the baptistry with Jeff to help him obey the Gospel. It was amazing to witness someone who was so convicted that he had to proceed even though there was extreme risk in doing so. Please pray for Shelley and Jeff as they continue as brother and sister in Christ as well as husband and wife. Please pray  for our evangelistic efforts as well.”

Rison church of Christ, Arkansas: Keden Shrum (preacher) reports, “We set up a booth at our local Rison Fall Festival. We gave away some Bibles and a few others goodies. We made a few good contacts from this event. Care Team A and two visitors met on Sunday evening to work on compassion cards.”

Mountain Home church of Christ, Arkansas: Joshua Adams (preacher) reports, “We hosted our annual Fall Festival—a wonderful evening of community fun and connection! We welcomed families from across the area for trunk-or-treating, crafts, a hayride, bounce houses, and a free dinner. While we did not get an exact headcount, we served just under 500 hotdog dinners and gathered around 100 visitor contacts, which will soon be shared with our Compassion Card Team for follow-up. We had a steady stream of guests all evening, and overall attendance was even higher than last year! In years past, this event has served as a way to bless our neighbors, strengthen goodwill in the community, and invite families to join us for worship and Bible classes. However, it has often been challenging to translate that goodwill into meaningful evangelistic opportunities. This year, though, we are especially encouraged! By collecting visitor addresses, we now have the opportunity to connect our festival outreach directly to our HTHSOE model, allowing us to follow up personally and prayerfully with those who visited. Our goal is that the seeds planted through this event will lead to deeper spiritual conversations and new relationships centered on Christ. We are thankful for everyone who volunteered their time, energy, and creativity to make this event a success—and we look forward with optimism to the fruit God will bring from these efforts!”

Margaret Street church of Christ, Milton, Florida: Troy Spradlin (preacher) reports, “We had a good number of visitors this week, with a few return visitors. Recently, we incorporated ‘Visitor Tracking’ into our Lightpost app, which makes it easy for members to add updates for our visitors. We have included a ‘Prospect Visitors’ category in our tracking as well. This allows multiple people to keep up with and provide info for our prospects, which we then add to our Evangelism Ministry spreadsheet. Anything that can be done to improve following up and tracking our prospects will greatly improve our chances of setting up Bible studies! Our current 2025 Year-to-Date Accountability Board numbers include 307 Total Contacts received; 80 Total Visitors; 255 Neighbors (Prospects whom we have loved and/or studied with); 75 Bible studies (total completed); 2212 Compassion Cards sent; two Restorations, and 17 Baptisms.”

Niceville church of Christ, Florida: Joe Palmer (preacher) reports, “This week we mailed 35 cards and had three studies and one baptism. On Sunday, I was happy to meet Robert and his nineteen-year-old son Nicholas. I have a young adult Bible study at my home on Monday, so I invited Nicholas to attend. I was pleased that he came, and after the study, he told us he had questions about his salvation. I offered to meet him the next day to study with him. He was honestly very concerned, so I knew I needed to get right to the Gospel. We studied for a couple hours and at the conclusion we called his parents; they came to the building along with one of my elders, and we baptized him into Christ. I plan to continue studying with him to strengthen his understanding of God’s Word and his grace.”

LaFayette church of Christ, Georgia: Jesse Teague (deacon) reports, “Group 2 met to sign compassion cards after evening worship. We had 16 saints signing compassion cards for six souls from our new contact cards. We never know how to prepare the exact right combination to prepare someone’s heart to receive the Gospel. A faithful young man at Lafayette was dating a girl who had not yet obeyed the Gospel. He had studied with her, and over the past several months, she had visited with us during worship. She is a fantastic, kind person with a very good heart. The members at Lafayette met her with love and kindness, and she seemed to fit in. During our Gospel Meeting last week, she and her sister came on Wednesday night (turns out her sister had been involved in the Bible studies also). Our good brother Cliff Goodwin preached a fantastic lesson on the truth about the one church. The girls left shortly after services but were pricked in their hearts and came back to the building, asking to be baptized for the remission of their sins. They both said they could not think of sleeping without making things right. Bible study, compassion, patience, and a Gospel Meeting led to two new sisters in Christ! There are so many ways to reach the lost, so why not employ as many as you can, so you can by all means save some.”

