Success Stories: November 13, 2024

Welcome Roanoke church of Christ, Texas: We want to welcome the Roanoke church of Christ to the House to House/Heart to Heart School of Evangelism. They have a talent preaching staff and godly leaders.  We look forward to watching them grow.

Glencoe Church of Christ, Alabama: David Marker (elder) reports, “We are excited to welcome Keith Ritchie and his family to our church family at Glencoe. Keith has been added to our staff and will begin working full-time as our Outreach Minister this coming week. This has been in the works for some time, and Keith’s availability was perfect. This will allow us to have someone full-time to help spearhead our Evangelism program and shore up some areas where we need help. We have grown tremendously this year, and Keith’s addition will help us reach out to the community. One of our deacons, Ted Brooks, and his wife, Angela, continue working with the local school system to see where we can assist, especially during the upcoming holidays. We have Bible studies in progress, and on Tuesday, we will begin a new study with a couple. Our progress board has been a tremendous help. It keeps us updated on the various works, and we can see the results in our attendance.”

West Huntsville church of Christ, Alabama: Paul Owen (associate preacher) reports, “David Lipe preached a series of lessons this past weekend.  In one of the lessons, he preached about how we need to love the lost, like Jesus from Luke 10. It was a wonderful reminder for members of the Lord’s church to love those around us each day by being intentional with our evangelism. We appreciate all prayers, but please pray especially for Yoko and Barbra; I believe they will put Christ on in baptism this week!”

Highland Park church of Christ, Muscle Shoals, Alabama: Andrew Myhan (deacon) reports, “We have been trucking along with visits for prospects. We helped the young man that was baptized last week get moved into a new place in order to get him away from some very bad influences. We have mentors set up for him. I am still trying to get with all the elders schedules so we can have a zoom meeting soon.”

Hatton church of Christ, Alabama: Chris Miller (preacher) reports, “We rejoice as three people obeyed the gospel this week after studies with Becky Posey, Michelle McCorkle, and Levi McCorkle. We have more studies ongoing and are hopeful for additional responses soon. To God be all the glory!”

Petersville church of Christ, Florence, Alabama: Adam Richardson (preacher) reports, “At Petersville, we continue to teach our evangelism Bible study class and send compassion cards. We had seven visitors at worship yesterday and are planning another evangelistic outreach—inviting friends and neighbors to ‘Harvest Sunday’ this week.”

Malvern church of Christ, Arkansas (remote): David Burrus (preacher) reports, “We continue to send compassion cards each week. For the first time in years, we participated in trunk or treat, making 100 special bags with our House to House/Heart to Heart publication. The event was a success as we gave away all 100 bags and 11 Bibles, and we had two hot contacts. We also received the questionnaire from one of the publications requesting additional information/tracts. We are planning a community chili/soup supper that we will host on December 2, and we plan to start our men’s ministry program in 2025.”

Windsor church of Christ, Colorado: Lucas Stephens (member) reports, “We are still in what may feel like a holding pattern regarding our progress, but we are continuing to educate our members and move toward prospecting from our list. We are not there yet, but we are learning and moving forward. We had our men’s business meeting this past week, and we will continue our weekly meetings for evangelism this Tuesday to plan and execute our mission.”

Margaret Street church of Christ, Milton, Florida: Troy Spradlin (preacher) reports, “Margaret Street church of Christ has begun congregational training. A lot of positive feedback was received in the surveys, which was very encouraging to our elders. Yesterday, the first Sunday morning lesson was preached (with bookmarks distributed), and the evening service presented the ‘Making It Operational’ training lesson. We will continue each Sunday with the lessons and training. Everyone is very encouraged and excited. Many are ready to get involved! We had one study with Back to the Bible last week, and several have begun setting up other studies. Three of our brethren have also reported using Back to the Bible for their home family devotions. Our focus is on maintaining the excitement and working on the checklist!”

Niceville church of Christ, Florida: Joe Palmer (preacher) reports, “This week, we had one study and mailed out 35 cards. We had three visitors. Best of all, we set up studies with five new people: three with visitors, one from benevolence, and one from a past contact. This week, we have an outreach event: our annual Pig Roast. Hopefully, it, too, will bring us some new names to approach.”

