Success Stories: September 10, 2025

Welcome, Seagoville church of Christ, Texas: We welcome the Seagoville church of Christ to the House to House/Heart to Heart School of Evangelism. We were overwhelmed by the number of visitors who came. The elders and preachers are entirely on board, and the members are ready to work.  We can’t wait to see how this develops over the next few months.

Glencoe church of Christ, Alabama: Keith Ritchie (preacher) reports, “Glencoe had an amazing first day of our lectureship with several visitors and contacts made. James Rogers gave three outstanding lessons on James 1. We have nine vendors, including GBN and HTHSOE. One visitor tonight became a contact and enjoyed the lessons. Events like these create opportunities that can give birth to studies. We are still on three Bible studies, but prayerful door knocking will lead to more souls who want to study the Bible. To God be the glory!”

Central church of Christ, Saraland, Alabama: David Dixon (preacher) reports, “We have chosen the month of September for our yearly opportunity to revisit our evangelistic training and remind ourselves of why we do what we do. This week, we examined the Parable of the Soils in Matthew 13. We are planning to participate in the national Door-knocking Day on September 20, 2025. We will watch the videos to remind us of how to be effective at knocking on doors. We trust viable contacts will come from this effort, and we are looking forward to the Bible studies that will be produced. As we maintain our excitement and our zeal for evangelism, we have to take time to celebrate when a soul-winner gains his reward. Brother Bill Mears passed away last week. He was a member at Central for many years. He worked with Brother Bob Bates when he was here in Saraland. Brother Mears was always looking for opportunities to share the Gospel with people. He has many stars in his crown.”

Cedar Grove church of Christ, Andalusia, Alabama: Josh Holloway (preacher) reports, “This week we have been productive. To start the week, we were able to have Mrs. Nena at our home for another Bible study. She came to our home for a meal and to study. She is progressing very well. I believe that she is close to obeying the Gospel. Tuesday, we had a Bible study with a man named Michael. He is the non-Christian husband of one of our members. She was recently restored. He seems to be very good soil. He is studying very hard to find the truth. On Wednesday, we had one Bible study canceled. The man has had some health issues. We usually have coffee together at 8 am and do the study after. We did have another study that afternoon. We had a Bible study with Matt. He is in the last booklet and is very close to obeying the truth as well. Thursday, we had a wonderful study with Casheria and her husband, Lontae. We are about to start the second booklet this week. Friday and Saturday, we were able to do several transition visits. One resulted in a great Bible conversation with a wayward member. He has not been to church in 20 years but is now considering returning. He did not agree to a sit-down to do a Bible study, but he did say that it may be a possibility in the future. He invited me to go fishing so there is a connection that is building. Also, through another transition visit, we were able to get a Bible study with the (non-Christian) mother-in-law of one of our members. We were able to do a study with her yesterday afternoon, and it went really well. On Sunday, we had three visitors. One was one of our prospects that we have been sending cards to, her name is Debra. Another was a former member and her son, whom we have been visiting in the past. We were able to take her out to lunch and make some great connections. She and her family may start attending with us again now. We had three visitors, 18 visits made, and six Bible studies this week. Our totals so far…I started work with Cedar Grove in December, so we have numbers from January on. January -April (prior to us enrolling in HTHSOE), we did 15 Bible studies, and had three baptisms and two restorations. We were not keeping up with our visitors, the visits that were being made, or the cards being sent. April-August (after starting the HTHSOE), to the best of my knowledge, we have had 77 visitors, 156 visits made, 1,705 cards sent out, and 43 Bible studies. We have had a total of five restorations and nine baptisms. Our salvation goal is 15; we are at 14 so far.”

Hatton church of Christ, Town Creek, Alabama: Chris Miller (preacher) reports, “Next month will be our third year of our One Mission effort. We have sent over 13,700 cards to date, and we have worked with 350 contacts. We met yesterday and assigned visits that should lead to good opportunities for more studies.”

Creekwood church of Christ, Mobile, Alabama: Tucker Presley (preacher) reports, “We took two visitors out to eat yesterday; one was after the morning service and the other was after the evening service. Both are prime candidates for a Bible study, and I believe both will respond very well to it! We still have one Bible study ongoing. Cards continue to be written each week by members. We have begun planning our Trunk or Treat event, and we will be collecting visitor information for follow-up. We have had more visitors at Trunk or Treat the last few years than at any other event we have ever done. We expect the same kind of turnout this year!”

