Regional Synod of Canada - Reformed Church in America

Pioneer Christian Monthly

Date - Nov/75

Contributor - Hans de Waard

Title - Evangelical Work in Wainfleet

Topic - Evangelism

It seems that a group of people in our classis are quite interested in the evangelical activities which are experienced in our Maranatha church during the past few years.

I am thus glad to summarize how God, in His so wonderful and also loving manner, taught us gradually to grow in the Spirit and sharing His love with others. Through the Wainfleet pastors' fellowship, it was decided to adopt a strategy of evangelism in which the laymen would be the carriers of the good news. Thus, in 1972, the motives of the Key '73 program were adapted by all of the seven Wainfleet churches, of which I was chosen to be chairman for this group. Each church was to be responsible for an activity involving evangelism in, our community that year. Our start was to send all the volunteer laymen and women to a one week training school, in how to share the wonderful way of the Christian life.

Such training was provided by the Lay Institute For Evangelism (LIFE), in a local church, with approximately 800 participants of which 90 lay-people of our own church attended. There we learned to understand and more so experience what it meant for our own selves that Jesus died for our sins simply because God loves us! Experiencing such a joy moved us to learn to share such love. And how we shared! During that year, every house and every family in our large township was visited and told of God's love for us; also the books Luke and Acts were left in each home. Then we learned that such work had to be organized and had to have a plan and a scheme. We !now learned how easy it is to share for each person by having a plan and a studied guide! It was not only possible for the "good talkers", as people thought one should be, but for everyone who loves Christ and cares for the other. The Maranatha church then was to hold a "weeks crusade" in the arena as their '73 task. A few thousand people the Lord brought in. We thanked the Lord for this, and Campus Crusade for Christ, since our requested number for 125 counselors was so easily filled! Again, prior to the crusade, a three evening counseling-sharing training was held at Maranatha, where again so much love and joy we learned how wonderful it is to be able to pass this on to others.

Now we are in 1975 and since we had a plan and a scheme, we were able to continue to share. Our Reverend Drost had set up a chore group by inviting 3 people, who had followed various LIFE institutes with a 10 week instruction and sharing program followed by a mini rally in which 30 people participated.

Here, multiplication is the word; share the Good News with another who in turn shares it with another and so let Canada, the , world, know how one can be happy and saved in Jesus! Sure it is good that our church grew by more than our set goal - 5 families for this year. But so much more pleasant and joyful it is to talk with those who asked for the way to go back to God and help them!

Our congregation in Wainfleet has since grown much more together. We learned to learn, learned to share and now more so, love one another. Now we are so involved that even over 70 adults started to go to Sunday School this fall prior to the service.

I know that there are many ways in doing things, and thus we took the program which was founded on the Word, which was good for all of us and which was effective; and that was the Campus Crusade way.

Following our sharing with some people in a camp this summer, my partner, Bill Lensink, with a tear in his eyes, said: "Praise God, it works!"

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