Bremen church of Christ, Georgia:  Scott Broughton (member) reports, “This past week we continued with the New Converts class. We studied and had a great discussion on various false doctrines, including Premillennialism. We have one study continuing to use the Back to the Bible study guides; they are currently in book 2.”

Eatonton church of Christ, Georgia (remote): Roderick Coney (preacher) reports, “We started Lesson 2 of Back to the Bible with a prospect. We sent out compassion cards to two people and made two visits to prospects.”

Lafayette church of Christ, Georgia: Jesse Teague (elder) reports, “We have had a good run of visitors lately. One visitor from our door-knocking efforts was with us this Sunday. She received a warm welcome and was very friendly and open to discussion. Also, a man who had obeyed the Gospel at some point visited for the first time. One of our members met him riding his bicycle to work and offered him a ride (this happened more than once). We still have some visitors trickle in from engaging family members at recent funerals. Potential Bible studies lie ahead. There are so many opportunities for evangelism—we just need to take advantage of them when they present themselves to us.”

Woodstock church of Christ, Georgia: Matt Amos (preacher) reports, “Here are some highlights from our ACTS Evangelism Program. The Prison Ministry Group is working in the state’s maximum-security prison to get people cleared for volunteer Bible study duties. The WCOC congregation attended the Sunabella of Towne Lake Assistant Living devotional on Sunday. They had six non-Christians in attendance. The Compassion Cards Group created and sent 38 cards, plus ten cards for the New Movers Baskets. Five new Christians attended the New Converts class. This class is to help those who were recently converted. WCOC had four non-Christian visitors at our Sunday morning service. We had one Bible study and one baptism.”

Cartersville church of Christ, Georgia (remote): Charles Harris (regional trainer) reports, “Our work is making an impact on our prospects.  We seem to be having more visitors to services. Bible studies are taking place. Excitement in the church is growing. Recently, a sister told me that she had spent around 15 minutes praying for my family and the work we are trying to do for the Lord in Cartersville. I know that there have been many soul winners in Cartersville before my family started helping the church implement the Evangelism Model. This church taught my family and me the Gospel, after all. However, it seems as though we have started from scratch and are building something for the Lord that will stand. It is humbling to be a part of the work.”

Collinsville-Troy church of Christ, Illinois: Jason Wright (elder) reports, “We just finished our Gospel Meeting with Joe Wells. He did a great job preaching on this year’s theme, ‘The Gospel Is for All.’ On Monday evening, one of our member’s daughters was baptized into Christ. To God be the glory! We mailed 97 compassion cards this week. We are making 21 follow-up visits this week as well. I started Book 1 of Back to the Bible on Thursday with the brother of one of our members. We will do Book 2 tonight. Brian started Book 1 with 90-year-old Tonya in a nursing home. He gave her a new Bible as well.

We handed out five New Movers baskets, all with good responses. We will meet this Thursday evening to pass out HTH mailers to 16 people who requested them from our food giveaway and other contact methods. We gave 1,000 invitation cards for our members to pass out for November, just like we did in October. We do this every second Sunday of the month. A couple of our ladies have been studying with and helping Mary with different things since she is blind, such as transportation to a dentist appointment. We sent 35 invites to our Lady and Young Adult classes to folks interested in the recent food giveaway. A mother and her children attended worship recently due to this effort. We continue to check in with four households monthly regarding community service as we try to build that relationship! We currently have nine studies in progress. We will grow!”

Highland Village church of Christ, Bloomington, Indiana: Mark Stauffer (elder) reports, “We mailed 89 compassion cards and continued congregational training. Support for the work remains strong. We have nine prospects who received cards and three more who will receive cards this week. My wife and I are making the first visits this week. Congregational training for visiting is in the works. Over the past couple of weeks, we had our annual budget and members meetings. We have completed the lesson from the pulpit covering BTTB Book 2.”

LaGrange church of Christ, Indiana: Wayne Poe (elder) reports, “We are doing great with the compassion cards, and we have had a new visitor the last two weeks. He was baptized in October at  the Lincoln Way congregation. He moved to our area and has an opportunity to attend the New Converts class. Many studies are going on, and I am looking forward to more.”

Judah church of Christ, Bloomington, Indiana: Joe Moon (preacher) reports, “We just finished the   lesson on John 4 this week.  It was the third lesson, so we asked if anyone on the bookmark was sick and passed out contact cards. We have one study going on currently.”