Warner Robins church of Christ, Georgia: Damien Walker (evangelist) reports, “On Sunday evening, we used our normal speaking portion of the service to walk the members through an involvement survey. Every member was given a sheet and a pen, and I walked through each question, providing insight and clarifying importance as needed. This will give us a chance to understand where our members are willing to serve, which will help us get our coordinator list filled out, as well as populating the areas that need multiple volunteers (e.g., greeters, transition team, mentors, etc.). I also reintroduced the HTHSOE bookmark, explained how we would be using it (and why), and informed the congregation that we would begin referring to it weekly to pray for and add those names to our prospect/compassion card list. We will follow up with some prospects this week. We look forward to presenting more measurable metrics from this point forward!”

Cartersville church of Christ, Georgia (remote): Charles Harris (regional trainer) reports, “We had another restoration. We request prayers for Johnna. We have ongoing Bible studies this week. I am positive that we will have at least one baptism to report for next week. On Saturday, we will have our monthly door knocking. We are currently prospecting contacts from last month’s door knocking effort.”

Woodstock church of Christ, Georgia: Matt Amos (preacher) reports, “WCOC and the Sunabella Assistant Living Facility had approximately ten non-Christians at the devotional on Sunday. The Compassion Card Group created and sent nine cards. We had nine non-Christian visitors this past Sunday morning worship. We had two Bible studies last week.”

Edgewood church of Christ, Columbus, Georgia: Mitchell Deering (deacon) reports, “We mailed 33 additional compassion cards this week, bringing our October total to 102 cards. We welcomed two new visitors on Sunday, who were added to our follow-up list for visits and contact. We added three new Bible studies, bringing our total to 14 active studies, which is a strong indicator of continued growth and engagement. The team continues to work diligently on visitor follow-up and strengthening connections made through the compassion card ministry.”

Collinsville-Troy church of Christ, Illinois: Jason Wright (elder) reports, “We had a very busy week. We had several visitors to our Gospel Meeting with Westley Hazel. We had two baptisms this week. Two of our teenagers are now in Christ and we rejoice! We mailed out 60 compassion cards and conducted five Bible studies. We handed out a visitor bag on Sunday. We also delivered nine new mover’s baskets.”

Jerseyville church of Christ, Illinois (remote): Jake Medford (preacher) reports, “In the past month, we have had two Bible studies, and we continue to have a good number of returning visitors. We have changed our prospecting technique to make it more of a one-on-one approach, and that seems to be working here. We also had another long-time visitor who told me on his first visit here, ‘I never thought I would be at a church of Christ.’ He finished a Bible study and then decided to be baptized into Christ last night! Cards are still going strong, and we are looking forward to having a refresh early next year with Keno Shrum.”

Highland Village church of Christ, Bloomington, Indiana: Mark Stauffer (elder) reports, “We eagerly anticipating refresh training with Keno Shrum this weekend. At least two sister congregations will be joining us. Our metrics so far this month include sending 27 compassion cards and two visits made. We also had three prospects and three visitors at worship. Congregational training this month emphasized the importance and urgency of reaching the lost, along with coaching on what to write when signing compassion cards: Say something from your heart with love for one whose eternal soul is in danger.”

Beloit church of Christ, Kansas (remote): Dustin Dougherty (regional trainer) reports, “On Sunday morning, my wife and I made the long journey to Ransom, Kansas. I taught the adult class and presented the lesson. I enjoyed being with the Christians in western Kansas. We had 19 in attendance. Beloit had 15 in attendance Sunday morning. During the week, we had an inspector at my job, and I was able to visit with him during our inspections about religious matters. He had converted to Catholicism but was in the process of reading through his Bible and was open to conversation. He travels a lot for his work, so I gave him an Authentic Christian and WVBS ‘Why are there so many churches?’ cards so he could access the material and listen while driving. Coincidentally he lives only about 30 miles north of where I preached in Ransom, so I invited him. He could not come Sunday, but will he stay in contact the next time I am out that way. I have also been prospecting a coworker; he likes to read, so I gifted him a copy of Muscle and a Shovel to read.  He was very receptive and appreciative. We have begun the college and young adult class, praying that we will have many young people come and attend the weekly studies. To God be the glory.”

Flatwoods church of Christ, Kentucky: Nathan Adkins (elder) reports, “This past Saturday, we set up a booth at our local Fall Festival. We met lots of our neighbors and handed out over 350 goody bags with invites to our trunk-or-treat event next week. We are expecting a big crowd. On Sunday, we had four visitors from the community, and two erring members were also present. We sent out 35 cards and made six follow-up visits. Watching the videos in the curriculum is such a great help to us. They give us ideas we can incorporate into our game plan. Anytime I feel stumped or not sure what to do, I go to the curriculum.”

