Communicators Engage in Soul Winning Through AWR Evangelism Initiative in the Dominican Republic

December 20, 2023 | San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic | Libna Stevens, Inter-American Division News

Nineteen-year-old Jayrene Kock never imagined she would be speaking to dozens of people about the same prophetic bible truths that convicted her to get baptized into the Seventh-day Adventist Church. She was baptized two years ago during an evangelistic campaign back home in Aruba.  She stood at the pulpit at La Roca de Eternidad Adventist Church in San Pedro de Macoris, The Dominican Republic, where members of Amor Adventist Church also gathered to hear her speak during a week of evangelistic meetings.

Ms. Kock was among 32 radio announcers, producers, and technicians from the English and French speaking territory of the Inter-American Division (IAD), who travelled recently to the eastern part of Isla Española as guest speakers to join in the local evangelism efforts. The initiative is sponsored by Adventist World Radio (AWR) in coordination with Hope Channel Inter-America’s Hope Radio which oversees radios stations across the IAD territory.

Kock, who grew up Catholic, has been engaged in leading in youth ministries and volunteering as a radio announcer at Radio Adventista Esperanza, an online radio station, based in Aruba.

“When the radio director approached me about the AWR evangelistic training initiative I was a little hesitant but agreed to take part in it,” said Kock. It was a life changing experience that taught her to depend on the Holy Spirit every step of the way. She said she connected with so many people thirsty for the Word of God. “I’m much more comfortable behind the camera, in a studio behind a microphone but God showed me that He wants to help us expand and be more open to doing His work, that He can turn our weaknesses into strengths,” she said.

It’s all about wanting to be used by God and letting Him [take over], she added. As the week of evangelistic meetings closed, she witnessed five persons being baptized. “This has been life changing for me,” she said. Yea

A transformative experience

A transformative experience for radio personnel is precisely what the evangelistic initiative is all about, said Pastor Eduardo Canales, AWR director for North America, Inter-America, and South America. “The team had been preparing for more than three months through online meetings and orientation with local administrators and church pastors on the evangelistic efforts they would be part of,” explained Canales. Each guest speaker preached 10 sermons with presentations provided by AWR on prophetic emphasis and Christ-centered messages, he said. The initiative included morning training seminars and presentations to help them grow in the field of communications, and in evangelism in the mornings, much like a school of evangelism, before they head out to lead churches, said Canales.

Efforts in San Pedro de Macoris resulted in 197 baptisms during the week of meetings led by the 17 from the English and French Caribbean territory and 15 radio staff from the Dominican Republic, reported Canales.  “It’s been extraordinary to see the culture of evangelism among union and local leaders here in the Dominican Republic, especially as we have been here in San Pedro de Macoris,” said Canales. A strong culture of evangelism among the union and local fields is key to fruitful results in evangelism efforts, said Canales.

The joint venture was possible, thanks to collaboration with the dozens of pastors, church leaders, and members under the leadership of the Dominican Union and Pastor Geuris Paulino, president of the East Dominica Conference, who led his team in preparing evangelism efforts for the visiting team of speakers, said Canales.

The AWR initiative becomes the fourth this year throughout the IAD which also included Colombia, Nicaragua, and Panama where so far more than 140 radio personnel participated and contributed to nearly 2,000 baptisms in just the one week of evangelism campaigns this year, Canales reported.

First-time speaker experiences

For Blain Thomas, 29, who was recently appointed as communication director of the St. Lucia Mission and has been media manager of the 2nd Advent Radio 101.5 FM which also covers the islands of Antigua, Barbados, and Monserrat, public speaking was something he has done for several years. But preaching during the evangelistic series made him nervous and a bit anxious, he said. He was so nervous that his wife came with him for support. “She’s…been giving me pointers, as I’ve practiced and presented the messages,” said Thomas. He was assigned to the Bethania Adventist Church—a small church with five rows of pews. “The members and visitors were so friendly and warm, which made me feel less nervous and more confident,” he said. At the end of the week, five persons were baptized. “This was such an amazing and spirit-filled experience for me and my wife. We have made life-long connections and have been fired up for the mission of God in a new and exciting way,” he added. Three pastors in Antigua have already placed him on their preaching schedule for 2024, he said. He was recently elected as an elder in his local church.