Beloit church of Christ, Kansas (remote): Dustin Dougherty (regional trainer) reports, “Unfortunately, I do not have much to report again this week; things are slow at the moment. But we are still on the plow, forging ahead.  I am casting seeds wherever I can.”
Central church of Christ, Paducah, Kentucky: Adam Faughn (preacher) reports, “This week was a little slower than usual, but card-writing and guest bags continued. We were blessed with a good number of guests at our service yesterday. It seems at least one individual and one family were present due to our new mover efforts, and we are working on following up with them. Our annual new members’ dinner on Sunday night was also a joy. This is a long-standing tradition at Central, but to see so many (despite the oddity that roughly half our new members were either out of town or sick) present and sharing their deep love for Central was a joy. We pray that next year’s dinner has even more new members!”

Paintsville church of Christ, Kentucky: Zach Collins (preacher) reports, “On Saturday, I received a call from one of our members concerning a friend who has many religious questions, and he wants answers! He asked if we could set up a Bible study. We studied with him after services on Sunday morning and Sunday evening for a total of 4 hours.  We went through Lesson 1 of Back to the Bible and Does It Matter? After completing these booklets, he desired to be baptized into Christ. His two friends, who happen to be members of our family at Paintsville, were honored to baptize him into Christ! Please pray for Cameron as he begins his new walk in Christ! In addition, we have another Bible study scheduled on Saturday. We hope to complete Lesson 2 with a husband and wife who have visited our congregation occasionally. We request prayers for these studies!”

Madisonville church of Christ, Kentucky: Don Killough (deacon) reports, “On Sunday morning, the second sermon was preached. The post-seminar survey was passed out Wednesday night and Sunday morning. The bookmarks were explained in the sermon and were handed out Sunday morning after services.”

La Plata church of Christ, Maryland (remote): Eric Sykes (regional trainer) reports, “This week, we wrote 73 compassion cards and had seven visitors. We took them all out to lunch. One of our members is a cousin to a visiting family of six. We had a great time as we discovered that the family had just moved to the area and were looking for a church home. They are members of the body. I think we made a great impression on them. They were surprised we took them all to lunch and paid the tab. They said that they will be back next week. We visited one of our seniors, Sister Carolyn Hope Edwards, age 99. We gave her flowers, and we laughed, talked, and sang for her and her roommate, Ms. Sarah Russel, who is a spry 102-year-old. Sarah asked us to come back and visit with her again soon; we will! She enjoyed the fellowship. Pray that we can sit down and share the Gospel here. We have two active Bible studies, both in Lesson 3 of BTTB. We just restarted Bible studies with two folks who finished BTTB earlier this year. We will teach them Does it Matter?  We visited seven folks and delivered gift baskets from last week’s list. Five attended our New Converts classes last week. We are conducting mock Bible study training sessions with our advanced teacher training class on Lesson 1 of Back to the Bible.  Sixteen people attended our video of the week Zoom training class.”

East Main church of Christ, Tupelo, Mississippi: Barry Kennedy (preacher) reports, “We are still working the compassion cards and adding several from the door-knocking campaign. We have set aside some that may be good follow-up visits that will hopefully turn into Bible studies. We are praying regularly that God will continue to bless our efforts to grow and let the light of the Gospel shine! To God be the glory!”

Shady Acres church of Christ, Sikeston, Missouri: Keith Olbricht (preacher) reports, “We are continuing to train, train, train here at Shady Acres. Currently on Sunday mornings, we are going through the lessons on Back to the Bible, and that itself is impactful. A sister was restored yesterday morning after having been away from the church for several years. Her return was a result of evangelistic efforts. This week, we will begin a Bible study with the wife of a recent convert, and we will follow-up with the several visitors we have had lately.”

Samford church of Christ, Steele, Missouri: Kyle Imel (deacon) reports, “We added one person to our compassion card list this week. That brings us to mailing three this week. We also visited several people who are on our list from the recent door-knocking campaign.”

East Flushing church of Christ, New York (remote): Clarence Jenkins (preacher) reports, “After worship service, we continue to fill out compassion cards. Our metrics thus far for this month are as follows: eight visitors, 12 prospects, 18 visits, and eight Bible studies. We appreciate all prayers.”