Central church of Christ, Paducah, Kentucky: Adam Faughn (preacher) reports, “Our Gospel Meeting with Kevin Hahn started Sunday and was very well-attended. Among our guests was a man, Robert, whom we baptized over two years ago. He had fallen away and gotten into all sorts of trouble. We are praying that we can help him get his life back in order. It was great to see him! We also announced Sunday that three men are being considered to join our current three elders in a couple of weeks as new elders. We are praying these men will help us remain laser-focused on evangelism. We have at least one study scheduled this week, and we are praying about two others that may begin very soon.”

Gonzales church of Christ, Louisiana: Patrick Adkins (deacon) reports, “At morning worship, we had Part 2 of the sermon about family:  ‘How Do We Get out of This Mess,’. The evening lesson was ‘Finding Jesus in Every Book: Leviticus.’ We have had ten visitors this month and have four ongoing studies. We have visited two neighbors and have five others to be visited. We wrote 39 cards this week, for a total of 145 for the month.”

La Plata church of Christ, Maryland (remote): Eric Sykes (regional trainer) reports, “We had an amazing time at the Evangelism Training Seminar at the Silver Spring church of Christ. In all, we had nearly 250 folks in attendance in the two sessions I conducted on Sunday morning. Members were highly engaged during our impromptu Q&A session. On a happy/sad note, our new convert Charlie Forame was a Christian for exactly one week. He was called home to be with the Lord on Friday. During that week, brother Russ and Carla (his neighbors) managed to complete Lesson 1 of Back to the Bible with Charlie’s sister Ruth Develbis. Brother Charlie’s homegoing service will be this Friday, October 24. This week, we wrote six compassion cards. We had two visitors, and we visited two prospects. We request prayers for the Develbis family and the saints here in La Plata as we strive to spread the Gospel in our community.”

Beltway church of Christ, Camp Springs, Maryland: LeAndre Johnson (preacher) reports, “I visited the HTHSOE training event at Silver Spring this past weekend. It was good to get a refresh. Currently, we are on Book 2 in a Bible study.”

Iuka church of Christ, Mississippi: Sam Glover (preacher) reports, “We had an evangelism meeting last night to check in on various fronts, and I was pleased with the results. In addition to five sets of cards being sent out last week, we have two new movers, both of whom already have volunteers prepping to greet them. We will also have volunteers to follow up with two visiting families, and two new contacts from door knocking. I will personally visit one while a volunteer will check on the other. We are also looking forward to an annual Fish Fry, as we expect a good crowd from the community. I am consistently encouraged because, even when it feels like I drop the ball, we have many faithful workers that jump at the opportunity to get involved.”

Aberdeen church of Christ, Mississippi: Jonathan Hagar (preacher) reports, “This past Sunday, we had some great responses from the New Movers program. The door-knocking team went out this past Saturday and knocked 11 doors. They found five people at home, and four of the five said they would be coming to church services this Sunday. Three of the four showed up. Two came back for the Sunday night service and the Fall Festival. One said she was ready to be a part of a ‘new church’ after moving to Aberdeen and needing a fresh start. She and I scheduled a Bible study for this week. The New Movers program works, in case anyone is wondering! The Fall Festival this past Sunday night went great; we had well over 200 in attendance from the community. We saw new faces from all over the county. Our community events coordinator made special cards to be handed out. First, they tried setting cards our or handing them out to people, asking them to fill out the cards and drop them in a box. This did not work; no one was filling out the cards. So our coordinator recruited a helper, and they asked people personally for their information. Ten cards were filled out. I also gave invitation cards to the members who decorated their trunks. They gave candy to the kids and invite cards to the adults. All and all, it was a busy and successful weekend!”

Concord church of Christ, New Hampshire (remote):  Shane Belinger (member) reports, “Justin is in the Back to the Bible lesson 3. Darrick and Crystal are also in Back to the Bible lesson 3 this week. We have several others in lessons 1 & 2. Last Sunday, we had five visitors and added one prospect (David). Training on compassion cards continue.”

East Flushing church of Christ, New York (remote): Clarence Jenkins (preacher) reports, “We had three visitors Sunday. After the worship service, we rebooted our compassion card ministry by looking at the video ‘Prospects: Compassion Cards.’ Later, we wrote 18 cards. Our metrics for October are seven baptisms, nine visitors, 27 prospects, 12 Bible studies (including one in a new convert study), and 18 compassion cards. We appreciate all prayers.”

