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Hundreds of Southern Baptists will arrive June 8 for Crossover Saturday the weekend leading up to the 2013 annual Southern Baptist Convention.
As in previous years, participants will help host block parties and special outreach events designed as opportunities to share the Gospel.
This year Southern Baptists will have additional opportunities to share Christ through ministry evangelism as Crossover Saturday aligns with a local initiative to serve the city.
Houston’s Union Baptist Association is launching an initiative called “Loving Houston,” and a weeklong kickoff of the three-year initiative will culminate in a day of Crossover events involving Southern Baptists working alongside local churches as they serve the city and share Christ.
Al Gilbert, the North American Mission Board’s vice president for evangelism and executive director of LoveLoud, says Crossover Saturday will create a mosaic of ministry efforts throughout the Greater Houston Area.
[2]“From the very beginning Crossover was designed to bless the city hosting the annual meeting,” said Gilbert. “Since Houston is one of the largest cities in the US there is a need for many different kinds of opportunities for the people who live in Houston and for those who will be coming to town a day early.”
Gilbert said Crossover Saturday will include all of the traditional components of evangelism training, block parties, and special events.
The association’s “Loving Houston” effort is designed to complement the Crossover strategy.
“We are doing this because we are Christ-followers. Jesus went about doing good and taught His followers to do the same,” said Tom Billings, executive director of the Union Baptist Association. “By doing good we hope folks will ask, ‘Who are you and why are you doing this?’
“This will give us opportunities to share the love of Christ in words as well as deeds. Sharing Christ is our ultimate motive, but not an ulterior motive. We are not trying to manipulate people into becoming Christians. We are doing this because we are Christians,” said Billings.
For more information on Crossover Saturday, June 8, 2013, visit www.namb.net/crossover. To join the Loving Houston outreach opportunities, visit www.lovinghouston.net.