Streetsboro church of Christ, Ohio: Ralph Price (preacher) reports, “We continue working the program.  We currently have four on the prospect list.  We have one study scheduled for this Tuesday evening. Recently, we concluded a study with the husband of one of our members.  I have high hopes that he is going to obey the Gospel soon. He is still attending services with her, which is a good sign.”

New Concord church of Christ, Ohio: Terry Townsend (preacher) reports, “We had two more first-time visitors at services on Sunday. Both ladies are neighbors to one of our new converts, and both began a Bible study with her and one of our other sisters. That study is going well. Our new mover teams have finished their deliveries and await new assignments when they arrive. We are patiently and prayerfully hopeful of future Bible studies with several who continue to assemble for worship.”

Sullivan Village church of Christ, Lawton, Oklahoma: Steven Hill (preacher) reports, “We have three new converts and one person who has been restored after 20 years of being wayward. The two new converts are 18- and 16- years-old. Both of them continue to study one lesson per week and are growing in the knowledge of Jesus Christ! The other convert is an older man who has come to Christ, and he is also studying a lesson a week and growing.  Another person who has been restored is also going through weekly studies, and he is growing. These studies are not just helping the new converts; all those involved benefit from them! God is so good, and we are very grateful!”

Cheyenne church of Christ, Oklahoma (remote): Nathan Brewer (member) reports, “We wrote another round of cards to mail this week to an inactive member and her husband in town. We also had a visitor at worship. Everyone met him and visited with him, some at length. We gave him a visitor’s bag to take home. He is so new to the community, he could not give us a mailing address, so we got a phone number. The recent visitor undergoing cancer treatment and his wife were not at worship, but we continue trying to get a study with him and/or his wife. He seems more interested than she does—and she may be interfering with our efforts—but we are pressing ahead.”

Coweta church of Christ, Oklahoma: Keno Shrum (regional trainer) reports, “This weekend, I am looking forward to doing a Reboot Seminar with the Sanford, North Carolina, church of Christ. They are a great congregation of workers who just need a little help making a few areas of the HTHSOE model actionable. They have a strong desire to work, so they reached out and requested a regional trainer to help them. I’m honored to get to work with them! We had a chili supper Saturday night at an outdoor pavilion owned by Danny and Tami, two of our members. Non-Christians were invited, as we had hoped to use this opportunity to gain contacts. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate, but we forged ahead and had a great time. With attendance down due to the weather, we only had three visitors, but it gave us three contacts.

On Monday evening, Houston and I went through Lesson 1 of BTTB with Ethan after a nice meal. He enjoyed the study, and we have Lesson 2 scheduled. Ethan has been attending worship with us for three weeks now. He is 21, and he enjoys the friendships he is making with our members in his age group. His mother attended with him on Sunday. That afternoon, she called Jamie with some questions about the way and frequency that we take communion. Having only ever attended the Assembly of God, our worship Sunday differed from what she was used to. Jamie told her we have a Bible study (BTTB) that would answer all of her questions. She agreed to go through the study, so we hope to do that soon.

A denominational visitor stopped by approximately six months ago and worshiped with us one Sunday morning. His name is Phillip, and he never came back. However, we got his contact info and mailed him compassion cards after the visit. One of our members, Robert, has contacted him and tried many times to talk him into a Bible study. On Monday, Robert excitedly called me to let me know Phil and his wife agreed to have a study. Robert is working now to get it scheduled. Gina and Jim have an unfaithful adult daughter. They have tried to get her to come to worship with them. Sunday, she showed up unexpectedly and said she enjoyed the service. Gina and Jim, having both been baptized recently, told her they would like for her to go through BTTB. She never really said whether or not she would. On Sunday evening, Gina said when their daughter got home that afternoon, she texted and asked Gina for my phone number. So, we are hoping she is getting close to doing a study. God continues to bless the Coweta congregation with contacts. Please keep these studies in your prayers!”

York church of Christ, Pennsylvania: Mark Raschke (member) reports, “Fred gave two encouraging messages on Sunday morning and Sunday evening, which touched on the responsibility that all Christians must step out of their comfort zones and evangelize those around them. Some visits were
made this week, but we had no new visitors or contacts. We are preparing our budget for next year, and we are including funds for invitation cards, business cards for our new location, and a website, in addition to our compassion cards and House to House.”

