Curt Martin says he usually hangs out with Christian friends at the University of Alabama, but after the first Collegiate Evangelism Conference, sponsored by the Office of Collegiate and Student Ministries of the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions (SBOM), the president of the university’s Baptist Campus Ministries said he’ll now be more focused on “living outside the bubble” in order to witness to non-Christians.
“The breakout session I attended at the conference made me more aware of opportunities to witness to nonbelievers,” said Martin, a junior majoring in business management.
The conference, held Jan. 25–26 at Eastmont Baptist Church, Montgomery, was designed to encourage college students to take part in personal evangelism on their campuses. More than 750 students from Baptist Campus Ministries and church collegiate ministry groups from across the state attended.
“The conference was the culmination of two years of planning and praying on the part of campus ministers and church collegiate ministers across the state,” said Mike Nuss, director of SBOM’s office of collegiate and student ministries. “The focus of the conference was to motivate and challenge college students to [take part in] personal evangelism on their campuses.”
Nuss said that many students are familiar with methods of evangelism, but they do not put them into practice in their day-to-day lives on their campuses.
Rick Ousley, minister of The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, served as a program leader at the conference and led a breakout session called “Jesus, the Evangelist: Following the Greatest Example.”
“Rick Ousley did a great job identifying gifts that students might have and giving visual examples with students of ways to use those gifts,” said Eddy Garner, Baptist Campus Minister at the University of North Alabama. “He gave practical examples.”
Led in worship by Michael John Clement of Birmingham and motivated by Becky Pippert, author of “Out of the Saltshaker and Into the World,” attendees heard student testimonies about witnessing efforts and their impact and were challenged to move beyond excuses, fear and timidity to spread the gospel, Nuss said.
The theme of the conference, “The Verge,” was taken from a poem by Meredith Quintana, a student from Valleydale Baptist Church, Birmingham. The poem emphasizes the importance of the moment God calls His children to action, and they are deciding whether or not to obey.
Students also had the opportunity to participate in breakout sessions such as the one led by Ousley and others, including “Crossing International Lines without an Expensive Plane Ticket,” led by Ben Hale, minister of missions and evangelism, Dawson Memorial Baptist Church, Birmingham; Cyber Sharing: Using the Internet as an Outreach Tool for Christ, led by Siam Rogers, missionary associate with collegiate evangelism, North American Mission Board; “Exploring Tough Questions: Telling the Truth,” led by Bob Waldrep, Alabama director for Watchman Fellowship; and “How to Share Without Turning Folks Off,” led by April Robinson, campus minister, Samford University.
“Our students came back energized, excited and encouraged to share their faith on campus” said Garner.
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