JEFFERSON CITY – When God took hold of Michael Quinn’s heart, becoming a revival evangelist didn’t factor into Quinn’s plans. He remembers “the call to preach was harder to answer than the call of Christ.”
“The thought of preaching terrified me. I never wanted to be a public speaker. However, the Lord would not leave me alone. He kept putting that desire in my heart.”
Today, Quinn serves as staff evangelist at Concord Baptist Church in Jefferson City and, besides serving at the church, preaches revivals and holds evangelism conferences several times a year.
Michael Quinn
He says, “There has been no greater thrill than to lead men and women, boys and girls to the Savior. When I get discouraged,” Quinn says, “telling someone about Jesus brings back the joy in my life.”
Quinn did not grow up in a church. He came to Christ at age 26 when Pastor Paul McKim of the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church (Hartsburg) visited him at home and told him about Christ.
“Two Thursday nights later, Pastor Paul had me going out on visitation.” That experience helped Quinn learn to share the gospel.
“The first person who came to the Lord through my personal witness was my dad,” Quinn remembers. “Initially, he was not happy about the change in my life. He was an alcoholic and our get-togethers always involved alcohol.”
“When I refused to drink with him and told him I didn’t believe Jesus wanted me to drink anymore, he became very angry. He told me if I kept talking about Jesus, someone was going to cram Him back down my throat.
“The next week he came to church. A couple of months later he gave his life to Christ.”
Later, Quinn’s father became a deacon at his church.
Quinn, a member of the Fellowship of Missouri Baptist Evangelists (FMBE), has been in ministry for 40 years. He says it was McKim who challenged him to share the gospel and modeled what it meant to be a witness. That motivated Quinn to see others saved, and “stirred the calling…to become an evangelist.”
He says he doesn’t see churches host revivals as they once did, but still sees value in the meetings.
“Evangelism is essential in the life of a church, and revivals are a good way to remind Christians of the importance of sharing Christ. When there is a purposeful time set aside for revivals, Christians are challenged to share their faith. As a result of increased witnessing, more people will be saved.”
Evangelists, he says, “are a gift to the church, just as a pastor or teacher. The Bible says, ‘And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.’”
“In Ephesians 4:11-12, evangelism is a gift of the spirit and used for equipping the saints. God gifts evangelists to reach people and to encourage and equip saints to witness.” Quinn says another benefit of evangelists is they are “an encouragement to the pastors and try to build them up in their congregations.”
Despite his misgivings about preaching, after the Lord called Quinn to be an evangelist it became his desire and his calling. “I have tried to do other things, and nothing satisfies me or brings me joy.”
He’s pastored churches in Missouri and Kansas and says the experiences help him “understand the heavy responsibility pastors bear in trying to shepherd the flock God has given them.”
Today, as staff evangelist at Concord Church, he serves alongside its pastors. Since the church is currently without a senior pastor he shares in some of the pastoral responsibilities of counseling, making hospital visits, officiating at weddings and funerals, encouraging the church’s outreach, leading its Celebrate Recovery ministry, participating in jail and prison ministry, and occasional Sunday preaching.
He also participates on mission trips, hosts church revivals, and leads evangelistic conferences and retreats.
“My goal in any setting is to exalt the Savior, equip the saints, and evangelize the lost,” he says.
The traits of an evangelist are not that different than for other Christians, Quinn says.
“He must live what he preaches: walking the walk, not just talking the talk. The ability to communicate his personal salvation experience and a simple knowledge of the gospel is necessary. An evangelist should be able to explain the way of salvation that even a child could understand.”
An evangelist should have a deep devotional life, spending time in prayer and Bible study, he says. “Everything must be bathed in prayer.”
Evangelists must also have godly obedience, discipline, a good work ethic, humility, boldness in preaching against sin, and the realization that one is a servant.
“Evangelists should challenge, but also encourage the church. Speak truth in love. An evangelist is not there to beat believers down, but to build them in the faith.”
He says that following God’s call for his life “has been a great adventure” and nothing motivates him more than seeing someone come to Christ.
To contact Quinn for a revival or conference, call 660-414-7653 or email mquinn@concordjc.org.