Glendale Street church of Christ, Newton, North Carolina (remote): Dayle Taylor (minister) reports, “On October 16, the church made visits to the homes of five new movers to the area near the church building. Baskets of home good items were given as we welcomed them to the area. Each homeowner was pleasant and welcomed our presence with conversation, pledging to visit with us. Contact cards were secured from each of them to prepare compassion cards. On Friday, October 18, 2025, we had the sad duty of providing funeral services for a member’s husband. From those attending, several filled out contact cards. On Sunday, October 19, 2025, we had one first-time visitor who returned from the funeral service, one first-time visitor who was invited by a member, and three returning adult visitors. One of them returned with her three small children. The congregation provided a meal and fellowshipped onsite with all visitors. Sisters of the church continue with the compassion cards each Sunday and Wednesday. Congregation training will continue Wednesday night, October 22, and Terry Hale will visit us on October 26. Though we had no new scheduled Bible studies, three people have expressed interest without identifying a start date. Prayers persist.”

Linville Forest church of Christ, Kernersville, North Carolina: Kelly Brown (preacher) reports, “An evangelistic Bible study was a great way to end Wednesday’s evening Bible study. After Christopher and Mary Jackson made contact about a month ago, Sherman Transou finished the study. Will and Rachel Boyles were baptized into Christ. They will be meeting with Kelly and Judy Brown for continuing Bible studies.”

Sanford church of Christ, North Carolina: Brian Hall (minister) reports, “God continues to bless our congregation with wonderful opportunities to share the Gospel. At present, we have six or seven personal Bible studies underway. Just this evening, another member and I began studying with a young couple, while another member of our congregation was meeting with a second couple. This second couple recently moved to the United States from the Congo and primarily speak French. They are currently enrolled in an English course at our local college. This language barrier has made communication and study a bit challenging, but with patience and effort, we are gradually overcoming these obstacles. We were able to translate the first book of the Back to the Bible series into French, and are using it in our study with them. We ask for prayers for our congregation as we continue striving to spread God’s Word throughout our community.”

East Sparta church of Christ, Magnolia, Ohio: Andrew Masterson (preacher) reports, “We hosted a Friends and Family day yesterday and had 49 visitors—40 percent of our total attendance. We have two prospect follow-ups this week. We hope to take advantage of the opportunities from all our visitors from Sunday and use the momentum towards prospects and studying.”

Alkire Road church of Christ, Grove City, Ohio: Tony Dunnagan (deacon) reports, “We had 14 visitors this past week. We had two additional contacts submitted. We currently have two Bible studies. One of our studies resulted in baptism this past week. We continue to send compassion cards.  We plan to begin an evangelism training class in a couple weeks.”

New Concord church of Christ, Ohio: Terry Townsend (preacher) reports, “We had one ‘first-time visitor’ in our assembly on Sunday. Follow-up visits were made for our visitors from last week, and we also sent them compassion cards. We are gearing up for our annual Community Thanksgiving Meal next month. Invitations to all our visitors from the last two years, as well as all compassion card recipients and new mover basket recipients. Flyers advertising the event will also be hung up in various locations throughout our town. We are praying for many new contacts! I was encouraged to hear from one of our families that they have begun a series of Bible studies (Back to the Bible) with one of their family members (denominational) who has been attending our services the last few months.”

Coweta church of Christ, Oklahoma: Houston Shrum (associate minister) reports, “We had several visitors Sunday morning and evening. We gathered their contact information and started writing compassion cards. One of the visitors came last week as well. We took her out to lunch and went through the introduction questions as taught in HTHSOE curriculum. Next week we plan to move into the transition questions. I feel like she is very close to being ready for a Bible study. On Saturday evening, Keno and Jamie had a study scheduled with one of the visitors to our community meal; however, she canceled at the last minute. They are working to reschedule.”

Union church of Christ, South Carolina (remote): Kent Thompson (member) reports, “We have three prospects. We had two in the New Convert class.  We are following up on those who have received our compassion cards. We are making slow progress, but we are determined. We appreciate all prayers.”

Stewarts Creek church of Christ, Smyrna, Tennessee: Caleb Wisterman (member) reports, “We are continuing to prepare for our Fall Festival on November 1. The congregation has really been engaged with preparations and invitations for friends/family who are not church members to come visit us that day. Participation around the different activities and planning has been great, and we pray that we will reach several local families with this event. We are still diligent about sending out compassion cards, and we are close to over 500 cards sent out. We have four or five visits planned for compassion card prospects and recent visitors; our coordinator is planning for this week and next. We have had three different families visit recently, and two of them expressed interest in finding a church home. We still have one on-going Bible study that is progressing. We appreciate prayers for our visits to these families; pray we can build on those connections!”

