Featured Work- Great Basin Church of Christ, Delta, Utah
Written by Brandon Glover
I am Brandon Glover. I am a member at Blackwater Macedonia Church of Christ. I recently had a job opportunity in Delta, Utah. I prayed that God would use me in some way while I was away from home, so my family and I set out for our month-long journey on February 26. We took several copies of the Back to the Bible, and Does it Matter books with hopes to study with some prospects while we were away from home. We found a small congregation in Delta, Utah, the Great Basin Church of Christ.
They had only a handful of members present on the first Sunday morning we attended. I thought this was the opportunity for open doors that I was hoping for. I met with Jeff Hostetler, the man who led the worship service, the following week. We discussed the needs of the church and how my family and I could help. I also asked of him if they knew of anyone we could teach or study with. He said he would give it some thought and get back with me. That Saturday night, he called and asked if I could preach Sunday morning. I had never preached before, but I nervously and prayerfully got a lesson together and preached on Sunday. I preached for the next four Sundays.
The third time I spoke, a young mother visited the congregation. She seemed very emotional during the lesson. After worship, I made a beeline to her to find out more about her story, and I asked her to have a Bible study. She told me she had never been to a church of Christ before, and she really did not know why she was there that day. She was only hoping that the music would not distract her from worshiping God. I knew I had to get her to commit to a Bible study, so we nailed down a time that week. I called Jeff and asked him about it, and he in turn invited the whole congregation. We used the Does it Matter book since I thought I only had a couple of nights to study before I returned home.
We studied four nights in a row, and we covered a lot of ground. We started our study two hours earlier on Friday night because these people were so thirsty for the truth. It was so encouraging and faith building to see two baptisms Friday night, and one more on Saturday. I plan on going back to Utah on May 25, and the members there are lining up friends and family for studies while we are there.
This experience has strengthened my faith so much and has been so encouraging to me and my family. Thanks for letting me share my story with you and thank you all for helping with the work in Delta. Congregational Records
Aberdeen church of Christ, Maryland: “The Aberdeen church of Christ in Maryland is in the training process phase of the School of Evangelism. Yesterday morning I preached on (John 4:1-8) and will preach on the next John 4 section this upcoming Sunday. We passed out the bookmarks with instructions to write down ten names of people who are lost, and we prayed for the effort.
“The Sunday focus is about putting the contact list together pulled from the bookmarks. Finally, our evangelism table has been set up. In efforts to keep the momentum going, I am sending an email to the elders to remind them to meet this week to begin setting up the evangelism support teams.
“Attached is a picture of our completed evangelism table. The table was designed by my wife Carrie Brown and Sabrina Weldon. Thanks for all that you do.”
Linville Forrest church of Christ, Kernersville, North Carolina: Kelly Brown (preacher) reports, “Right now we have eight contacts receiving cards from us. Of those, I believe we will have four strong prospects with Bible studies following.”
Steve Hare (elder) reports, “Two baptisms today! My son Matt did not feel like he was baptized for the right reason. We corrected that today! His wife, my daughter-in-law, was baptized after Matt was practicing Back to the Bible with her! We have a couple of other studies pending.”
Corinth church of Christ, Portland, Tennessee: James Parker (elder) reports, “I will continue my study Tuesday night! I believe Steve and Cody will have their study with the couple that Cody knows. We have a contact of a young man that lives here. His parents visited today from Georgia and gave us his name so that we might visit him sometime this week. We continue having some of our folks that are inviting others to come to services at Corinth!”
Canal Heights church of Christ, Demopolis, Alabama: Bryan Cook (preacher) reports, “Saturday we continued our door knocking efforts that we have been doing prior to the evangelism seminar. The training from the seminar concerning door knocking was a game changer. We knocked on 80 doors and made 42 contacts. I have never prayed for so many people in my life. We only had one ugly look out of the whole experience, and we had three possible Bible studies! After this wonderful day of evangelism, we even had a sweet sister bring her list of people from her door-knocking effort. We had no clue she was knocking doors, so our numbers are actually higher. We finished book 1 of Back to the Bible as a sermon series and switched to the Cycle of Evangelism Sermon for next Sunday since we jumped the gun on the series. For the first time, we have cards to send out to those that are sick and needing our prayers. I am exhausted, but I have never felt this excited about evangelism. Pray for our efforts as we pray for all of you all.”
Forestview church of Christ, Memphis, Tennessee: Tim Roland (preacher) reports, “We are continuing to promote the use of the HTHSOE Bookmarks at our service Sunday. Also, I preached the third installment of the sermon, ‘The Politically Incorrect Evangelist!’ from John 4. After services, we had a meeting with about 20 attending as we discussed our compassion/encouragement card ministry. We discussed setting up an evangelism room and a place to display cards for members’ usage! Two of our newest members, who placed membership with us on April 3, were present and eager to be a part of the work. One of our visitors who has attended the last six Sundays in a row was interested in being involved with the card ministry. We are excited about the possibilities and opportunities that God will bring our way as we do His will in leading the lost to Jesus!”