Petersville church of Christ, Florence, Alabama: Adam Richardson (preacher) reports, “We had a baptism last night at Petersville! One of our young men has been studying with his parents and has made the decision to become a Christian. Another young lady has asked for a study on Tuesday, and we anticipate another commitment to carry the cross from that as well. We sent ten compassion cards and have invited the community to our mental health workshop this Saturday. Sunday was our special ‘legacy Sunday’ to honor grandparents and recognize the young people moving up into new grades and Bible classes. We had more visitor yesterday than on any other Sunday of the year! Many are members of other faithful congregations, but several do not attend anywhere; we encouraged them to come back. We had a response from a wayward brother who has been neglecting the church since COVID; he has repented. Please pray for John that his renewed zeal will continue! God is blessing the church here in many ways.”

Hartselle church of Christ, Alabama: Justin Smith (preacher) reports, “Last week our new movers volunteers met for the first time. I was shocked by how many have volunteered to help with this program, which involves door-knocking and meeting strangers. It tells me one thing clearly: people are hungry to share the Gospel at Hartselle church of Christ. The seminar, training, materials, and recent success have all fueled an attitude of evangelism that was previously dormant. This coming week, we launch our ministry for visitors, which we have named ‘Welcome to the Family.’ I know through our collective efforts, the family of God will be increased!”

Highway church of Christ, Benton, Arkansas: James Hutchinson (member) reports, “We had four visitors this past week. We prepared compassion cards to express our love to the lost. The work is getting results. We have had six baptisms this year.”

Mountain Home church of Christ, Arkansas: Joshua Adams (preacher) reports, “Our New Movers Basket Team met to organize their efforts and will be launching in earnest soon. This coming week, we are especially looking forward to our booth at the county fair. While we have always made it a priority to be present there each year, working with the HTHSOE model has given us a renewed focus and purpose in gathering new contacts. To build on that momentum, last night 16 of our members stayed after services and wrote 26 cards of encouragement. We are eager and ready to connect with even more people in the days ahead!”

Avalon church of Christ, Milton, Florida: Preston Silcox (elder) reports, “Although it has been a few weeks since our last report, we have been super busy. Our attendance is increasing with visitors at each service. Members are reaching out to friends, neighbors, and co-workers by inviting them to Bible classes, worship, and studies. We have six new Christians engaged in our New Convert classes. Over the last few weeks, we have had 11 Bible studies with non-Christians and one four-hour religious discussion with four Catholic young men and their priest. More studies are planned for the next two weeks, as well as follow-up with our visitors.”

Margaret Street church of Christ, Milton, Florida: Troy Spradlin (preacher) reports, “I firmly believe that if we do the work of evangelism by planting, and watering, the Lord will provide the increase, just as He did for Paul and Apollos (1 Corinthians 3:6). That is the message I strive to convey to the congregation regularly. This week, there was not much movement with our evangelism ministry, as two of our Bible studies were canceled, and no new contacts were made (from visitors or submissions). However, our compassion card teams continued to work, and a few transition visits were made. Other members prepared visitor bags and organized materials. We will keep working. We will keep planting and watering. Our current 2025 Year-to-Date Accountability Board numbers are: 240 Total Contacts received; 65 Visitors; 170 Neighbors (prospects with whom we have loved and/or held studies); 70 Bible studies (total completed); 1,895 Compassion Cards sent; two Restorations, and 16 Baptisms.”

Niceville church of Christ, Florida: Joe Palmer (preacher) reports, “Sunday was a high point for our church family as we witnessed a remarkable profession of faith and obedience to the Gospel. Over a decade ago, a lady attended the Margaret Street church of Christ in Milton, Florida, with her family. She learned the Gospel but never obeyed. Fast forward to ten days ago, when we had a call from a resident of the American House Retirement home. The caller told us her friend, 96-year-old Pat Jahn, wanted to be baptized. I visited Pat that day and learned that she understood the Gospel because she had listened to the it preached in our faithful sister church just to the north of us for several years. We asked questions and discussed the Scriptures, and she was open about her desire. I tried to get her to be baptized that day, because the Gospel is urgent. It is not so easy to do things quickly when one is 96. I suggested we go to a pool and make it easy. Our baptistry is up a long flight of stairs. As we talked on the phone and in person, she really wanted to be baptized in the church building with her church family present. She was going to attend the next day, on Wednesday, but got sick and asked me to call her next week. I called and was able to go by on Thursday; I took one of our ladies who was a Navy wife, like Mrs. Pat was. On Sunday, Lynn picked up Mrs. Pat along with two of her friends. We were going to baptize her. I actually planned the entire service around this event. I shortened the sermon and taught on ‘What Jesus Did for You.’ She was crying during the lesson. I knew it was going to take some time and effort to get her up the stairs and then down into the baptistery. I had two men ready to carry her up the stairs in a chair. The song leader was prepared to lead some songs as we got ready. Everyone could see Mrs. Pat straining as she walked down into the baptistery, assisted by the three of us. We lowered her into the water, and the Lord added her to the Kingdom. Mrs. Pat’s grandson and his wife attended. They were crying and promised they would be back with her. We are now working on setting up a study with the residents of the home. We have at least three prospects and maybe many more. I cannot adequately relate how touching this was to our entire congregation. I wish she had been able and ready to do this immediately. However, I believe in God’s providence; a great good was done for many people, which may lead to more fruit. This week we sent 25 cards and had two studies.”