Sycamore Chapel church of Christ, Ashland City, Tennessee: Erwin Jackson (preacher) reports, “We have a lot of prospects right now. The members have turned in 55 names! We have sent about 800 cards, and we are now beginning our transition visits. Things have been going great so far!”

White Bluff church of Christ, Tennessee: Shamron Jackson (elder) reports, “We had a booth at our Fall Festival; a person requested a Bible study from a QR code. Lord willing, we will have three Bible studies this week. The second lesson was taught Sunday morning. We are getting into the habit of praying for the names of the lost on our bookmarks. Seems weird to say that, since we should have never gotten out of the habit.”

Blackman church of Christ, Murfreesboro, Tennessee (remote): Brian McCord reports, “We have sent 76 cards this month so far. Two transition visits have been made. Four transition visits are scheduled for this week.”

Freewill church of Christ, Gainesboro, Tennessee (remote): Andrew Scott (preacher) reports, “Our four visitors were back at services tonight. We have been flooding them with cards over the past few weeks. Two desire to know more about what the Bible teaches about baptism! We have lunch and the Bible study planned for this coming Thursday. I will be using Does it Matter because they are so eager to learn. We request prayers for the study with the couple, Borck and Savannah McQuiston.”

Philadelphia church of Christ, Lebanon, Tennessee (remote): Alex DeGraves (associate minister) reports, “We received three more cards yesterday with contacts for compassion cards! We appreciate prayers for the opportunity to do good work. Also, we have recently finished sending out some compassion cards, and we pray we can turn them into fruitful visits.”

Cookeville church of Christ, Tennessee: Joshua Kennedy (preacher) reports, “We are working hard. We have three new contacts as well as seven new compassion card recipients. We have lost some studies due to the message of the Gospel, but we are still pushing ahead. We are going to do a training class next month for door knocking; we hope to have members who are interested in participating.”

Ocoee Street church of Christ, Copperhill, Tennessee: R.E. Vann (elder) reports, “Our two Bible studies are going well. We were blessed again with 24 visitors Sunday morning. About half of these were local repeat visitors who had received compassion cards during the past several months. We constantly hear comments from our visitors about how friendly we are. Five transition visits were made although no Bible studies were set up. ‘For many are called but few are chosen’ (Matthew 22:14).”

West Sparta church of Christ, Tennessee: Justin Turney (deacon) reports, “We had our second baptism since starting this program! I believe and am hopeful that we have two more in a Bible study right now who seem to be very close to making that decision as well! We have our study team ready to go and will begin teaching the congregation Back to the Bible.”

Rome church of Christ, Lebanon, Tennessee (remote): David Oxley (elder) reports, “We met this week for our advanced class. We are sending cards this week; we have two prospects, and we are planning two visits. We will also meet for our New Converts’ class on Monday.”

West Fayetteville church of Christ, Tennessee: Steve Jefferson (elder) reports, “We have several events scheduled for the next few weeks to reach out to our community. One of our families is hosting a ‘Fall Family Fun’ at their home. We are inviting our friends and family to come and enjoy the activities and food.”

Grundy Street church of Christ, Tullahoma, Tennessee: John Summers (preacher) reports, “We continue this month to send cards to those who are wayward Christians. As noted previously, we are sending these at a lower rate than previously. We received feedback that our previous numbers were appreciated but the volume was simply overwhelming. So we are now sending each person two or three cards each day as recommended, compared to the four or five previously. We already have begun planning for the next round of active outreach recipients—we will be sending cards to folks who are dealing with cancer. Additionally, we have received the invitation cards that we ordered through HTH and will begin to distribute those in the coming days.”

Arlington church of Christ, Tennessee: Brandon Tibbits (preacher) reports, “We are currently working on six prospects ahead of our campaign with MSOP next week. We have sent around 675 cards since we started and have made 20 or so visits. We are working hard to evangelize, and we know God will soon give the increase. We are having many more visitors since beginning the program, and we expect even more going forward!”

Chapel Hill church of Christ, Tennessee: Matt Jones (deacon) reports, “We recently had two baptisms from members of our youth group! We continue to have several ongoing Bible studies that are going well. We are prayerful that those in the studies will come to the truth and obey the Gospel soon.”

