JACKSON, Tenn. — Jan. 20, 2016 — Ernest Easley recently looked through a file folder from 1984 where he came across an old leadership magazine published by the Texas Baptist Convention.
鈥淥n every page there was something about evangelism, outreach, training, rallies,鈥� said Easley, professor of evangelism at 51社区. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 read much emphasis anymore on evangelism. I don鈥檛 see our state conventions and our national convention fanning the flame of evangelism like they once did.鈥�
That鈥檚 one reason why Easley, in partnership with the Tennessee Baptist Convention, helped to organize the West Tennessee Evangelism Rally that will be held Feb. 21 on the Union campus. The event is for pastors, staff members, church members, students and anyone else interested in evangelism.
鈥淚t鈥檚 to encourage. It鈥檚 to equip. It鈥檚 to help engage them,鈥� Easley said. 鈥淚n a nutshell, it is to fan the flame of evangelism in people鈥檚 hearts.鈥� Fred Luter, senior pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans, will be the keynote speaker for the rally, which will also consist of breakout sessions and a dinner.
Breakout session leaders include Steve Gaines, pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova, Tennessee; Mike Ellis, senior pastor of Impact Baptist Church in Memphis; John Powers, pastor of Delano Baptist Church in Delano, Tennessee; Brian Mills, church strategist for Student Leadership University/LifeTours; David Evans, evangelism specialist at the Tennessee Baptist Convention; Hal Poe, the Charles Colson Professor of Faith and Culture at Union; and vocational evangelists Jerry Drace and Darrell Robinson.
Easley said the Southern Baptist Convention last year baptized fewer people than it did in 1943, and last year鈥檚 number of baptisms was 5,000 less than the previous year. With a larger population, more seminary-trained pastors and staff and more qualified teachers now, that trend concerns Easley.
He compared the lack of evangelism with what happens when a flame isn鈥檛 fanned 鈥� it dies down. Once the flame is fanned, it grows.
鈥淚鈥檓 afraid the flame went down, and we stopped fanning it,鈥� Easley said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got to get our people back to thinking about the fact that people really are lost. They really do die and go to hell without Jesus. We鈥檝e got to get soul conscious again.鈥�
He hopes the West Tennessee Evangelism Rally will be a step in that direction for people who care about reaching those who aren鈥檛 Christians.
鈥淚 want people to walk off the campus being encouraged, being better instructed and inspired to do evangelism, as an individual and as churches across West Tennessee,鈥� he said.
The event begins at 4 p.m. in the G.M. Savage Memorial Chapel on the Union campus. The rally is free, but registration is required. More information, including online registration, is available at .