Evangelism took center stage in December when 263 evangelists, pastors and lay members converged in Simi Valley, Calif., for the annual WestPoint of Evangelism. According to its coordinator, Pacific Union Ministerial Director Lloyd Wyman, it was the largest session since they began in 1997.
Written feedback from numerous attendees was positive and appreciative:
"I would give this council a nine on a scale from one to 10, with 10 being the tops. I can think of no way to improve upon what is so good already."
"What I liked best was the chance to take the classes, talk with and ask questions of others in the field of evangelism. Also, the cost was appreciated!"
A pastor from the United Kingdom said these were the best meetings he had attended in his 32 years of pastoring.
Keynote speaker Duane McKee, then-president of the Arizona Conference, directed his remarks toward the session theme, "Turning Hearts Toward Heaven and Home." General session and devotional speakers included Nikolaus Satelmajer, Dan Serns, Hiram Rester, Mike Tucker and Lonnie Melashenko.
Those who came enjoyed a mix of early morning worships, general sessions, 43 break-out seminars and a banquet. Seminar titles included Preaching Dynamic Evangelistic Sermons, Ten Mistakes in Evangelism You Can Avoid, Three Frogs of Revelation, Why Health Evangelism?, Freedom From Habits That Hurt, Be About Our Father's Business, Mission Possible; Religious Liberty and the Gospel; Ellen G. White as a model evangelist; EGW: New Challenges For the Online Critics; Retrieving the Suspense of Revelation's Story; Building Redemptive Friendships and many more.
There were 23 exhibit booths featuring evangelism-related resources, and many opportunities for attendees to interact.
Attendees came from throughout the United States and Canada, plus the Philippines, the Fiji Islands and the United Kingdom.
Special Recognition
For the last two years, recognition has been given to individuals and groups involved in creative forms of evangelism. This year's recipients of the Sheaf Award included Pastor Stan Caylor and the Roseville church Pathways team for their commitment to caring for and discipling new believers in the church; Danny Chan, associate pastor of the Eagle Rock church for his leadership with the new website, PeaceFeed.com; Enoch Marquez, who pastors seven Hispanic churches in the Arizona Conference and leads a team of members in evangelism (in 2007, more than 190 people were baptized into his churches); Jim McMurray, senior pastor of the Sonora, Calif., church for his many years as a volunteer chaplain for the Tuolumne County Sheriff's Office; and Chris Oberg, senior pastor of the Calimesa church, for her leadership with their Adopt-A-Park ministry that works to fill the needs of individuals living in a nearby trailer park.
To learn more about some of these ministries, visit www.spiritflash.org.
Plan Now to Attend
WestPoint is open to anyone. The 2008 session will be held Dec. 7-10 at its usual location in Simi Valley, Calif. As details are available, they will appear at http://ministerial.puconline.org.