Union church of Christ, South Carolina (remote): Terry Hale (preacher) reports, “Excellent studies are taking place daily in all books of Back to the Bible. We had training classes this week for those entering homes for studies. Also, we just received Bibles in audio form this week for prospects we have now and in the future that have visual difficulties.”

Hillsboro church of Christ, Tennessee: Shelby Moorman (preacher) reports, “Another return visitor, Scott Smith, returned for the second time in three weeks. He is asking questions and is extremely interested. He will begin a study (possibly this evening). We are hopeful he will obey the Gospel soon.”

Cookeville church of Christ, Tennessee: Jonathan Medley (deacon) reports, “It has been a great week at Cookeville. We kicked off the series of training lessons with the congregation on Sunday night, and we plan to continue them every Sunday night until we cover them all. This past Thursday night, we went through Book 3 of Back to the Bible with Polk Brown (the golf coach at Tennessee Tech), and it ended with his baptism. One of our members called to tell us she is working toward a Bible study with a lady and her husband. Lots of great momentum!”

Covington church of Christ, Tennessee: Wayne Dalrymple (elder) reports, “We had several visitors again this week at our services. We wrote dozens of cards to them Monday evening. I also met with Jeremy on Monday evening. We finished studying through Book 1 of BTTB. Jeremy has no Bible knowledge or background, so I am going slowly with him to ensure he understands the concepts. We will start with Book 2 next week. Some of our members are conducting two other Bible studies. Anna Kate, my daughter, has a friend at Freed-Hardeman, where she attends, who is trying to teach her boyfriend the Gospel. Anna Kate introduced her friend to Back to the Bible and has shown her how to use it. We hope to hear good things coming from that soon.”

Hebron church of Christ, McMinnville, Tennessee: Derrick Stiles (preacher) reports, “Last week was another good week at Hebron. We mailed 70 compassion cards. In the next week or two, we will begin knocking doors of those who have received cards. We aim to make personal connections with our neighbors and invite them to worship. We appreciate all prayers for the work at Hebron as we continue to work hard to grow.”

Rivergate church of Christ, Madison, Tennessee: Doug Tooley (preacher) reports, “We had five visitors on Sunday morning. One of those visitors had also been at service on Wednesday. Another visitor expressed interest in a Bible study. A lady who is already a baptized believer placed membership with us this week. We made five visits last week.”

Freewill church of Christ, Gainesboro, Tennessee (remote): Andrew Scott (preacher) reports, “What a great day it has been. Joy and Ashley Dobbs were baptized into Christ this afternoon after studying the Bible using Does it Matter. Jared Herren, a brother in Christ, set up these studies today. Even more good news is that Joy’s daughter, her husband, and two children, whom I think are teenagers, as well as her grandson, have all expressed their desire to want to know what to do to be saved. Those studies are planned for tomorrow afternoon. I will be using Does it Matter. If all goes well, there will be seven conversions in just two days! We give God the glory! With the two baptisms today, this puts us past our 10 percent goal for the year. Words cannot describe the joy we all have!”

White Oak church of Christ, Chattanooga, Tennessee (remote): John McGiffin (preacher) reports, “This past week has been busy. We have followed up with seven visits to community members who attended the Trunk or Treat event. Delivering the photographs opened doors. Many were hesitant to talk until I produced the pictures.  No one refused to learn more about the White Oak church of Christ, but there were two good prospects. One family of seven wants to schedule a Bible study. We will follow up this week and schedule it since the husband was ill when we visited. Another couple with a small child has agreed to come to our house for dinner when they return from a business trip in ten days. We have eight more visits to complete. Afterward, we will choose three or four families to help with Thanksgiving meals. That would make two strong connections. We will require their attendance at Bible study on Wednesday to pick up the food. Slowly, we are progressing in a difficult area to evangelize.”

New Union church of Christ, Manchester, Tennessee: Paul Fultz (elder) reports, “We had six visitors last week, and our members turned in new contacts. We made four transition visits and conducted one Bible study. Our New Convert class met with two in attendance.”

Hillcrest church of Christ, Springfield, Tennessee: Tim Taylor (associate preacher) reports, “We are following up with our door-knocking contacts this week, now that they have received four weeks of compassion cards. In order to make a stronger impression and hopefully see greater results, we are sending cards to our new movers, in addition to delivering a welcome basket.”

