Seniors lead teens to Christ in Colorado
WESTERN COLORADO—Presenting the Gospel to others in a foreign land may conjure up images of young adults who stay up all hours of the night and live on soda and junk food.
How about a group of senior adults going to the great unknown to make friends and boldly share Jesus with others whom they have never met before in their lives?
This is what a group of senior adults from the Wright-Douglas-Ozark (WDO) Baptist Association did this past summer. On July 11 the group met with Kent Shirley, director of missions (DOM) for the Grand Valley Association in Colorado. Shirley spent 2½ hours sharing with them about the culture and religious climate of the Colorado area. He also trained the group in the using of an evangelism cube called the Evangecube®. The Evangecube® is a simple way for all to share Jesus, from parents to children to pastors and missionaries.
The group included nine WDO churches and one couple from Tabernacle Baptist Church in Piedmont. After meeting with Shirley, the group was able to put what they had learned into practice. They went to Palisade, Colo., a town of approximately 1,500 to witness on the streets. For four hours they saw 14 souls saved. Most of those souls were teenagers. Normally teens would not listen to senior citizens, but this day the Holy Spirit moved in mighty ways.
On the mornings of July 12-13, the group was taken to downtown Grand Junction. Again, they used the Evangecube® to share Jesus on the newly restored historic Main Street. After reassembling on the bus after their second day, they learned that 24 people had prayed to receive Christ as Savior and Lord, almost all adults.
On July 14, the group kept on sharing Jesus. They had traveled up to Utah to spend several days in Arches National Park, and on their way home God ordained that they stay in a Quality Inn. Even with the trip being “done” in the eyes of some, this group of lively senior adults was not about to let a moment pass by without sharing the Gospel with someone. In light of this, they felt led to share with the night clerk who was working that night at the hotel, and the clerk got saved.
The WDO sent two groups to Western Colorado in 2005, followed by four groups in 2006. From 2005-2007, WDO has sent members from 16 of its 26 churches; many have gone three or more times.
“Mission trips make changes,” said Dick Wakefield, director of missions, WDO. “Not only do people in Colorado get saved, but every one of our people come home with a whole new perspective about missions. The people who come back are not the same people we sent out!”
Altogether, the people of the Wright-Douglas-Ozark Baptist Association have seen more than 80 people saved this year alone through their partnership with the Grand Valley Baptist Association.
If your church would like to get connected with a Colorado church, contact Norm Howell at 573-636-0400, ext. 620, or email at nhowell@mobaptist.org.