Encouraging Evangelists!

In between ministry sessions I was able to encourage them, share some insights, and pray for an impartation for their calling. God is raising up a new generation of Evangelists and it’s incredibly humbling to play a small part in all He is doing! Now I realize that as believers all of us a required to be a “witness for Christ” and to “do the work of an Evangelist” to one degree or another. But there is something special that happens when God places His hand on someone and calls them to devote their lives to the cause of preaching the Gospel.

We need to be people who encourage Evangelists. This world needs more of them! After one of our services in Fiji, I received the following testimony from a young leader who is part of the C3 Church network there:

“I came to your Crusade with a sense that my life was going to change forever. As you were preaching I knew it was a Rhema message from the Lord for my life. As I was listening to the Word of God it was so powerful, I just wanted to listen more and more. My life was changed by that message. I feel so incredibly changed and different in my heart. When you called all the Church leaders to come to the altar, I felt God’s tremendous power moving on the inside of my life.

I felt all of heaven open over me as you laid hands on me and prayed for me. I felt the power of the Holy Spirit shaking me, it was absolutely incredible! You gave me a prophetic word that you believed that as well as a Church leader, God was calling me to be an Evangelist. That was a defining moment in my life. I knew God had called me to be an Evangelist and no one else knew that but Jesus. You confirmed it. I am a big fan of Evangelist Daniel Kolenda and like him I believe God is call me to travel the world making Disciples, preaching the good news of the Gospel.”

Wow, what a tremendous testimony, all glory to Jesus! I believe there is a genuine call of God on this young mans life and that God will bring it to fulfilment. Then this precious young man went on to share his definition of an Evangelist with me and I wanted to share it with you:

“All Christians are called to evangelize and reach out to the lost with the Gospel (Matthew 28:18-20), but some are given an extra measure of faith and effectiveness in this area. The spiritual gift of evangelism is found in Ephesians 4:11-12 where Paul says that Jesus “gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.” The Greek word for evangelists is Euaggelistes which means “one who brings good news.” This word is only found two other places in the New Testament: Acts 21:8 and 2 Timothy 4:5.

Evangelists are given the unique ability by the Holy Spirit to clearly and effectively communicate the Gospel of Jesus Christ to others. They are burdened in their hearts for the lost and will go out of their way to share the truth with them. Evangelists are able to overcome the normal fear of rejection and engage non-believers in meaningful conversations about Jesus. Their gift allows them to communicate with all types of people and therefore they receive a greater response to the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. They continually seek out relationships with those who don’t know Jesus and are open to the leading of the Holy Spirit to approach different people. They love giving free treasure away for Jesus (2 Corinthians 4:7), and it brings them great joy knowing that they have “feet that bring good news.”

I’m not sure where this young man got this definition from, but it is such a succinct and accurate depiction of the role of an Evangelist. He seemed to have a real handle on what it was God was calling him to. He told me it was his goal to personify that definition and it was my feeling that is an incredibly worthy ambition to have! With God’s help I’m certain he will be all God has called him to be!

I pray this testimony has inspired and encouraged you and that this definition of what an Evangelist is called to do has resonated with you. Maybe you have a desire in your heart to be more effective in the area of Evangelism. Maybe God is calling you to be an Evangelist. I’m praying that Spirit of God will touch you in a mighty way today. I’m praying for a great release of God’s power and an impartation from heaven for Evangelism for your life. It’s my prayer that God will transform you into a fisher of men, an incredible witness for Christ.