Mountain Creek church of Christ, Chattanooga, Tennessee: Michael Tomshack (elder) reports, “We rejoice to announce the restoration of a former member of our congregation. Restoration is part of the Evangelism Process. This individual, who had strayed from the path to God, has returned to a right relationship with God. Upon her arrival two weeks ago, our greeters warmly welcomed her and embraced her. She asked for a conversation with one of our elders. This past Sunday, she openly confessed her sins, expressed her desire for a genuine relationship with God, acknowledged the absence of our family, and conveyed her longing to reconnect with us. Praise God.”

McEwen church of Christ, Tennessee: John Jones (preacher) reports, “Our linemen study continues tonight. We had two new men join us last week, so we started them at the beginning and kept the regulars going through the studies. We are also writing cards to some in the community who lost loved ones in the recent disaster in our town.”

Collierville church of Christ, Tennessee: Justin Evergarden (evangelist) reports, “We have sent out a total of 63 cards this week. We sent the cards to seven different individuals, plus one three-year-old who has been sick and could use a little extra cheer. We appreciate all who support our work.”

Soddy church of Christ, Tennessee: Joe Mallory (preacher) reports, “We have been blessed by many of our prospects who continue to visit us on Sundays. It is really exciting to continue to get to know them and to hear their appreciation for the cards they are receiving in the mail. We will begin studying with one of them this week, using Back to the Bible. We also hope to continue our study with two other prospects. It is a joy to open God’s Word with those we meet and begin to connect with them through Christ’s teachings. There are many transitions to pray about this week as we consider those whom we have been contacting. We are thankful for the training tools given to us through the School of Evangelism. Praise God for His infinite power and mercy!”

Hillcrest church of Christ, Springfield, Tennessee: Tim Taylor (evangelist) reports, “We are gearing up for our Trunk and Treat. This has been well-received and well-attended in the past, and we are looking forward to making this a great evangelistic opportunity. We expect many visitors from the community. We rejoice that Jason responded Sunday morning, seeking prayers and restoration.”

Birdwell Chapel church of Christ, Cottontown, Tennessee: Kerry England (elder) reports, “We continue to be blessed with new visitors each week. Team 2 mailed compassion cards this week before services. After services, we had two more contact cards turned in and will begin sending them cards next week. We have three Bible studies ongoing. Plans are being made to begin a New Convert’s class in November. We are praying our Trunk or Treat will be a success as we reach out to the community.”

Rivergate church of Christ, Madison, Tennessee: Doug Tooley (preacher) reports, “Two visits were made last week. We had one visitor on Wednesday night, five on Sunday morning, and two on Sunday night. Three from Sunday morning went to lunch. We had a youth event on Sunday between services; the youth had lunch and then visited shut-ins. We had three youth visitors for this event.”

Crosby church of Christ, Houston, Texas (remote): Jon Wheeler (elder) reports, “We are happy to report that one of the ladies who has worshipped with us for years was baptized after she realized that her denominational baptism was not scriptural. We continue to study with Dylan, and it is going well. Five to seven new mover gifts are delivered each week. A young man visited on Sunday; he indicated that he is looking for a church. He stayed for lunch and had a lot of questions about the church of Christ. We pray he will accept the offer for a personal Bible study.”

Colleyville church of Christ, Texas: John Garza (regional trainer) reports, “We have five studies ongoing. We hope and pray that two of them will be baptized in the next couple of weeks. Additionally, we have a few other people that are hot prospects. It will take some planning on the approach, as we are training more people to transition into Bible studies.”

Eisenhower church of Christ, Odessa, Texas: Allen Weakland (elder) reports, “We are in full swing as we prepare for our Fall Festival. This is one of our major outreach efforts; it has seen wonderful results and has provided a number of Bible studies. We also want to update information about a young lady who started attending our services. America was attending here but then moved to Sequin, Texas. I put her in contact with the elders at the University congregation in San Marcos, Texas. She visited them that next Wednesday evening for Bible class. We are asking for prayers that her heart continues to be soft, and she will feed upon God’s Word and respond to the Gospel call. On another note, brother Dex Dennard has started a Bible study with a young man, Cesar (whose wife attends Eisenhower). Please pray for the study. Dex has been talking to his brother and sister-in-law, and they are interested in beginning a Bible study. We are super proud of our young families who are deeply engaged in our evangelistic efforts in our community. May God bless these efforts and bring forth the increase. Lastly, this past Sunday night Crystal Mendoza responded to our Lord’s invitation. One of our elders, Don Easlon baptized her into the Lord. She has been studying with Don and Nancy for some time now, and we are super excited to report about our new sister in Christ. May God be praised.”