Woodstock church of Christ, Georgia: Matt Amos (preacher) reports, “WCOC and the Sunabella Assistant Living Facility had ten non-Christians at the devotional on Sunday. The HTH Door Knocking Group is preparing for the National Door Knocking Campaign that is set for September 20, 2025. The New Movers Door Knocking Campaign visited four doors. The Prison Ministry Group is registering another volunteer preacher to help conduct Bible studies. The Compassion Card Group created and sent ten cards. WCOC had sixteen non-Christian visitors to the last two Sunday morning worship services. We also had seven Bible studies. We are blessed with one baptism.”

Edgewood church of Christ, Columbus, Georgia: Mitchell Deering (deacon) reports, “We currently have seven active Bible studies underway. With 45 cards sent this week, our total for September so far is 78 cards. We had four visitors this past Sunday, which provides valuable opportunities for follow-up and potential Bible studies. The follow-up team continues to play an important role in connecting visitors and compassion card recipients to further contact.”

Cartersville church of Christ, Georgia (remote): Charles Harris (regional trainer) reports, “We have eight new prospects for the month of September. We will be delivering ten new movers baskets. Throughout this month, we will be making at least 28 visits for the purpose of setting up Bible studies.”

Eatonton church of Christ, Georgia (remote): Roderick Coney (minister) reports, “We just started a Bible study this week with one of our contacts. We are working on our prospect list, hoping to bring another person on board. We appreciate all prayers as we continue to fight the good fight.”

Collinsville-Troy church of Christ, Illinois: Jason Wright (elder) reports, “We conducted a study on Wednesday with a recent convert’s son, and we plan to continue that study in a week. One of our elders conducted another study in Book 3. We mailed 69 compassion cards and delivered three new movers baskets. For the month of August, we made 63 new movers visits and delivered 27 baskets for a 43 percent success rate. We made seven of 12 follow-up visits for a 58 percent success rate. This week we will go out again on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. Our clothing closet will be open this Tuesday from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m., which is another great way to get contacts.”

Beloit church of Christ, Kansas (remote): Dustin Dougherty (regional trainer) reports, “On Sunday, we had about 24; several members were traveling. My wife and I put together several new movers baskets and delivered three of them after our potluck. All three were very happy to receive the gift baskets. The first and third were new to the area, and the second had lived here for several years. She said she was not new to the area, and I told her that we were making up for lost time and would still like her to have the basket, and we were glad to have her in Beloit. She almost started crying. Next, we will follow up by sending new mover cards. Seeing the smiles on their faces was worth the time it took to drive around and deliver the baskets. We are looking forward to doing it again soon. We have several other things regarding outreach in motion at the planning stages and will be implementing some of them soon. To God be the glory.”

Columbus church of Christ, Kansas (remote): Matt Fowler (member) reports, “If you followed our report last week, you read that I had a study with Dan, a coach and dear friend from a rival school last weekend, and he obeyed the Gospel. Last Friday night, our football teams met in the season opener. Dan’s team prevailed in the game, but it was a great consolation to hug a new brother in Christ after the game. He told me he is planning on taking his daughter through Back to the Bible. God has been good to us, and the brethren have been working hard. So far in this short month, we have sent 29 compassion cards. We have also made three follow-up visits and have one Bible study currently going. Brooklyn, a freshman girl who was recently baptized, completed the first study of BTTB with a cousin who happens to be a classmate. They have study #2 scheduled for next week. I’m very proud to see her evangelistic heart and her love for her friend. We have two more studies scheduled to start next weekend. I am starting one with one of my football seniors next Saturday, and Brooklyn’s mother, Suzanne, is going to start one with her brother. Please be praying for our ongoing efforts as we pray for yours.”

Flatwoods church of Christ, Kentucky (remote): Nathan Adkins (elder) reports, “We had a good week last week.  We are still moving forward.  I told the men (elders and deacons) last night that it is a little hard to lead in a place I have not been, but I was doing my best. Last week, we had one Back to the Bible lesson taught and the second one set up.  I know that a lot of us are prospecting.  We had seven visitors on Sunday morning.  One of them was brand new.  We gave him a visitor bag, and we got his contact information. We have all our materials now set up for our coordinators.  We have assigned a coordinator for the visitor’s ministry. Saturday, we will go door-knocking.  Please pray for us to make some good contacts.  Then this Sunday we have a Gospel Meeting.”