Mountain Creek church of Christ, Chattanooga, Tennessee: Michael Tomshack (elder) reports, “I wanted to share a story about inviting a neighbor to our worship assembly. Deborah Hodge and Deena Hixson have a neighbor that Deborah invited to visit us. The family has been coming for a couple of months now. Deena asked if they would like to study the Bible with Gary Massey (Elder/Minister), and they said yes! Deena will host a meal and study session with the couple and Gary. Each step in this process is important. Deborah invited her neighbor, our greeters welcomed them, the congregation warmly greeted them each week, Deena asked for a study and offered her home to study, and Gary will lead the study through God’s word.”

West Fayetteville church of Christ, Tennessee: Steve Jefferson (elder) reports, “Greetings from the West Fayetteville congregation. Sunday was a great day. In our Adult Bible School class, we watched the video on compassion cards, which helped us tremendously. We were blessed to have several families from area congregations visiting with us. We also had one young man who is not a member of the church, and we prepared cards to send to him very shortly. We also took the time to bundle the invitation cards into packets of 10 and are ready to hand them out to the congregation.”

Chapel Hill church of Christ, Tennessee: Matt Jones (deacon) reports, “We met last week as a committee to review each area and address any needs or adjustments. All is still going well. We continue to get many visitors each Sunday. Isaac has been doing a great job delivering a series of lessons on the plan of salvation. Our efforts and focus are staying on reaching the lost! We have three active Bible studies and two additional prospects; we hope to schedule studies with them shortly. We are almost ready to visit nine additional prospects who have been receiving compassion cards.”

East Main church of Christ, Murfreesboro, Tennessee: Brad Rowley (elder) reports, “October was another fantastic month for East Main’s evangelism efforts. We had three baptisms: Mackenzie McDaries, Paxton Holder, and Annsley Vaughn. Cole Walker, one of our college ministry members, had an opportunity to conduct a large Bible study with a fraternity group. Wayne Lankford, our associate minister, started a large study with the sewing group that utilizes our annex. We had approximately 14 new Bible studies and 15 ongoing Bible studies during the month. Please pray for open hearts during these studies.

We also had a total of seven new contact cards during the month. Year-to-date, East Main has had 26 baptisms, 92 new Bible studies, and 157 ongoing Bible studies. Last Sunday, at Mission Day, we shared an excellent meal with pulled pork, chicken wings, and many sides, plus desserts. We discussed community outreach for 2025. We hope to have a draft calendar for the year within a couple of weeks. Our main goal is to have more opportunities and time spent with our repeat community visitors so we can establish a strong relationship. East Main has experienced success utilizing our church software (CHMtg) to document our evangelism efforts. Contact Cards are entered into the software. Follow-up efforts (compassion cards, visits, service projects, Bible studies, etc.) are assigned to individuals. The software sends the follow-up request to the person assigned, who can review the history and see everything that was done in the past to better prepare for the next step. Then, once they complete the action, they can change it from pending to complete and record their results. This has made us more effective and less labor-intensive by eliminating texting, emailing, and phone calls.

A couple of our elders had the opportunity to visit Kensington Woods church of Christ in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. This congregation has stepped back to review its evangelism efforts. Every church activity is evangelism-focused. As a result, they are experiencing a large increase in their Bible studies. One of their major leaps of faith is to open a free vocational school to the community. Their school day starts each morning with a Bible study with the students, which leads to a study with their parents. Another impressive thing Kensington Woods did was look at the letters to the seven churches in Revelation and decide to write a letter to themselves. They said their letter was very transparent, encouraging them to redirect their efforts to be more Christ-like. We can all learn so much from each other. Thank you to the elders and ministers of Kensington Woods for sharing their valuable time and experiences. To God be the glory!”

Rome church of Christ, Lebanon, Tennessee(remote): David Oxley reports, “We are continuing to train our members and will begin an advanced class starting Tuesday night. At this time, we have five prospects.”

Natalia church of Christ, Texas: Jim Word (elder) reports, “I will be having Study #1 on Wednesday with Daylon; Study #2 is still pending with Teri. I should know a time and day for her study later today.”