Granbury Street church of Christ, Cleburne, Texas: Ryan Cowan (deacon) reports, “Our ‘Mini AMC’ was a resounding success! As of now, seven Bible studies are either in the planning stages or taking place. This past Thursday night, Kerista and I used the strategy of attempting to visit contacts on a Thursday night. Once again, we picked up a chocolate pie from HEB (with lots of whip cream!), and we left the house committed to give the pie away. We had three potential contacts, one of whom had expressed interest in a study the weekend of our Mini AMC. As Mabel answered the door, she was hesitant at first. She looked at us through her glass door. I reminded her of who we were and the fact that she had met one of our members a few weeks ago. She finally opened the door, and we all engaged in a pleasant conversation, talking about her beautiful plants and decorations for Fall. As we passed her the pie, she could not believe what we were giving her! Kerista then went through our ‘three questions.’ Mabel expressed interest in a study, and plans have been tentatively made for next week. The training of Rob and John Garza have been excellent for this transition to a study!”

Roanoke church of Christ, Texas: Caleb Rutherford (preacher) reports, “Group 4 wrote to eight prospects on Sunday night. Compassion card writing continues to be a central focus of our evangelistic efforts. We have now sent well over 3,000 cards since the beginning of January. This coming Sunday, we plan to have our first Sunday where we focus on evangelism efforts. We will have an afternoon service, and then after that, we will have our normal compassion card writing, but we will also do some door knocking, delivering of new movers baskets, and making transition visits. We plan to do this every last Sunday of each month. Sharon and Phyllis continue to study with Veronica. Kaylon and I continue to study with Mya. We finished Book 1 of BTTB on Sunday afternoon, and will start with Book 2 this coming Sunday. Sharon is also continuing to study with Rachel. Mike and Cheri are continuing their study with Brianna (I wrote about this study last week). Lots of great things are happening here because of the blessings of God. To Him be the glory!”

Bridge Avenue church of Christ, Weslaco, Texas: Braulio Carvajal III (preacher) reports, “We had four visitors on Sunday and had eight prospects in attendance. We have two ongoing Bible studies and had two visits in the community. We wrote 110 compassion cards on Sunday evening and will be sending them out over the next two weeks or so.  All has been going well.”

Seagoville church of Christ, Texas: Kodie Martin (evangelist) reports, “This past Wednesday night, we were blessed to witness the Lord add two to His Kingdom. Jason and Charles put Christ on in baptism. These two men were invited to church services by one of our deacons, Hezikiah, who is constantly soul- minded. He takes invitation cards with him to his workplace, and that has been fruitful. We have been blessed, and it goes to show the power in simple invitations and caring for the souls of others. Apart from that, we have set up our card-writing ministry, and I taught the members about the process, our coordinators, and the prospect list and how we will use those. The brethren are excited to get things started just as much as I am! Lastly, next Sunday night is our annual Trunk-or-Treat. Marco preached a lesson coinciding with special events and taught members about contact cards and how to get visitors to fill-out the information and to build a small relationship during their time. We hope this will bless us with more contacts going forward. We also had another five contact cards turned in, bringing our total to 20. The Lord definitely blesses His people who are willing to work and put souls first!”

North Jefferson church of Christ, Mt. Pleasant, Texas: Davin Whatley (evangelist) reports, “Reach Team 1 met Sunday and wrote compassion cards. A transition visit last week has turned into having a prospect, Lisa, over for dinner. We are prayerful that the dinner will open the door to a Bible study. It is now time to make another transition visit. We hand-deliver the cards to this prospect (her name is Barbara) since she is one of our hired cleaning ladies who comes to the building. She will receive a dinner invitation in hopes of getting a Bible study. At our congregational fall cookout, we had one visiting family (parents and two boys). They seemed to enjoy the conversation and activities with members, and their sons had a blast with the axe-throwing and the trampoline. We look forward to following up with them.”

Southwest church of Christ, Austin, Texas: Bryce Mayfield (evangelist) reports, “This past Friday, we had a congregational canvassing that was comprised mostly of our students at Southwest along with a few of our college age members. We knocked roughly 100 doors and made 15 contacts. One of the people we met said (unprompted) that she wanted to study the Bible, so I am working to set up that study for this week! I also just finished preaching through the evangelism program here at Southwest. Unfortunately, our one ongoing Bible study has ended for the time being. However, we are optimistic about other evangelistic opportunities we have. May God be glorified in all these efforts.”