Natalia church of Christ, Texas: Jim Word (elder/preacher) reports, “We have people sending out cards of encouragement to those on our prayer list as well as some people who are prospects. We have had a few setbacks as our attendance is fluctuating with illness and people travelling. We had one major disappointment as one of our members was studying with a terminally ill patient. The patient understood the importance of obeying the gospel but just was not ready to commit, and then she passed away. Our member not only lost an opportunity but also a dear friend. Lori and Chris Robinson are starting a study with their eleven-year-old son CJ this week.”
Woodstock church of Christ, Georgia: Greg Garner (deacon) reports, “We finished the third lesson in the red Back to the Bible booklet. Our Service Project Team met and worked on Vacation Bible School. We hope to use VBS as an outreach in the community. We made ten New Mover Baskets. We signed 34 Compassion Cards. Our Bible Study Application class talked about how to set up a Bible study, how to act in a study, and how to be a silent partner in a study. Next week, we will begin role playing. We have 14 contacts right now. Our Visitation Team will be making six visits this week. We have two ongoing Bible studies.”
Cowetta church of Christ, Oklahoma: Keno Shrum (preacher) reports, “We wrapped up a great gospel meeting with Aaron Gallagher today. His message was informative and very encouraging and has resulted in a Bible study with a visitor who is not a Christian. She spent the day with Aaron, my wife (Jamie), and I at our house after services, and Jamie was able to schedule a Bible study. The Bible study went well with another lady who came to the gospel meeting. They only got about halfway through lesson one due to Sarah’s schedule, but Jamie is going to meet with her again in the morning at 9:00 to finish up lesson one.”
Towne Acres church of Christ, Muncie, Indiana: Mark Reynolds (preacher) reports, “Our compassion card groups continue writing cards each week. We have 20 prospects we are working on and 10 contacts from those prospects with three active Bible studies. Two other potential studies are delayed because the couple has Covid. Two of our contacts have been attending regularly. We also have our evangelism table set up thanks to one of our wonderful couples here at Towne Acres. Enthusiasm and involvement continue to be strong!”
Highway church of Christ, Benton, Arkansas: Steven Ford (preacher) reports, “We are still getting names for compassion cards. We started making visits last week. While the cards were well received, the reception and visits did not have the initial results we had hoped for. However, we are remembering the phrase, ‘Many are called, and few are chosen.’ Training is continuing as we are working through the second (blue) pamphlet now. Our young people are eager to participate in sending compassion cards each week as well.”
Oak Hill church of Christ, Covington, Georgia: Tate Sutton (preacher) reports, “We took a new couple out to eat today and got to know them. They are looking for a church home and a study is in the near future. Our card groups are doing great! People are grateful when they receive them. To end the day, we had a baptism. We have a new sister in Christ, Bethany McRae.”
Shiloh church of Christ, Florence, Alabama: McKinley Pate (preacher) reports, “Lord willing, we will be going to the homes of four families who have received our cards this week. We had two more contact cards turned in yesterday and have already distributed that information to our groups. Also, this coming week we are taking our first new mover basket to a family of one of our members who recently moved into the area. This past Sunday morning, we looked at the first part of Lesson 3. Lord willing, we will look at the last part this coming Sunday. We are standing firm, but we are not standing still!”
Paintsville church of Christ, Kentucky: This past week, we had our three-month virtual meeting with the preacher and elders. This congregation is doing an incredible work. They are following the evangelism model, and it is paying off. Zach Collins (preacher) reports, “We had our first baptism this week through our School of Evangelism! Josh Dawson was brought to the Christ by one of our elder’s wives. He was invited to worship, which led to a successful Bible study, and he was baptized for the remission of his sins. He will become the newest member of our new convert class, which is comprised of THREE new Christians. Everyone, please pray for Josh as he endeavors to live a life of godliness!”
Peninsula church of Christ, Hampton Virginia: Ben Phillips (preacher) reports, “Since we began reemphasizing the contact cards each Sunday, we have seen an increase in the number of contacts being given by the congregation. This is a small but important change that is positively impacting our evangelism work here. We also got our first batch of new movers for follow-up. This is an important next step for us that we are excited to be pursuing.
“We also had an exciting development from our card ministry this past week. One of the contacts we started sending cards to left us a review on Google Maps to thank us for all of the cards. I have attached a screenshot of her review. Her daughter also reached out to my wife to thank her for the cards. The cards have provided us a window of opportunity to speak to these contacts about Christ.”
