“Men and women in the highways and byways are to be reached. We read of Christ’s labors: ‘Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.’ Just such a work as this is to be done in our cities and villages, in the highways and hedges. The gospel of the third angel’s message is to be carried to all classes.” Evangelism, pp. 46-47.
January 26 – 30 and February 9 – 12, 1995, two Daniel and Revelation seminars were held in Orlando, Florida and Campbellsville, Kentucky.
One of the purposes of these meetings was to unlock the hidden mysteries of two ancient prophetic books.
Since there are people who are searching for truth having a sincere desire to understand last day events in relation to prophecy, the churches in Orlando and Campbellsville were moved to share the precious gems of truth in their respective communities. Everyone got involved in this outreach with great enthusiasm and expectations.
From Richmond, Virginia, brother Lambert Hazelhoff did his best to help ensure the efficient operations of each seminar. There were the warm welcomes, the announcements and, last but not least, the appeals to contribute generously to defray the seminar expenses.
In Orlando, the choir practiced hard and conscientiously to present hymns of praise and glory to God to help make hearts receptive to the spiritual studies. Heaven and earth reached out to each other through the splendid musical presentations.
Because of the many Spanish speaking people living in Florida, we had to have English-Spanish interpretation for the visitors. The believers were delighted to have brother Delgado from New York City help in the translation work. I was, of course, very happy that he spoke fast, clearly, accurately, and with fervor.
Brethren Harold Mejia and Joshua Martinez, the two new colporteur evangelists from Miami, assisted primarily with the distribution of the invitations in the community.
Advertising was one key factor for the good turnout of visitors. In Kentucky, most of the visitors came as a result of the full page advertising in the local newspapers.
The size of one ad was about 12 inches by 10 inches. This large two-color ad included an illustration drawn by brother Edward Rodriguez, a graphic arts designer. It caught the attention of many readers living in the five counties served by the newspaper. Brother Gary Foster felt that the money for advertising would be well spent, an investment that would sooner or later yield good returns.
After we did our part in inviting, it was the Lord who lovingly impressed hearts to attend. All praise goes to our heavenly Father, his Son Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
At the end of the Kentucky seminar, a total of 29 names and addresses was obtained. Some of this number have requested to be visited and are presently attending Sabbath services, while sister Felicidad Yon has been giving Bible studies to several families who attended the seminar. We all feel richly blessed by the success of the seminars.