My church, Christian Ministries Church of Southwest Missouri (CMC) is a church full of people who love God and each other.
My pastor, Pastor Ashley Ellison, appointed me as the "Evangelism Director" at the church in December 2009. He said that I can gave the title for the job that I have already been doing. He has a sense of humor.
He has a heart for the lost and believes in various ways to reach the unsaved, including street witnessing. This is saying a lot, as many pastors now days feel that this form of witnessing is too confrontational - although it is very Biblical.
My family and I began attending CMC in January 2009. It's a church located about seven miles south of Clever, Missouri. It's out in the country on a bunch of land - there is even a pond in front of the church.
I never thought I'd like a country church. But it's not really exactly as it appears. Yes, it's a country church - of sorts - but it's also a high-tech church. It's not small, as there were approx. 100-125 people attending when we first started in January 2009.
We have a good band, with singers from some shows in Branson, Missouri. We have a projector that puts the words to the songs on the wall, and they are contemporary songs, etc. They have a good website as well.
Like I mentioned earlier, the people who go here are very friendly, caring and loving. It's nothing like a fast-paced, rush in and rush out, no-one-gets-to-know-you, type church.
The preaching is Biblical and Pastor Ashley loves and cares for the people. It's not difficult to meet with him to talk about something.
Leann (my wife) and I have such a passion to reach the lost by way of being a witness and street witnessing, that we brought this to Pastor Ashley's attention before we ever became "members" (Technically, there is no formal membership at this church. If you attend regularly and call this your home - you are a member).
We found out he has a heart to reach the lost, unsaved people in the world - which is not always the case, just because someone is the pastor of a church.
He told me that he has watched my videos and read about me, just to see if what I'm doing is Biblical. It is. He said he will support our street witnessing ministry and even be open to implementing this into the church.
Leann and I introduced the church to street witnessing, passing out gospel tracts, etc., right from the start. Pastor Ashley came out with us at the St. Patrick's Parade in Springfield to pass out tracts and witness. He was also recognized many times while out, as he used to be part of the gospel singing group, Chosen Few. They still get together and perform every now and then.
The church folks have started to participate in various outreaches, such as going to parades, and even downtown Springfield, MO to pass out gospel tracts and witness as the Lord opens the door.
Here are a few examples of the church either going out to witness or an evangelism event at the church up to this point:
I thank God for opening this door of ministry to me.
In Christ,
Brad St. Clair
UPDATE:
Here are some updates in our church evangelism since I was appointed Evangelism Director in December 2009.
The church members continue to go out at various times and pass out gospel tracts and witness. They also witness in their every day lives, with family, friends and coworkers. Here are several.
Church-Wide Street Witnessing Events:
Church Evangelism Ministry Started
Pastor Ashley and I had been discussing the pros and cons of sending any Christian to any event to street witness. For example, to attend a parade or festival, where it is relatively easy to pass out gospel tracts and witness as the Lord opens the door is not too difficult.
However, for example, if the event is a concert with a wild following, a gay pride event, or late-night downtown street witnessing - any place there is a chance for more of a confrontation while witnessing, it would be wise to have those Christians more fully prepared and trained in witnessing and defending the faith.
I created a church ministry called the CMC SWAT Team with a Mission Statement, guidelines and a logo. Pastor Ashley changed it up some (with a pastor's wisdom) and approved it. CMC SWAT Team began in February 2010. This ministry team will have additional evangelism training to be prepared for these possible encounters.
Listed below are several SWAT Team Outreaches we've attended.
Other Places I Assist in Ministry
- Assist in adding info to the main CMC website and Event Calendar.
- Created and maintained a CMC Blog for a year.
- Created and maintained a CMC Facebook page.
- Created a CMC YouTube account and added church videos.
- Created a CMC Ministry picture site to keep track over the years of various church events and outreaches.
- Take pictures and videos of church events, post those to the church picture sites or create videos and place on the church YouTube account.
I am so grateful to God for opening these doors of ministry to me, as I love doing this. I'm also thankful to Pastor Ashley for allowing me to do this work in the church and supporting me in it.
In Christ,
Brad St. Clair