Evangelism training targets women, horse whisperers

Evangelism training targets women, horse whisperers

By Bob Baysinger
Managing Editor

March 16, 2004

Lew Sterritt is a renowned horse whisperer evangelist from Pennsylvania who is coming to train Missouri Baptist volunteers. Photo courtesy of Lew Sterritt

JEFFERSON CITY – The Missouri Baptist Convention’s evangelism department is going to get Baptist women – and a few horse handlers – more involved in the battle for men’s and women’s souls in Missouri .

“The evangelism department has not put enough emphasis on Missouri Baptist women," said Bob Caldwell, evangelism director. “We have not really reached out to women of the state. We now want to help them accomplish what God has called them to do."

The first step toward strengthening women in the area of evangelism, Caldwell said, will be to bring Jaye Martin, founder of the HeartCall evangelism ministry with the North American Mission Board (NAMB) of the Southern Baptist Convention, to Missouri to help Missouri Baptist women learn how to share Christ.

The HeartCall conference is scheduled for April 1-3 at Concord Baptist Church in Jefferson City . The meeting will feature Martin and Tracy Jones of the NAMB’s HeartCall staff.

Martin says in HeartCall promotional literature that the organization’s purpose is “to find women with a passion for God, train them to make a difference and network them to carry out the task of bringing Christ to the world, not bring the world to Christ."

“I believe that God is calling women to share Christ with a lost world," Martin said. “Across North America , women are hungering and thirsting for God. They are seeking ways to apply God’s Word to their lives and become women with a purpose. They are realizing they can make a difference in their marketplaces for Christ."

The big evangelism event for the MBC each year has been the annual evangelism conference.

“I feel as if the evangelism conference has always catered toward a man," Caldwell said. “We need to realize that women have unique gifts and can relate to one another in a more knowledgeable and understanding way.

“HeartCall is specifically designed to teach women how to relate to other women in sharing their faith."

The cost for the conference will be $30, which will cover the cost of all materials. Caldwell said the evangelism department will pay the $30 for the first 150 women who register for the conference before March 30.

Meanwhile, the evangelism department has scheduled a horse whisperer training event on April 2 at the Fruitland Sale Barn.

Lew Sterritt, a renowned horse whisperer evangelist from Pennsylvania , will provide the training

Horse whispering involves the sharing of the Gospel while breaking a wild horse in a one-hour period.

“We want to accomplish two things with this event," Caldwell said. “We want to do an evangelistic event for the Cowboy Church at Fruitland and to train as many Missouri cowboys as possible in the area of evangelistic horse whispering."

Caldwell said seven Missouri Baptist men are now scheduled to be trained as horse whisperers.

“I’d like to have five more who are willing to be trained so they can go out across the state and do horse whispering events at county fairs, associational youth camps, rodeos and other venues."

More information about the horse whispering event or the evangelism training for women can be obtained by contacting the evangelism department. Caldwell said calls should be made to Luanne Yarnell at 800-736-6227, extension 655, or email Yarnell at lyarnell@mobaptist.org.