Riverbend church of Christ, Georgia: Austin Fowler (member) reports, “It was a very encouraging week at Riverbend. On Sunday, we received a lot of good feedback from the compassion cards that we have sent out. One of my friends who visited a few weeks ago said, ‘Austin, your church is awesome! Tell those people I appreciate their kindness, and I will come back no matter what because of their kindness.’ One of our elders, Ernie Sanders, has been bringing his cousin the last two weeks. This Sunday, the cousin was bragging about how he has received 15 cards from the church. Ernie hopes to start a Bible study next week. One of our other elders, Jason Duggin, had study number two with Dakota. He said that it went well. Dakota was very receptive to everything that was taught. Study number three is scheduled for Monday. Please be prayerful for this study as he is near the Cross!”
Coldwater church of Christ, Murray, Kentucky: Luke Puckett (preacher) reports, “This past week we had a fellowship at the building. We invited a family who are prospects that we have helped with tornado relief. They came with their two sons and had a great time. We felt this helped us build a better relationship with them, plus it got them in our building. We will follow up with cards and in-person visits. We continue to turn contacts into prospects and send them cards, visit them, and build relationships. Our prayer is that this will earn us a study with them soon.”
University church of Christ, Montgomery, Alabama: Faires Austin reports,
- Brittany and Kevin Long have compiled some 35 names of individuals/families that we have sent cards to in the last several months. The names go back to our Trunk or Treat event. Brittany has designed, printed, and mailed these cards to these families, all in our 36109-zip code, inviting these contacts/prospects to our congregational picnic next Sunday afternoon. Brother and Sister Clifton have secured a large picnic area at a local park for the event. Along with food, games, and fellowship, we will also have an evening devotional service. We also plan to invite these 35 plus individuals/ families to our Vacation Bible School next month. We will have classes for all ages. We are praying for both of these efforts.
- Our 18 Study Groups continue to be active, meeting several times during a month’s period. Inviting friends and neighbors to attend and study the Bible.
- Visits are being made through the New Movers Ministry.
- The Longs will be visiting an individual this week who mailed in the Quiz to the University Church of Christ. This is the first quiz that has been received from the House-to-House, Heart-to-Heart newsletter. The Longs will deliver a bookmark to the prospect. Since we live in the same community, Margie and I will also visit this person after we hear from the Longs.
- My study online and through the mail with the Catholic Priest in Texas has hit a stalemate. I will figure out how to restart our study.
Liberty church of Christ, Cookeville, Tennessee: Andrew Scott reports, “I wanted to give you an update on our efforts at Liberty. Since I began preaching last fall, we had numbers around 30-35, but for the past few weeks, we have had between 45-53, and some have responded for re-dedication. I passed out the bookmarks and contact cards last week.
“A few weeks ago, on Sunday nights before the sermon, I started providing the congregation with a ‘tip for the week’ taken from your videos each Friday, and we have a prayer for all of our contacts and prospects. We have had a total of 33 new contacts added to our list. We are still sending out compassion cards each week and have sent out approximately 780 cards since we started. The cards are doing their job! We have a family that has been visiting for the past few weeks. We also have two pending Bible studies for BTTB #2, and a couple that was on our card list at the start of our card ministry will be coming to our home for a meal in the next few weeks. We hope to have a smooth transition into the study.
“We are having a fifth Sunday fellowship meal at the end of the month, and we are using that for an evangelistic opportunity. Some individuals who have received cards are undergoing cancer treatments. That is making it a little hard for us to make visits and to set up studies. However, I immediately put them on our House-to-House target list, along with about 35 more names that are either lost or have fallen away. I am making it a priority that ALL of our contacts will never go empty-handed and will have something in their mailbox each month. We have also put up a new tract rack above the evangelism table to make our tracts available to all of our members, in hopes they can use these to get a foot in the door for a Bible study. We have so many, I am going to have to order a second rack.
“All in all, we are doing everything we can to bring in contacts and develop ‘favor’ (Acts 2:47), and prospect them for Bible studies. I pray that many souls will be saved. May God be with all of us as we fulfill His mission. God bless.”
Berea church of Christ, Ohio: James McGuire (preacher) reports, “As I mentioned in the last email, we had a baptism (Debbie Suttles) from an online study using Does It Matter via Facebook Video. She and her husband Jim live in Ohio and we are in Kentucky. This is my father-in-law’s sister and husband. After she obeyed the gospel, we set up the Back to the Bible study for him. After completing the third booklet, he was ready to be baptized! Last week he was baptized at Weirton Heights church of Christ in Weirton, West Virginia, about 30 minutes from their home. Their grandson Jay is 14 and now interested in studying the booklets as well. We will be working to study with him next. Please continue to pray for the new members and the continued work of our evangelism class!”