Central church of Christ, Paducah, Kentucky: Adam Faughn (preacher) reports, “We had another study with Sam. We completed Book 2, and he is seeing the truth, but it is taking a little while for him to work through each booklet, so things are going well, but slowly. We hope to at least start Book 3 this week. He was terribly sick over the weekend, so we might have to wait a little while for him to recover. We are scheduling a study with Marilynn, who has been visiting with us for some time. We are thrilled to begin with her, likely on Wednesday. We continue to have guests each week and are doing our best to encourage each one. Good things are happening in Paducah, and we give God all the glory.”

Madisonville church of Christ, Kentucky: Russell Kline (preacher) reports, “We had three visitors. We mailed out 30 compassion cards to two addresses.”

Gonzales church of Christ, Louisiana: Patrick Adkins (deacon) reports, “Our morning sermon was on discipleship; our evening sermon was a mission report. We had a youth devotional after our evening service. We filled out 106 cards and prepared them for mailing. We had our fourteenth baptism today. He was in the teen class that just finished Book 3.”

Beltway church of Christ, Camp Springs, Maryland: LeAndre Johnson (preacher) reports, “Eric Sykes, a regional trainer, facilitated the training class on Wednesday. Our Sunday sermon was about how the parable of the prodigal son is part of evangelism. We are developing a culture to focus on the lost.”

La Plata church of Christ, Maryland (remote): Eric Sykes (regional trainer) reports, “This past week we visited six new movers and delivered two gift baskets. We are currently in Chicago, where we were able to meet and worship with the brothers and sisters at the South Holland church of Christ in South Holland, Illinois. We introduced Lorrie Harris, a childhood friend of Sandy, to the members and the leadership. Lorrie is a new convert with whom we have been conducting weekly Bible studies for the past two years. The saints at the South Holland church of Christ were so kind. Since Lorrie lives less than three miles from the church building, the transportation deacon assured us that the church will provide her with a ride to worship, for as long as she needs one. She is so excited. Please pray that everything goes well for her, and that she will continue to grow in the knowledge and the service of the Lord.”

Jackson church of Christ, Missouri: David Selvig (elder) reports, “This past week has been such a blessing. A young lady decided to be baptized yesterday. She came from a denomination, and after studying the Back to the Bible booklets, she realized what she needed to do. We have finished the first two lessons on Back to the Bible during our Sunday morning gathering, and we could feel a real enthusiasm in the congregation. I am currently studying with another gentleman, and we will be doing Lesson 3 on Thursday. Prayers from all would be appreciated for positive things to come from this study.”

Aberdeen church of Christ, Mississippi: Jonathan Hagar (preacher) reports, “We had many visitors. Most of them were return visitors from a few Sundays ago. They returned to eat with us, as it was our fellowship meal. All in all, we had about 11 visitors. Of those, six of them were new, and five had come as a result of our compassion card mail-outs. One couple came who had already gone through Lessons 1-3, but they did not obey the Gospel. After we sent them cards, they came to the building for the first time and told me how impressed they were with the love and encouragement from the church. They said they wanted to talk about being baptized, and the woman wants her mother to go through the Bible study that she and her husband had studied with us. I am going to use a Bible study that I designed to be a follow-up after Lesson 3 for those who want more time and study. I call it ‘Convicted’ (two-part study). We have set a time to talk with them this week to go over baptism for the couple and to have a study with the mother. I have three other Bible studies this week. Two of the studies will be on Lesson 2, and one will be starting on Lesson 1. This week will also be our transition week for the five families that have been receiving our compassion cards for the past four weeks. We have also added new designated mentors to our church work. We also registered with House to House, Heart to Heart for the Annual Door Knocking Day on September 20!”

East Flushing church of Christ, New York (remote): Clarence Jenkins (preacher) reports, “On Sunday, we had five visitors. After worship service, we watched the video ‘Introduction: In the Footsteps of Jesus.’ Our metrics thus far for and through the month of September are six baptisms, five visitors, 19 prospects, eight Bible studies, and two in a new convert study. We are preparing for the Brotherhood-Wide Door Knocking Day. We appreciate all prayers.”

Alkire Road church of Christ, Ohio: Tony Dunnagan (deacon) reports, “This past Sunday, we had 11 visitors and made two contacts, and we have one Bible Study at this time. Congregational training will continue as we work towards our evangelism goals.”

New Concord church of Christ, Ohio: Terry Townsend (preacher) reports, “We sent 80 compassion cards to past new movers and visitors, and we included in each card a nice but short note signed by every member as well as a small insert invitation for our upcoming Gospel Meeting. We also added one new contact to our compassion card list, and a round of ten cards will be mailed out to that individual this week, followed by a second round of cards next week. We did have two first-time visitors for services this week, and they, too, will be receiving cards and follow-up visits.”

