This story was written by Pastor Jerry Troyer at Eastport Baptist Church in Eastport, MI.
We are a small church located in northern lower Michigan. This past weekend we saw God do things beyond all we could have imagined. To a sold-out crowd, we hosted our 14th Annual Sportsmen’s Banquet. The crowd was almost three times our weekly average, but more important than the numbers was God’s Spirit working through this outreach event. At the end of the night, we had over 30 spiritual decisions! We had anticipated a harvest as we prayed and sensed God was up to something special. Let me share two of those stories:
The first person, James, wasn’t planning on coming to the banquet, but because his friend, a sponsor of our event, couldn’t come, he passed his tickets on to James. Totally a God thing! James committed his life to Christ for the first time after hearing a clear presentation of the gospel. I’ve got a follow-up meeting already scheduled with him. James is showing clear signs of being all in for Jesus Christ.
The second story is about a couple who has been coming to our banquet for years. We had invited them to church many times and sought to meet with them after every banquet, but they always refused to come or get together. We finally gave up asking, but we still kept praying for them. Unbeknown to us, God was working all that time in their lives. In January of this year, they sought us out and told us they were planning on coming to church. Totally a God thing! This time they followed through and have come every week since. They have also brought their friends to church along with them. We have plans to help them continue to grow in their faith journey.
When we started this outreach, we never intended it to grow this big or to have the impact it has had in reaching those who would never enter the doors of a church building. BUT we have a GREAT God! I believe this is just the tip of the iceberg of the harvest that is coming in this age. To Him be the glory!
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