By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer
HAUGHTON – Bill Britt had aspirations of playing big time football as a promising high school athlete, but his life’s plans and priorities changed immediately when he accepted Christ during a revival at First Baptist Church in Haughton.
Excited about his newfound faith, the next morning Britt posted a handmade sign in the locker room asking teammates to come talk to him about how to become a Christian.
That same day, he shared the plan of salvation during math class.
It would be the beginning of a lifetime spent sharing the Gospel from Louisiana to the uttermost parts of the earth.
“I think getting saved at a revival is one reason I am so passionate about evangelism, especially in large settings,” said Britt, founder of Compel Outreach International. “I saw how much of an impact revival meetings can have on a local church and surrounding community.”
A graduate of Louisiana College, Britt was called to evangelism in 1982 while serving as pastor of Freedom Baptist Church in Pitkin. His invitations to preach at other churches steadily increased to the point that Britt felt it was time to say yes to God’s invitation to “step out in faith.”
Compel Outreach International, started with his wife Wendy, has planted churches in Kenya (58), Philippines (12), Ghana (4), Mexico (3), and Zambia (1), and, built orphanages in Kenya and India, with 201 and 25 children, respectively, living on site. Additionally, nearly 500 pastors have been trained through Compel Outreach Bible University in India since 2001.
But, the heartbeat of his ministry is soul-winning, and Britt has preached to crowds ranging between 100 and 50,000 people, sharing the Gospel at more than 1,000 crusades worldwide.
Sometimes, those soul-winning campaigns run well beyond their scheduled end dates.
In April 2015, Britt led a “three-day” revival at Crockett Point Baptist Church in Crowville that actually lasted 14 days because of the expanding impact of the Holy Spirit in the community.
Britt recalls three other campaigns which experienced similar heavenly favor and were extended – one at New Pleasantdale Baptist in Philadelphia, Miss., another at First Baptist Church in Pine Prairie and yet another at Longview Baptist in Deville.
“It’s exciting to see God still moving and working to the point we have to extend the revival,” Britt said. “To see that many people show up on additional nights, impromptu, lets you know God is touching the hearts of people.
“It’s thrilling to see God answer your prayers and see the Holy Spirit to move in powerful way,” he continued. “In fact, it’s exciting to witness not only what God is doing that week I am preaching but long after I’m gone, from hearing about a dad who has been absent in the home and gets right to a teenager who gets off drugs and returns home. To know God will use me is a very humbling experience.”
Britt will be a featured speaker for the 2017 Evangelism Conference, Jan. 23-24, at Temple Baptist Church, Ruston. Visit: https://louisianabaptists.org/event/ECON2017.