Northern Oaks church of Christ, San Antonio, Texas: Mel Hutzler (elder) reports, “We had a few people who placed membership recently, and we had a baptism. We are currently in the middle of our Gospel Meeting with Ronnie Scherffius preaching on ‘The Home Where God Lives.’ Recently, we had our door- knocking and had nine contacts; we wrote them all cards as well. We have a few in Bible studies and others whom we are prospecting. There are a lot more cards going out and more follow-up being done. We regularly take contact information from visitors; rarely has anyone been overlooked. We hope we will be at 100 percent in the future. Our New Movers Program continues to do well. Josh, Kaden, and Raoul were all out preaching this past Sunday.”

Bridgewater church of Christ, Texas: Doug Suggs (deacon) reports, “We had a young man place membership with us last Sunday. We also had a young woman place membership. They are dating, and she is a new Christian. They are both excited about evangelism. They brought another young couple who are not Christians, and Jim and I had a Bible study with three of them last Thursday with another one scheduled for Tuesday evening. We, and they, are excited about these prospects. We also had another sister place membership with us Sunday evening. She came from Oklahoma. Her daughter and son-in-law live in Katy, and they are not Christians. She is giving us their information to contact them. One of our card teams met Sunday evening, and we are sending about 50 cards. Also, our new movers team met and prepared information for 66 in our area. We are thankful for all prayers.”

Howe church of Christ, Texas: Aaron Alsbrook (preacher) reports, “We are continuing to make contacts, write cards, and move into Bible studies. Currently there are two or three studies conducted by brethren. We have a few more events in the fall and several events coming for the winter to continue to evangelize our community and individual contacts.”

Abingdon church of Christ, Virginia: Freddie Klein (evangelist) reports, “On Sunday, we were blessed to have a visitor from our recent transition visit. Planning continues for our upcoming fall outreach activity. Card Group 3 met this week and wrote compassion cards to encourage those in need. In addition, our weekly New Converts Bible study has grown, as one of the participants invited a non-Christian friend to join in the study.”

Williamsburg church of Christ, Virginia: Jim Bishop (elder) reports, “We had a successful day of door knocking on Saturday. God blesses us when we pray for opportunities and obey His command to ‘go.’ Many of the ladies were away at a Ladies’ retreat. Four of us knocked on 27 doors at a new location, giving away ten food bags, saying two doorstep prayers, and making eight contacts. You never know how God has directed you or those you meet. At one of the first doors we knocked, a young man came to the door and exclaimed, ‘I have not seen outreach done like this before.’ He had a great enthusiasm for the Lord. This week we had one first-time visitor. We were also contacted by a young man in Houston, Texas, with a contact in the Richmond area. We are following up on this contact. We are preparing compassion cards for our new movers. We pray for all those who a working to spread the Gospel.”

West Side church of Christ, Salem, Virginia: Jeff Durham (elder) reports, “Our adult Bible class studied Jesus’ parables about the Lost Sheep and Lost Coin from Luke 15. We looked at His response to the Jewish leaders’ criticism of His eating and associating with those considered to be the least desirable in their society. He called them out for their hypocrisy of claiming to care for people yet purposely avoiding those with the highest spiritual needs. While we are expected not to act like those in the world (2 Corinthians 6:14-18), we still must be in contact with those in the world so we might be the salt and light Jesus expects us to be (Matthew 5:13-14). Our members used our monthly ‘Family Day’ to invite friends and neighbors to join us for our services and potluck meal. We continue our prayers for the studies we are having with those in our community.”

Marlon Retana (regional trainer) reports, “My wife and I were blessed to visit Maryland and train the Spanish-speaking group at the Silver Spring church of Christ on how to reach the lost, while Rob trained the English-speaking group. One of the key thoughts we shared with both groups is that—regardless of language or skin color—the Bible clearly teaches there is one body, and we are blessed to be part of it. It is our privilege to help others become part of that same body by opening our homes and congregations and showing them Christ through our words and actions. This has been the largest Spanish-speaking congregation I have ever visited, with more than 170 in attendance for worship. Several brethren approached us afterward—not only with words of encouragement but also with gratitude for the clarity brought to various doctrinal questions and for the practical guidance on how to reach those around them with opportunities to study the Bible. As we leave this place, we look forward to future opportunities to serve, while praying and hoping that they will continue the good work so that many more souls may come to the Lord.”