Coweta church of Christ, Oklahoma: Keno Shrum (regional trainer) reports, “We are gearing up for our upcoming Gospel Meeting. Matt Wallin will be our guest speaker. For years, we have judged the success of Gospel Meetings based upon how many other congregations attended. This year, we are making a concerted effort to bring in the lost to hear the meeting. We want this to be a Contact Creator! We are preparing for the door-knocking on September 20. The members are being trained, and we will use cards and prayers as our method. Last week, Jamie and I traveled to Copperhill, Tennessee, for Continued Education Training with the Ocoee Street church of Christ. This is a motivated congregation, and I know they will take the training and put it to use in their soul-saving mission. From there, we traveled to Orange, Virginia, to a Sunday Kickoff for the Orange Community church of Christ. This congregation recently enrolled in HTHSOE by using the Remote Enrollment Option. They are progressing through the training and already implementing strategies learned.”

Owasso church of Christ, Oklahoma: David Combs (elder) reports, “Our Sunday morning lesson was titled, ‘Do You Want the Church to Grow?’ This was our theme for a bookmark card refresh. We passed out invitation cards in groups of ten for the congregation to hand out. Invite cards have been a great approach for us. Following our evening service, Team 1 met to write compassion cards. Fifteen card writers wrote 165 cards to be mailed out to five new prospects plus six visitors. Below are our stats for the first week in September and year-to-date. Visitors: 6; Prospects: 5; Visits Made: 3; Cards Sent: 165; Bible Studies: 7; Baptisms: 0; and Baptism Goal: 18. We have nine baptisms for the year.”

Sycamore Chapel, Ashland City, Tennessee: Jackson Erwin (preacher) reports, “We just hit our 600 mark on compassion cards. We had a productive meeting with all the coordinators to get the ball rolling on our visitations, meals, and door knocking.”

Cookeville church of Christ, Tennessee: Joshua Kennedy (preacher) reports, “We have five new sets of compassion cards going out this week. We finished up the last round, and I will be making a visit this week for a contact made by those. We have new mover’s baskets going out this week. We are also hopefully in the final steps of planning a possible regular door-knocking opportunity. I have made up some plans and have some interest. Thanks for your prayers and encouragement!”

Ocoee Street church of Christ, Tennessee: R.E. Vann (elder) reports, “What a blessing to have a regional trainer come for continued education. We are nine months in, and he provided us with a much-needed refresher. We were struggling in several areas, but together we were able to identify several variables in the evangelism model that will help us obtain more Bible studies/baptisms. We continue to be blessed with 14 visitors, and nine of these stayed afterwards for our monthly fellowship meal following services. As a result, several Bible studies are in the works. Be prayerful, be patient, trust the process, and never give in.”

Covington church of Christ, Tennessee: Wayne Dalrymple (elder) reports, “We have three Bible studies going on currently. One of those is a teenager who has been attending our services with his family for a while. Jeff finished the third book of BTTB on Sunday. He knows what he needs to do and that he should do it now. Please pray he will make that commitment this week. There is also another gentleman I studied with last year who told me at the time he was not ready to be baptized. He texted me the other day to tell me he is seriously thinking about it now. We will be studying again soon to refresh his memory on why he needs to be baptized. We will be door knocking this Saturday. Please pray we find good and honest hearts.”

Free Will church of Christ, Gainesboro, Tennessee (remote): Andrew Scott (preacher) reports, “We continue to make contacts each week. Lord willing, I have lunch scheduled with one of our prospects next Sunday after services. He is the husband of one of our new converts. I hope to begin Back to the Bible with him.”

Blackman church of Christ, Murfreesboro, Tennessee (remote): Brian McCord reports, “We have reorganized our card writing this week to do the best we can. Eight of us (plus four children) will write cards. That makes 12. We will send four cards a week for three weeks to each of the five prospects we have at the moment. We will be more intentional about making the visits in a timely fashion after those three weeks are up. We had three visitors yesterday and have added them to the list, along with two prospects that we had already. We have assembled three teams of four people for each team who will write cards to each prospect during their week. During the other two weeks, members will visit anyone who is ready for a follow-up. This puts us in a three-week cycle for a prospect to receive 12 cards in those three weeks and then get a follow-up visit the following week.”