Buda-Kyle church of Christ, Texas: Ronnie Scherffius (preacher) reports, “We are moving forward in our efforts of Congregational Evangelism. Presently, we are endeavoring to visit three contacts, and we hope to establish Bible studies. As of yesterday, we have added three more to our compassion cards, which will quickly be moved to ‘visitor’ status. We appreciate all prayers for our efforts.”

Colleyville church of Christ, Texas (remote): John Garza (regional trainer) reports, “Evangelism and preaching are works of the church that I deeply love. I am zealous for them, and at my new work with the Colleyville congregation, I am blessed to do both and not alone. As I train two preachers how to use the HTH Congregational Evangelism method, they are working with me to build the congregation spiritually and numerically. Recently, we have been priming the congregation for the work, just until Rob Whitacre comes to give the seminar. He will be here in the next few days. What was the most encouraging thing that happened this past weekend?

On Saturday, one of the elders taught the Gospel to a young man named Larry whom he has encountered in the community many times. He used Back to the Bible. That young man did not hesitate to obey and put on Christ in baptism. And while I am encouraged to see a new birth, I am even more encouraged to know that I work among elders who love Christ, His church, and lost souls. I have no doubt that we will flourish spiritually and numerically because of the love in the leadership, the pulpit, and among the members. I look forward to implementing more of the tools in the program as the fire is increased in the members while Rob is here. To God be the glory. In addition to this great news, because of his decision to obey Christ, Larry invited his mother, grandmother, and a co-worker to worship with us on Sunday. They loved worshipping with us and felt the members’ love toward them. We look forward to prospecting these souls when they attend next Sunday.

We have another contact who has been worshipping with us for the past few Sundays, and we believe she is ready to be engaged more because she is really interested. My wife and I plan to have her over for lunch or dinner, and we plan to extend a study since we know she is interested. Through writing cards to a wayward family (one of our elder’s daughters), she decided to bring herself and her kids back to worship with us last Sunday, and she plans to attend again next week. We also have ongoing Bible studies and another request for a study from a young man. One of our preachers, Joshua, plans to set that up. Many great works are taking place at the church of the Lord in Colleyville, and we are just getting started.”

Crosby church of Christ, Texas (remote): Jon Wheeler (elder) reports, “We are happy to report the baptism of a lady with whom we have been studying for three weeks. We have another lady, the daughter of one of our members, who has requested a Bible study.  Also, a lady who has been out of the church for years is now coming regularly. She is bringing her college-aged granddaughter to services. A young couple has returned after being away for a year and is bringing family members! We are blessed!”

Granbury Street church of Christ, Cleburne, Texas: Ryan Cowan (deacon) reports, “Several Bible studies are taking place right now. I am studying with a man named Leo; he received a new movers’ basket from Granbury Street in September. A relationship was nurtured over the next few months, resulting in a productive study.  Clark Lehtinen is working with one of his neighbors, Tim. Clark seeks to bring Tim to services and possibly begin a Bible study soon. Deborah Lehtinen is studying with two women: Melanie, who happened to visit Granbury Street a few weeks ago, and Patricia, who is a relative to one of our new converts, Leann. Finally, Marilyn Birchfield is assisting in a study with a woman named Mary, and Cheryl McIntosh is in the final stages of a study with Maria.”

Wheeler church of Christ, Texas: Garrett English (preacher) reports, “The new converts from weeks ago have not made it to our new converts class yet, so I am working to find time to study with them every week. I am working to have others visit our prospects over the next few weeks. Many of those who have received our cards would welcome a Bible study.”

Fruitvale church of Christ, Texas: Carl McCann (preacher) reports, “We continue to do follow-up work. We set up a Bible study with Chris and Alice Freeze. We have focused on sending compassion cards to the 16 contacts we made last week. We are currently in several studies, although they are progressing slowly. We are planning to deliver our pictures from Trunk or Treat to make more contacts. Our Sundays continue to offer new visitors the opportunity to reach them.”

