By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer
INDIANAPOLIS (LBM) – A variety of evangelistic efforts preceding the Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting produced saving knowledge of Jesus in 185 new believers.
According to the North American Mission Board, 44 churches in the Indianapolis area participated in Crossover, which took place June 3-8 in the city. The events had 1,469 volunteers who shared the Gospel with 5,393 people.
Throughout the weekend, efforts included block parties, door-to-door witnessing, compassion projects and more evangelistic events.
Sixty-five students and professors from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary participated in evangelism classes each morning and in the afternoon shared the Gospel door-to-door around the city.
New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary students shared the Gospel outside a home in Indianapolis. They were part of a larger group of students from four seminaries who participated in a week of evangelism classes and door-to-door witnessing in the city. Preston Nix photo
NOBTS had the largest group, with 20 NOBTS and Leavell College students and evangelism professors Preston Nix and Jeff Farmer. By the end of the week, NOBTS team knocked on 1,756 doors and had 227 Gospel conversations that resulted in 33 decisions to follow Christ.
“Several of our students led their very first person to faith in Christ and they were thrilled,” NOBTS Professor of Evangelism and Evangelistic Preaching Preston Nix told the Baptist Message. “Now that they have seen that the Lord can use them to help bring people to salvation, they will do it again. Mission accomplished by this evangelism professor.”
Among the most memorable moments for Nix was when a NOBTS team led a mother and her son and two daughters to Christ at their home along with another individual nearby to a relationship with Jesus.
“While one team member was leading the mother to Christ, which by the way was the first person she has ever won to Christ, another team member shared with her kids and led three of them to Christ,” he said. “Meanwhile, the third team member engaged a guy working on a nearby house when he was walking back to his work truck parked in front of the lady’s home. All of them finished praying to receive Christ at virtually the same time and there was great rejoicing in that Indianapolis front yard that afternoon. Hallelujah.”