East Main church of Christ, Murfreesboro, Tennessee: Brad Rowley (elder) reports, “August was another busy month for East Main. We wrote a total of 83 compassion cards. We had six new Bible studies during the month. As of last week, East Main reached 100 new Bible studies for the year! To God give the glory! We obtained 13 new contact cards during the month. The majority of these contacts were from the Medicare community outreach event. We delivered 12 new mover baskets during the month. Jay Pugh, one of our elders, started a New Convert class last Sunday, August 7. Our next community outreach will be a blood drive, scheduled for October 4. A couple of our elders plan to visit the Karns church of Christ in Knoxville this month. We would like to share evangelism strategies and possibly improve our efforts at East Main. We are looking forward to the door-knocking day. We are praying for opportunities to obtain solid contacts. It was great to attend PTP this year; this is such a great opportunity to exhort one another and learn how to evangelize. Tim Alsup has a new book called, How Do You Share the Gospel in our Culture? This book can give your evangelism efforts a shot in the arm. We set up our HTH magazine mailbox. East Main is located in a very busy area with a lot of foot traffic. The elders have been discussing some ideas to improve our campus ministry with Jeffrey Smith, our college minister. We hope to have most of these in place by the first of the year.”

West Sparta church of Christ, Tennessee: Justin Turney (deacon) reports, “This last Sunday, we continued for the second week in gathering our list of prospects from our list of contacts. I have noticed a lot of enthusiasm from the congregation when they give us names of people for us to begin prospecting. They are excited, and we hope to continue this excitement. We currently have three Bible studies going. I am doing one this afternoon with a friend of mine, whom I’ve known for my entire life. We did lesson one last week, and he enjoyed the study, so we are going to do lesson 2 today. We continue to pray for the success of all who are evangelizing and thank you for all the prayers on our behalf.”

West Fayetteville church of Christ, Tennessee: Steve Jefferson (elder) reports, “We have another batch of new mover baskets assembled, and the coordinator has the new list for our area. We are encouraging all members to check the list for new neighbors near them. This past Sunday, Compassion Card Team #2 sent 36 cards to three contacts.”

New Union church of Christ, Manchester, Tennessee: Paul Fulks (elder) reports, “We had three visitors this past week. We prepared 43 compassion cards for mailing. We also made three visits. Our New Convert class continues with two students.”

Grundy Street church of Christ, Tullahoma, Tennessee: John Summers (preacher) reports, “On Sunday, I did the lesson on Visitors.  I modified the lesson from the website and entitled it ‘If There Should Come Into Your Assembly’ (James 2:1-4).  It seemed to be well-received. The elders, Care Card coordinators, and I met on Thursday evening last week and went through all our visitor cards.  We identified those that should receive one card (e.g. visitors from other congregations, etc.) as well as those who we’d start targeting for the care cards as we begin that effort.”

Arlington church of Christ, Tennessee: Brandon Tibbits (preacher) reports, “Next week, we are installing two deacons to help with the work. One has already expressed interest in working with the new movers, and one of the elders will be focusing on the unfaithful. We are developing more of the contact producers to try and reach more people.”

Chapel Hill church of Christ, Tennessee: Matt Jones (deacon) reports, “Tuesday, we had the opportunity to baptize a new brother into Christ after studying with him for several weeks. We praise God for this and plan to continue to walk with him in this new life. We do have a couple of other Bible studies ongoing, so we continue to pray for those as well.”

Mountain Creek church of Christ, Chattanooga, Tennessee: Michael Tomshack (elder) reports, “For the month of August, we sent 41 compassion cards, and we have three ongoing Bible studies. Lord willing, we will see positive outcomes from our August efforts.”

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 to three prospects, and we are planning two visits. We are concluding two Bible studies this week.”

McEwen church of Christ, Tennessee: John Jones (preacher) reports, “Two Bible studies continue to go well. We are going to go back through previous contacts and see if anything has changed in their situations so that they might be more interested in a study. We are about to start new movers for this month, and there have been a few college-age student visitors. We will be having two of them over for dinner on Wednesday night!”

Collierville church of Christ, Tennessee: Justin Evergarden (evangelist) reports, “Our congregation is still in training, and this week we were able to start two new studies. This Sunday, we will also begin our New Converts’ class. Additionally, we are sending out 46 cards to six different individuals this week. We are thankful for the progress being made and appreciate all continued encouragement and prayers.”

Soddy church of Christ, Tennessee: Joe Mallory (preacher) reports, “This week, we will send out about 30 compassion cards to many for whom we have been praying. Some on our list have visited recently as a result of sending cards, while some have upcoming surgeries. Along with continued studies, we plan to follow up with some prospects who are already on our list. Training continues with the HTHSOE curriculum. We are very appreciative of the prayers to the Father on our behalf!”

Philadelphia church of Christ, Lebanon, Tennessee (remote): Alex DeGraves (associate preacher) reports, “We signed compassion cards for three people yesterday and are waiting on a little more information to prepare cards for new movers.”

Hillcrest church of Christ, Springfield, Tennessee: Tim Taylor (evangelist) reports, “We are grateful for another baptism this week! Jonathan, one of our deacons, baptized his nephew Owen, who has been visiting with us at Hillcrest. We also have a Bible study ongoing, and another that we are planning to schedule this week.”