Hondo church of Christ, Texas (remote): Andrew Patterson (preacher) reports, “A few weeks ago, Craig, who is one of our hardest workers, knocked on the door of Paul and Laura Bragg. Paul lost his grandmother recently, so Craig made a contact card, and we began writing compassion cards. Although we have sent them several cards, none of us has had a chance to get to know them yet. During Sunday morning class, we watched the seminar videos. After watching Rob’s third video (The Manner) yesterday morning, Craig decided to get to know Paul better before asking for a study. Then, Paul and Laura surprised us and visited our assembly yesterday. They seemed to enjoy the service, and I heard them singing behind me. After service, Craig invited Paul to lunch (both their wives were indisposed), and I went with them. We had a lovely visit, and Paul seems very receptive.”

West Side church of Christ, Salem, Virginia: Jeff Durham (elder) reports, “We continue to find ways to make our community events include an evangelism component. We hosted a Fall Festival a couple of weeks ago. Invitations were distributed at local schools and restaurants, inviting members of our community to join us. This event included a chili cook-off competition, games, and Trunk-or-Treat with our members handing out candy and goodies. We had around 100 trick-or-treaters – the most ever. We had someone available to answer questions and a table set up with free Bible study materials/DVDs to be taken, as desired. We are planting and watering seeds of the Gospel in as many ways as possible.”

Culpeper church of Christ, Virginia (remote): Mike Morgan (preacher) reports, “We continue to implement the program with the School of Evangelism. We are sharing the seven videos with the congregation and will then move into sermons/training with the different aspects of the program. Our members are excited about this challenge of changing the culture and boldly reaching the lost by planting the Gospel. Our members ask what they can do and where to work in this program. We are busy with outreach. We had seven visitors and offered 13 invitations to friends/family. We provided four meals for shut-ins and made three visits. We also sent some compassion cards and reached out to four erring members.”

Williamsburg church of Christ, Virginia: Jim Bishop (elder) reports, “To God be the Glory! Williamsburg church of Christ in Williamsburg, Virginia, has been blessed again. On Thursday of last week, a couple attending the church here decided to obey the Gospel. Their decision represents a total of seven baptisms since we began the Congregational Evangelism the last week in July, 2024, and nine souls being added to the church in Williamsburg. While our goal is ten for the year, spreading the Gospel is a part of every Christian’s daily life and obeying God’s Word.”

Peninsula church of Christ, Hampton, Virginia: Ben Phillips (preacher) reports, “We have been blessed to have several new visitors over the past two Sundays. One is a member of the church looking for a church home and needing restoration. We are praying that we will be able to help him find his way home. Others are members who have relocated due to duty assignments with the US military. We have also had one contact continue to visit us. We continue to send compassion cards to some new contacts, and we have another batch of prospects ready for follow-up this week. Pray for open hearts and doors! Our foundations class has shown tremendous growth. We have seen our new converts growing along with members who needed strengthening. We also have a college and young adults group with some attending from the local university who are not church members. Lord willing, there will be studies coming from this work. We also took some major steps forward in getting individuals settled into key roles in the evangelism work. We know that the continued work to organize and tweak what we need for this congregation is an important part of the work. We are working and trusting that God will increase our growth in His time.”

Marlon Retana (regional trainer): “After several months on the road preaching, promoting the work of Escuela Bíblica en Línea, and seeking supporters for this vital mission, we are finally  ‘home’ for at least a couple of months. It has been a season marked by travel and dedication, and while it has brought challenges, it has also brought immeasurable blessings. We are deeply grateful to God for the privilege of being His hands and feet in this effort. During this busy period, we made significant progress in our media outreach. We recently completed the editing of eight new short videos to promote the School through social media. The one published last week was about the availability of the video version of Back to the Bible in Spanish. These videos are designed to extend our reach and engage even more individuals with the transformative message of the Gospel. Additionally, we wrapped up the scripts of 15 episodes of our podcast, Cristianos Fieles, created in collaboration with International Gospel Hour. These episodes will be available for listening in just a couple of weeks and are another step forward in our mission to share biblical truths with Spanish-speaking audiences worldwide. We are also excited to announce that our course on 1 Timothy is now available for study. Courses on 2 Timothy and Titus are in the final stages. They will be accessible very soon, offering additional opportunities for brethren and every thirsty soul to grow in their knowledge and faith. Our work is far from easy, but we remain profoundly thankful for the opportunity to serve in this capacity. Every effort, every mile traveled, every lesson prepared, and every resource shared is for His glory and to help equip others to bring His light to the world. We appreciate all prayers, encouragement, and support as we continue this mission.”