ISEMA Newsletters
200,000 Join in Marches for Jesus across England
On September 16, 1989, about 200,000 Christians joined in regional marches for Jesus in about 40 cities all over Great Britain. Leaders of 4 evangelism ministries in England had been meeting with leaders of hundreds of churches throughout the nation for months praying and planning for this event. During the past month, groups of Christians had been marching throughout England carrying torches and praying for the nation. This is the third year for this annual event. Participation has grown from 10,000 in 1987 to 60,000 in 1988 and finally to 200,000 in 1989.
At each regional location, Christians were divided into units of 100-200 people who would march together. They would read from a script involving responsive readings of prayers and worship songs (written by worship leader Graham Kendrick). The script is based upon the Lord’s Prayer and is calling the people of England to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.
They have found that using a script helps maintain energy and focus during the march, and gives them the opportunity to pray and proclaim their faith with one voice. The idea of using a prepared script may seem strange, but the effect is quite powerful. Here is a brief excerpt from the script:
Make way! Make way! For the King of Kings!…Jesus, we welcome you! Welcome the King of Kings! Who has power to save? Jesus! Who has conquered death? Jesus! Who is Lord of all? Jesus!…We are marching today to worship God, to proclaim before the whole of heaven and earth that he is the rightful ruler over this land, and to pray for his Kingdom to be extended into every part of it.
The March for Jesus is part of an effort to join together believers to evangelize England by the year 2000. For more information, or to get involved in 1990 outreaches in England, contact Ichthus Christian Fellowship, 107 Stanstead Rd., Forest Hill, London SE23 1 HH, Tel. 01-291 4057 or Youth With a Mission, 13 Highfield Oval, Ambrose Lane, Harpenden, Herts AL5 4BX, Tel. 05827 65481.
Las Vegas Outreach
This past year, the Southern Baptists held their national convention in Las Vegas. During the convention, Arthur Blessitt led over 100 Christians in a march with his 12-foot cross through downtown Las Vegas. As they marched, they prayed, sang, and gave out tracts and Bibles to people. When they stopped in front of Caesar’s Palace, traffic came to a halt and TV cameras began filming the event.
Before the convention, 1800 conventioneers, including SBC president Jerry Vines, went door-to-door through the city, contacting over 100,000 households in two afternoons, conducting evangelistic surveys and giving out tracts. 470 professions of faith were reported. Nevada Baptists are hoping to plant 25 new churches in the area during the next year.
Legal Victory in Washington D.C.
(By Attorney Jay Sekulow. From the C.A.S.E. Newsletter, P O Box 450349, Atlanta, GA 30345.)
A group of Christians decided to have a large gathering in Washington D.C. called the D.C. Project. It included Christian veterans organizations, church groups and 750 pastors from all over the country. The organizers obtained permits for the large prayer meetings, signed contracts for use of a public auditorium and even talked with police concerning where street activities would take place. Outdoor preaching and tract distribution was planned.
Everything seemed fine until a 2 inch thick lawsuit was filed against the D.C. Project by one of the largest law firms in Washington D.C. Immediately, we were in court….The lawyers from the opposition attacked first the pro-life aspect of the project. Then they challenged the free-speech activities. These activities included passing out tracts and street preaching…BUT THEY LOST. After the pro-life victory, the judge then protected all of our free speech rights….
While we praised God for the victory, the law firm filed two more suits. These were in Virginia and Maryland….(Both judges ruled in our favor.) After losing in the courts, they tried the D.C. City Council. An emergency order was passed. We told the City Attorney that we were going to file a Temporary Restraining Order and we did. No one has been arrested under the emergency order.
Coming Events
March 9-10, 16-17, 23-24 Spring Break Outreach, Corpus Christi, TX. “America’s Third Coast.” Over 200,000 on beaches. For more information, contact Street Ministry for Jesus, Box 8222, Corpus Christi, TX 78412, (512) 991-1111.
March 16-25 Operation Christlift Outreach, Austin and San Antonio, TX. Contact Rev. David O’Dell, 3400 W Park Blvd. #2117, Plano, TX 75075, (214) 519-0195.
Saturday March 17 St. Patrick’s Day Outreach and Worship Rally. San Francisco, CA. Contact SOS Ministries, Box 27358, Oakland, CA 94602, (415) 531-5325.
April 7-18 New York City Outreach. Contact Scott Hinkle Outreach Ministries, Box 380306, Duncanville, TX 75138, (214) 331-6902.
April 11-15 Mexico Easter Outreach. Reynosa, Tamaulipas. $110. Contact Calvary Commission, Box 100, Lindale, TX 75771, (214) 882-5501.
Saturday April 7 and 14. Easter Outreach and Worship Rally. San Francisco, CA. Contact SOS Ministries (address above).
May 24-26 Indianapolis 500 Outreach. Indianapolis, IN. Contact Christ in Action, Box 100, Chatsworth, GA 30705, (404) 695-1868 (deadline March 29) or No Greater Love Ministries, Box 263, DuQuoin, IL 62832, (618) 542-4503.
June 2-10 Honduras Outreach. Contact No Greater Love (address above).
June 21-27 Los Angeles Outreach. Witnessing to South Central area. Housing provided. Contact Bonnie & Odis Hayslett, Genesis Harvest Ministry, 3549 M.L.King Blvd. #C-175, Lynwood, CA 90262, (213) 609-1410 or 729-0207 (beeper).
June 23-July 10 Outreach to 1990 World Cup Soccer Championships, Florence and Rome, Italy. Witness at the world’s most popular sporting event. March and rally in Rome. Street drama. $1995. Deadline May 11. Contact Forward Edge, Box 65238, Vancouver, WA 98665. Forward Edge also is sponsoring outreaches (usually 2 week) to Jamaica, England, China, Brazil and New York, Seattle, and to two Indian reservations this summer and fall. Write them for details.
It’s Time To Renew Your ISEMA Membership!
Ministry Needs
We want to thank you for your prayers and financial support for ISEMA. We also welcome many of you as new members. Please continue to keep us informed about outreaches you will be doing this summer, and send us reports of what is happening in your area. Also, we welcome contributions of articles that would be of interest to ISEMA readers and will print as many as possible. Are there questions you have concerning evangelism, or topics you would like discussed? We want this newsletter to be a forum for discussion of issues of concern to those involved in evangelism ministry.
We are beginning to take orders for the 1990 International Street and Evangelism Ministry Directory. We hope to have it printed by early April. We have added over 100 new ministries this year (500 total listed), made almost 100 address changes from last year, have a separate list of tract and Bible sources, and have listed the ministries according to state, to make them easier to locate. I think you will find this Directory very useful in learning about ministries in your area and all over the world. Copies are $5 for ISEMA members and $14 for non-members–another good reason to join ISEMA.
Our Tape of the Month is Street Drama by Dave Smith of His Way Ministry and Shepherd’s Theatre, a Christian drama group based in San Francisco. This tape was given at an ISEMA evangelism conference and will help you learn more about this method of evangelism and how to start a drama team.
Yours in His love,
Larry Rosenbaum
