Inspiration. That is the mission of the 2015 Alabama Baptist State Evangelism Conference — to inspire participants to share the gospel across the state and around the world.
Built on the foundation of the 2014 theme, “Serving Across Alabama,” the 2015 conference will focus on “Sharing Across Alabama” and will feature three strategies for sharing the gospel: the CAST method, the 3 Circles method and the My Hope with Billy Graham method.
The two-day conference will be held at First Baptist Church, Trussville, beginning Feb. 23 with an evening rally at 5:45 p.m. The Feb. 24 sessions start at 9 a.m., 1:55 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. The Tuesday evening rally will be centered on worship, said Sammy Gilbreath, director of the office of evangelism for the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions (SBOM), which sponsors the event.
Rick Lance, executive director of SBOM, said that “much is in store” for participants of this year’s conference.
“In a world starving for the good news of the gospel, we can be people who share what Jesus Christ offers to those who do not know Him,” Lance said.
Gilbreath said the event’s mission of inspiration will encourage participants who may feel like their spiritual well is running dry.
‘Spiritually fed’
“I find a lot of pastors and staff hurting and maybe they can come and just get spiritually fed as well as enjoy the fellowship of pastors they do not get to see often,” Gilbreath said.
“Keeping evangelism on the front burner” paired with the potential for the Lord to speak to them should be strong motivators for pastors and lay people to attend, Gilbreath said.
Speakers for the Monday session will be Charles T. Carter, pastor emeritus of Shades Mountain Baptist Church, Vestavia Hills, and Robert Smith, professor of preaching at Samford University’s Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham.
Tuesday’s speakers include Scott Dawson, founder of the Scott Dawson Evangelistic Association; Dan Garland, regional director of LifeWay Christian Resources; Kevin Hamm, pastor of Gardendale First Baptist Church; Thomas Hammond, pastor of First Baptist Church, Alpharetta, Ga.; Josh Lancaster, pastor of Underwood Baptist Church, Florence; and Herb Reavis Jr., pastor of North Jacksonville Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Fla.
Worship will be led by the Gardendale First choir and it’s minister of worship, Roy McNiel. Frank Jones, founder of Frank Jones Ministries, will provide the pre-session music for the Monday evening rally. Daniel Crews, resident artist at First Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Fla., will provide special music for each of the Tuesday sessions.
A Ministers’ Wives Luncheon will be held at First, Trussville, on Feb. 24 at noon with Charlotte Madison as the guest speaker. Madison’s husband, Ron, is pastor of Mount Zion Baptist Church, Huntsville.
Hamm, one of the conference speakers, said he can’t wait for the event to begin.
“If we ever needed an awakening or a God-movement in our state of Alabama, in our nation, now’s the time,” Hamm said.
‘Set us on fire’
“My prayer is that God would just set us on fire and that we’ll go back to our areas of ministry and spread that fire … and that in the end the glory of God will be increased and the kingdom of God would grow.”
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