03 February 2014 | Odense, Denmark [Kim Hagen Jensen] To conclude a large experimental evangelistic outreach effort in Denmark, which included showing Henry Stober’s Creation movie and lectures at local universities, Janos Kovacs-Biro, Evangelism Ministries Director at the Trans-European Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, was invited to Odense, Denmark, to run an evangelistic series for two weeks in January 2014. The target audience included contacts from the film outreach, contacts from other church outreach activities, spouses of Seventh-day Adventist Church members and youth who were considering making a decision for Christ. The aim of the series was to build faith in Jesus and appeal for decisions to follow him and be baptised.
Despite handing out 10,000 flyers, advertising three times in the newspaper and inviting contacts from the film project with personal invitation cards, all of the people who attended were already in contact with the church through other outreach activities. We had an attendance of between 20 and 40 people each night, with up to five non-church members and five non-baptised teenagers.
The series of 18 topics was entitled ‘Meaningful Beginning and Hopeful Future’. Kovacs-Biro told God’s story from Creation to the earth made new, covering major topics from the 28 fundamental beliefs and appealing especially for attendees to embrace the seventh-day Sabbath and make decisions to follow Jesus, be baptised, engage in further Bible study and be positively involved in the community. Kovacs-Biro’s style of presentation, using stories from the Bible and everyday life backed up by PowerPoint slides, not only connected well with the audience, old and young, but also left deep spiritual impressions on church members and visitors alike.
As a result of the series, most visitors made a decision to incorporate the Sabbath observance into their lives, two individuals who had previously been contemplating baptism made the decision to be baptised.
Kovacs-Biro’s evangelistic series was the final event of this particular outreach effort and no follow up as such has been planned. However, the decisions for baptism, Bible study and engagement in the community will be followed up by the local pastor and the church in Odense. [tedNEWS]
tedNEWS Staff: Miroslav Pujic, director; Deana Stojkovic, editor
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