Magdalena Taveras, 51, who works at the church’s Radio Amanecer in the Dominican Republic, said leading an evangelistic meeting at  Las Colinas Adventist Church took away her public speaking fears. “Behind a microphone is much more different and even though I had preached before during women’s ministries Sabbath emphasis, these evangelistic meetings led me to let God use me and reassure me of His presence and bring me to the most amazing spiritual growth experience I have ever had,” said Taveras. Taking part in visiting interested believers during the week and seeing two persons baptized at the end of the series brought her renewed commitment to the mission of preaching the gospel. She’s been inspired to start working on starting a radio program that examines 95 bible texts focused on justification by faith, Taveras said.

Kenisha Simms, 40, who is a radio producer at Word 88.3 FM Adventist Radio Bahamas and serves as children’s ministries director of the South Bahamas Conference in Nassau, said she accepted the challenge of leading an evangelistic campaign one month before she was asked to go to Dominican Republic. This was the first time she ever held an evangelistic campaign, and it taught her so many lessons, she said.

“It’s one thing to minister behind the ‘mic’ through the airways but to see the faces listening to you, even with a translator, I felt like language doesn’t matter if you talk about Jesus, it’s a language that is understood, and praising and worshipping God is the same,” said Simms. Her connection to her fellow speakers, the training sessions, the connection to her Spanish translator and letting the Spirit lead through her experiences and vulnerability, was a blessing, she said.

“The gospel needs to reach all the world and even though I didn’t schedule this in my life, I feel like sometimes we limit ourselves, but we must press on and be part of spreading the message of the gospel leads us,” said Simms. Simms witnessed two persons get baptized at the end of her week’s messages and saw one person interested in baptism.

Twenty-nine-year-old Collet Montejo Jr., who grew up in the Adventist Church, left the church and returned six years ago, travelled from Santa Elena town in Belize. “I was signed up to take part in the evangelistic efforts with the understanding that I would be a technical assistant during the efforts, but after several zoom training meetings I realized I was going to be preaching,” said Montejo. “The key for me was to make myself available for God and let Him guide me to this first experience preaching an evangelistic campaign through lots of prayer, relearning prophecies and preparing like never before to share God’s love,” he said. The experience left him amazed at God’s blessing and falling in love with preaching the word of God back home. At the end of his series at the Villa Progreso Adventist Church in San Pedro, there was a couple interested in getting baptized. “I’m amazed how God moved in my life through this amazing experience.” Montejo has been asked to plan an evangelistic campaign with his local church pastor in 2024.

Patricia Grant, age 34, traveled from Jamaica and works as events and project manager at NCU Media Group which oversees the church’s radio station in Mandeville. She said the experience at preaching at her assigned Porvenir Adventist Church in San Pedro felt like the biggest blessing in her life. “I was received so warmly here. People are so friendly and were so receptive to the biblical messages,” said Grant.  She grew up in the church and has been involved in missionary work, in different ministries including children’s and youth ministries, and she has felt that more and more God is reminding here of her purpose and the mission to fulfill. She saw four new believers get baptized at the end of her series. The experience was like none she had ever been through, she said. “We don’t have to fit in one box, but we must be able to minister where God leads us. We cannot turn Him down but put everything in His hands and let Him guide us,” Grant said.

Valuable opportunities

“This new collaborative relationship with AWR, which is not limited to training in technical and production aspects in radio, but actually involves radio station managers and leaders in participating in evangelism directly, has been very productive,” said Abel Márquez, director of Hope Channel Inter-America and communication director of the IAD. “Taking part in the training session and appreciating how evangelism is transforming the lives of these radio leaders and producers as they share the gospel and deepen their relationship with God allows for closer contact with the church and the community.”

Collaborative plans with AWR for 2024 include evangelistic campaigns in Venezuela, Guatemala and elsewhere in the territory.