New Hope church of Christ, Middleton, Tennessee: Cole Wade (preacher) reports, “Our contacts are continuing to grow, and we are prospecting those contacts also. We are at a time when the opportunities for growth are endless! We delivered a new movers basket today, and this ministry is continuing to prove effective! The church has great morale, and we are developing these ministries more and more. Continue to pray for us as we are praying for you!”
Monroe church of Christ, Georgia: Charles Harris (preacher) reports, “We had another baptism tonight! My daughter Tori has studied Does It Matter with Sara and has encouraged her since. Tonight after service she decided she was ready.”
Hillsboro church of Christ, Tennessee: Shelby Moorman (preacher) reports, “No pictures this week, but we visited new movers again yesterday and made several more contacts. We will send cards to those contacts this evening.”
Beloit church of Christ, Kansas: Dustin Doughtery (preacher) reports, “I have started the contact bookmark program and have taken about five minutes at the end of each service this month, promoting the concept and reminding people to fill out their cards to get the evangelism machine off the ground. We have a couple of prospects and some others cultivating but no studies as of yet.
“The lady I baptized last fall, Peggy Miller, passed away last week, and we had her funeral yesterday. Her sister stood up in front of everyone and said how much Peggy loved her Christian family and how Peggy showed her she had been living a lie and been under the wrong preachers her whole life. She told me she was going to keep studying with Carol, and I would be baptizing her soon.
“I have had a congregation about 1.5 hours south of us request that I come down and present a seminar to them. We have not set a date yet, but it will be arranged soon.”
Shertz church of Christ, Texas: Jay Stewart (elder) reports, “This week the Schertz congregation celebrated four high school graduates with a fellowship meal. Much time was spent preparing to honor our young men. On the evangelism front, we added one new name to our compassion card list, so we have a total of seven prospects circulating through the groups. We are planning our Wednesday night adult class curriculum for the summer quarter. It is going to be more aggressive in teaching and training the use of the H2H Bible study material and practical tips. Our goal is to help build confidence in our members to share the gospel and reach out to prospects for Bible studies.”
Northern Oaks church of Christ, San Antonio, Texas: Mel Hutzler (preacher) reports, “We have wonderful news. Ivan and Viviana Villa were baptized recently. After hearing sermons, Bible classes, devotionals, and many spiritual conversations, they realized their baptism was amiss. We took them through the Bible study and then baptized them into Christ. Things seem to be a lot more productive by making some much needed changes to our evangelism program to gain more contacts. We have several members in Bible studies and hope to see more people coming to Christ in the future by putting Him on in baptism. We have Vacation Bible School, Bible Camp, Summer Youth Series, and other activities coming in the future and we hope to tie them to evangelism.”
Siwell Road church of Christ, Jackson, Mississippi: Derek Broome (preacher) reports, “Recently at Siwell Road, we have had several good contacts with new movers baskets. Several people have requested more information on the church. So, one by one, we began to follow up with each one of these newest contacts. The first couple of contacts did not go as well as we liked, but hopefully with time a door will be opened. When we came to the last contact on the list and our last house of that day, we found a very receptive response. They were intrigued by the information provided in the new mover basket, and they were impressed by the cards they had received from various members at Siwell. When the husband opened the door his face immediately lit up. They were having some health problems and could not study that day, but it is their plan to be here at our next worship service. He told his wife that with the kind of attention we were showing them, they had to come check us out. We will be following up with them again soon. Praying for their health and praying for an open door.”
Rogersville church of Christ, Tennessee: Ethan Tate (preacher) reports, “This past week we have had more responses to our compassion card ministry. One of the people we have sent cards to the past four weeks reached put to thank us and wanted to study the Bible soon. We are planning to have a meal with him and his family to get to know them better within the week. We are also having a positive response from people taking part in the Back to the Biblestudy during the AM worship time. We just started book three, so we will come to the most crucial part of the book next Sunday. Please pray for the visitors who have been a part of this study so their hearts may be pricked.”
Deerfoot church of Christ, Birmingham, Alabama: Richard Harp (preacher) reports, “For the last two Wednesdays, one of our elders, Sol Godwin, has been studying with a visitor to our services, Jim McDonald. He is hard of hearing but seems to be receptive to the study. Sol has been using Jerry Jenkin’s study “God Speaks Today” which is a 4-lesson study.
“Tuesday Richard has the final study with Pam Duke at 11:00 AM. Our prayer is that she comes because she did not show up for the last study. We will be having an additional study on marriage, divorce, and remarriage. The study with Frank Salumn has concluded, and he knows what he needs to do. He has continued to attend but has not obeyed yet. We also support Alex Coggins, the Bible teacher to Jefferson Christian Academy (he is on staff here at Deerfoot). He used Back to the Bible with all the middle and high school students. Two of his students were just baptized in their home congregations (Ashville Road Church of Christ). This was a big deal!”
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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