The Hope NOW evangelistic series held its first meetings in San Francisco and San Mateo, and the results are already significant. More than five Hispanic churches in the area were involved in this week-long event, which took place August 17-24. More than four months of preparation led to 37 people choosing to be baptized and professing their faith to God and the Adventist Church.
This preparation included active member involvement. The local church members helped coordinate and lead out in Bible studies in the San Francisco community, which is well known for being one of the most secular communities in the U.S. Despite being a community seemingly lacking God, the people are ready for events that offer hope and healing for their struggles.
Guest speakers Pastor Leon B. Brown Sr. and Pastor Edgar Sanchez were brought in for the event, presenting God’s grace and sharing the message of hope. Pastor Brown, executive vice president of the Pacific Union Conference, was assisted in translating by Pastor Alberto Ingleton. Each meeting included a call for baptism, encouraging people to empower each other in their commitment to Christ.
“One baptism has more power than the best sermon,” said Pastor Sanchez, who is Hispanic evangelist for the Central California Conference. “I believe it was through the power of the Holy Spirit, but we know that God works through human beings under certain circumstances. I met with all the elders and shared a counsel from the inspired pen stating that if there’s one thing that limits the work of God in any evangelistic effort, it's when those involved can't work in harmony with each other. We made a commitment to focus on one thing only — winning souls!”
This event took place under the leadership of Pastor Gilberto Garcia, pastor of the San Francisco Latinoamerica, Nuevo Pacto, and La Voz de La Esperanza churches; and Christian Mardarie, pastor of the San Mateo and South San Francisco churches. They were able to bring together the churches with this one goal, and allow God to take leadership in the event.
“We stayed away from putting pressure on anyone, and let the Holy Spirit do his work,” said Pastor Sanchez. “Every night the church was filled to capacity, but nobody complained. We had to put 20 extra chairs, and I asked the elders and deacons to give up their chairs to accommodate visitors and mothers with children.”
Mardarie added that the event was a powerful display of God’s ability to use our efforts for winning souls. “It was a spiritual celebration of magnitude, a spirit of unity. And thanks to the collaboration of several elders, lay people, and the biblical worker Eduardo Perez, at the end of the campaign six souls were baptized, another nine remain in preparation to take the step on Dec. 14, and about seven more people showed interest in being prepared for baptism.”
“Without a doubt the church was inspired and motivated by the participation of all the members involved,” said Pastor Sanchez. Pastor Mardarie added, “Thank you to our conference for the support, and we give glory to God!”
This is the first of several upcoming events focused on the Hope NOW message. Hope NOW is an evangelistic series of Bible prophecy seminars being shared throughout the Central California Conference. It is using messages of hope from the Bible to transform lives with the Gospel message, “aiming to deepen community connections and reach diverse communities—particularly in the dynamic areas of San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and all of Central California” (www.hope-now.us).
Fifty-one speakers will share messages at 93 sites throughout the conference. These speakers include Pastor Ted Wilson, General Conference president; Alexander Bryant, North American Division president; Vyacheslav Demyan, Hope Channel International president; Paul Douglas, General Conference treasurer; and Calvin Watkins, North American Division director of evangelism.
The main part of this series will be taking place Sept. 6-14, 2024 at many different locations throughout the conference. Learn more about the upcoming Hope NOW events at www.hope-now.us. You can also access downloadable flyers, posters, social media posts, and more that allow you to share the excitement of this event with your community.
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