Birdwell Chapel church of Christ, Cottontown, Tennessee: Kerry England (elder) reports, “Our new youth minister and his family began worshipping with us Sunday. We are delighted to have them and know they will be a blessing to the congregation! We had a potluck following morning worship and had a couple of visitors join our fellowship. It gave us a good opportunity to get acquainted with them. We mailed compassion cards to five individuals. We mailed out invitations to a BBQ dinner and corn hole tournament on the 20th of this month. These were sent to individuals whom we had previously contacted.”

Rivergate church of Christ, Madison, Tennessee: Doug Tooley (preacher) reports, “We had five visitors on Sunday morning and two on Sunday night. We had a restoration on Sunday morning and one last Sunday that I forgot to list in my update. One of our Bible studies is close, and we are praying about that.”

White Oak church of Christ, Chattanooga, Tennessee (remote): John McGiffin (preacher) reports, “This week, we held Family and Friends Day. My wife and I personally contacted over 60 past visitors and contacts about the event. We called several, texted several, emailed over 20, and sent cards to over 30, encouraging them and also letting them know we are available for Bible studies. Four people responded to us immediately. In addition, we had one person come from an area community church who had attended the Bible Lands Museum. She had received one of our cards. Another woman was church shopping and is going to meet with us this week for lunch. A third person was a man who attended our congregation as a youth. He has not attended for many years. He wanted to start coming back to church. He carried a Bible that one of our older members had signed and given to him when he was in that member’s class as a youth. We continue with our studies gained from the Facebook posting. Nothing new to report, but things are going well. We have two ongoing Bible studies. Things are going slowly. Sometimes the tortoise will win the race. “

North Jefferson church of Christ, Mt. Pleasant, Texas: Davin Whatley (evangelist) reports, “Our congregation has seen a positive development in our evangelistic culture since we first learned about the HTH model, but now we are working to get back to the HTH model. Yesterday, I gave a message from Luke 10 and handed out the Neighbor Bookmarks. We will now be asking the congregation about their names every week. On our compassion card list, we are currently writing cards to four prospects and three wayward Christians. Our compassion card list has lost its focus, and we are in the process of restructuring it. Currently, we have one ongoing Bible study and eight people who have regularly been attending services but have not set up studies. We have been blessed to have three baptisms since July 27. I began teaching a Foundations (New Converts) class on August 17. We are currently using Bobby Bates’ Growing in Christ.”

Natalia church of Christ, Texas: Jim Word (elder) reports, “Please pray for us as Charlie Brown’s wife, Diana, has passed away. Aside from the heartache this family is going through, our congregation needs prayers as our eldership is now dissolved. As for our evangelism work, I am scheduled to have a study with Casey tomorrow evening. Also, a man named Murdi has agreed to do a study later this week or early next week.”

Southwest church of Christ, Austin, Texas: Bryce Mayfield (evangelist) reports, “Yesterday, we spent the day restarting and reintroducing our evangelism program. Cody and I both preached evangelistic sermons, and over the next several sermons, I will be reintroducing the congregational evangelism plan. I began Sunday with the contact phase of the program. This was successful for several reasons: we reintroduced the bookmarks, our high school kids are getting involved by working on our visitor welcome baskets and writing welcome cards, and the congregation is aware of what we are doing to contact the many so that we can prospect the few. As each day comes, more and more members are getting involved and finding their role within our efforts. Our main focus has been on our visitors, but over the next couple of weeks, we will also begin to focus on new movers and door-knocking. Momentum seems to be building, and our prayer is that we will begin to accomplish our goal of winning souls. At this time, we have two Bible studies being conducted. Also, this week I will be working to narrow our prospect list to roughly 20 people so that we can concentrate our efforts on these souls. We appreciate all prayers, and we pray for all involved in this good work. May God be glorified in all that is done!”

Granbury Street church of Christ, Cleburne, Texas: Ryan Cowan (deacon) reports, “We had another successful Thursday ‘pie night’! We are learning that compassion card in-person visits require a ‘can-do’ attitude. We again bought a cookie and cream pie, gathered three prospect addressees, loaded up in the car, and set out for a visit with a ‘we won’t be stopped!’ kind of attitude. We were able to connect with Zack, the son of two of our members. We caught Zack at work. It was really fun surprising him with a cookie and cream pie! He had a few minutes to visit with us. He was extremely appreciative. All three of us want to know Zack a little better. We prayed together before leaving. Our Thursday night ‘pie visits’ have been a great way to take part in the work.”

Bridgewater church of Christ, Katy, Texas: Doug Suggs (deacon) reports, “Daniel was baptized by Chad last week. He had been coming for a year and moved back. Bianca could not meet with us on Friday, but on Monday evening, Wade and I did the second BTTB lesson with her. Things are going well. Louvon and I will be studying with Catherine on Wednesday. We sent cards to some prospects and others who needed encouragement.”

