Harmony Church hosted Ben Williams who works with Randy Clarke in the Supernatural School of ministry. He and his wife also founded Life Ministries International. Life Ministries are committed to helping churches reach the lost, grow in spiritual gifts and disciple new believers. Ben has personally seen over 3000 people come to Christ.
Ben discussed ways of evangelism that have been used in the past but are not based on a foundation of God’s love; ways that were based on the fear of God and God’s anger at sin and humanity; ways which have been unhelpful and conveyed a false image of who God is. Often people who are negative towards Christianity and God, have had bad experiences; they are not necessarily rejecting Jesus, but rejecting their misconceptions about who Jesus is.
Ben talked about God’s love and how essential it is to be rooted and grounded in that love when it comes to sharing about Jesus. He talked about how each of us was God’s idea, that we are all God’s dream come true. One of his catch phrases was "Jesus loves you and it’s not your fault". When we really know we are loved, accepted, cherished and worth dying for…. then we have good news to share.
Ben also highlighted the need for the supernatural in evangelism as this is what Jesus and the apostles did. He taught that it is important for people to have an encounter with God and his love rather than just hear about him. This is manifest through the supernatural including receiving prophetic words, physical healing, and words of knowledge. Ben himself has also used tattoo interpretation as a way of sharing Jesus. Ben taught on how to receive prophetic words for people, and how to start a conversation with a stranger. One method he taught was “being the student”. This is where you approach a person and say, "Hi, I’m currently learning how to encourage people. Would it be okay if I practice on you?" They are likely to say yes, so share with them what you feel God is saying. This is much less confronting than asking someone if you can pray for them. Another key emphasis was that evangelism is a lifestyle not just an event. Our efforts should not just go into evangelism events but also into being open to share in everyday life, like when we are doing the groceries, walking the dog, or getting petrol.
Part of the reason of having the seminar was to intentionally reach people. The month leading up to Ben Williams visit, Harmony Church used the “Operation Andrew 111 campaign”. This involved each congregation member being given a card on which they wrote the names of three people, and they prayed for each person for 1 minute each day for a month. At the end of the month, they then invited the people they had been praying for to church. The people that did not accept the invitation would continue to be prayed for.
On the Sunday, Harmony had two evangelistic services in which Ben preached the gospel. Over both services 23 people responded to Jesus. Each of the people that responded were given Ben's book 'The Basics in 21 days'. This is a book designed to help new Christians learn, grow, and establish a solid foundation in their relationship with God.
Article by Janelle Nye
BIO: Benjamin, with his wife Micah Joy, is the founder of Life Ministries International a ministry concerned with reaching the whole person and the whole world. He also works for Global Awakening in Dr. Randy Clark's Global School of Supernatural Ministry. He has been a church planter, lead pastor, staff pastor and a full time itinerant. Ben and Micah have authored a book for new believers entitled, The Basics in 21 Days. He has a passion for people to become who they were created to be through Christ. The fruit of his passion is he has led over 3,000 people to Christ and has seen thousands healed of various problems. Ben has trained multiple hundreds of people in power evangelism from all over the world. He currently lives in Harrisburg, PA with his wife and two young daughters. To find out more go to www.releasinglife.com.