Roanoke church of Christ, Texas: Caleb Rutherford (preacher) reports, “Another set of Transition Visits is in full swing. We assigned six visits, and a couple of others are already in the process of being planned. We had a few visitors at the service on Sunday, and we are working with them this week as well. We continue to pray publicly for those on our prospect list during worship. We also plan to door-knock as part of the National Door-Knocking effort. We plan to focus on new movers. Group 2 wrote to five prospects. We are excited about our continued evangelistic efforts and hope to see them continue to grow.”

Colleyville church of Christ, Texas: John Garza (regional trainer) reports, “Currently, we have two active studies taking place, with one of them really considering the Gospel of Christ and obedience. We are reaching out to a couple of other souls. Lord willing, we will be able to get a study set up. Currently, we are emphasizing our New Convert program and our ‘Reaching the Lost’ program, with many members becoming more involved. Right now, we are considering more ways to generate contacts.”

Wheeler church of Christ, Texas: Garrett English (preacher) reports, “We had all the VBS follow-up delivered last week with an invitation for Sunday. I reached out to a few others who had visited before to invite them to Sunday’s fellowship meal, although we had no visitors this week. I will be delivering the Bibles we give to all the sixth grade classes in the county this week. This has been a good contact maker for us. We have also made plans to give out Bibles along with two other local congregations at a public event in October. This will give us many contacts as well.”

Northern Oaks church of Christ, San Antonio, Texas: Mel Hutzler (elder) reports, “Sunday, we had 27 trained on ‘How to Do Follow-up Work.’ It was received with excitement and eagerness. We will be able to make 11 teams from those trained. In addition, we report that one of our most recent converts, a teenager, is in a Bible study with three of his friends using Believe the Bible. He has also given us names for card writing. We are grateful for the zeal this new convert is showing us all. This past weekend, we sent three from our congregation to assist and train in ‘How to Go Door-knocking’ in the West Texas town of Midland with the Westside church of Christ. They contacted 27 people, of whom 12 were entered into their Compassion Card ministry. Joseph Groda has remained through the week to assist in continued door-knocking. We will update contacts made as they are added. This past Sunday, we made seven contacts with our visitors. Our next training will be on ‘How to Fill out a Contact Card.’ We currently have nine people to ask the follow-up questions. We are studying with three people using Believe the Bible, one using Does It Matter, two using Back to the Bible, and three using Searching for Truth. Our entire youth group is using God and Man. We have four people in the New Convert classes.”

Howe church of Christ, Texas: Aaron Alsbrook (preacher) reports, “We are continuing to pray for our evangelism efforts in Howe. As we continue to write cards to contacts and make visits, we also pray for those contacts to become prospects. Sunday, our New Converts class started with a total of seven in attendance, which included new converts from family and friends and several from our recent HTHSOE training. Our eldership invited each of the new converts by personal letter, and the class is off to a great start. It is our prayer that we continue with the idea of converts bringing in more converts.”

Abingdon church of Christ, Virginia: Freddie Klein (evangelist) reports, “We were blessed with multiple visitors from the community at our Sunday morning worship. One family is currently exploring local congregations, and Brian joined us for his second week in a row—he first came as a result of the House to House/Heart to Heart mailing. This past week also marked our first round of compassion card mailings, an important step in reaching out to those in need of encouragement. In addition, I had a follow-up Bible study with our new convert, Jordan, as he continues to grow in the faith.”

Williamsburg church of Christ, Virginia: Jim Bishop (elder) reports, “This week our water ministry took a very interesting turn. One of the ladies stopped at Dollar General and was recognized by the clerk. The clerk told her that her husband had stopped and talked to the ladies at the water ministry during his daily run. He was impressed that they were out providing water and material about the church. The lady said they had just relocated to the area and were looking for a place to worship. God builds on every small event that glorifies Him. You don’t have to ‘Go’ far but you have to ‘Go’ out of the church building. People are always watching our actions and reactions as Christians. However, God is always with us and supplies opportunities for us to spread His Word. Small acts of love and kindness ‘Go’ a long way. May God be with all those reaching out to those who are lost. Our prayers go out for obedience and understanding to follow Christ in His way to seek and save the lost.”

West Side church of Christ, Salem, Virginia: Jeff Durham (elder) reports, “Continuing our PREPARED series of lessons, we focused on ‘D’ for Discipline. Using Ezra 7:10 as a core text, the writer proclaimed his desire to seek, do, and teach God’s word; the West Side family was encouraged to have the same mindset. We can do this by having hearts that are PREPARED through proper motivation, total dedication, and divine instruction from His word. Practically, we need to take the Gospel to everyone, be quick to introduce spiritual matters into our casual conversations, and show others the joy we have that comes from actively serving others each day.”