On Saturday 11 July, 10a.m. five churches across the North West of England opened their doors for “I Am Andrew” rallies to pray and prepare ahead of the God Loves You Tour on 3 October when Franklin Graham will share the Gospel with thousands at Manchester’s Co-op Live. Each rally combined worship and prayer for the region and the tour ahead, closing with a challenge to become like Andrew in the Bible who continuously brought people to Jesus.
“We’ve been talking about I Am Andrew since the very beginning, because that’s the heart of the ministry—people see the tour as an opportunity to reach their friends for Christ,” said Scott Lenning, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) Festival Director. But seeing the evangelistic opportunity is only half the story—I Am Andrew exists to help believers recognise the part they themselves can play in it. “This was that final reminder: giving them materials, encouraging them, commissioning them to bring their friends to the event.”
At Message Community Church in Manchester, the morning drew people who had never attended anything like it before. Reggie, who was attending for the first time, said the day exceeded her expectations. “I thought it was just going to be a small group,” she said. “It was amazing.” She left having signed up to volunteer.
Olaide, who came to volunteer after his own church hosted a BGEA Christian Life and Witness Course, said the day’s message on Andrew reshaped how he thinks about evangelism. “You don’t need to save them, but you introduce them to Jesus,” he said. “Beyond the introduction, there’s so much in eternity for the person you’ve introduced to Christ.”
Behind the scenes, others were being equipped to carry that message further. Maureen, one of the event volunteers, said real evangelism grows out of relationship rather than approaching strangers on the street. “It was easy for Andrew to bring his brother, because that was his brother,” she said. “It’s so much easier for us to evangelise by intentionally building relationships with unbelievers.”
John Harrington, who serves on the team at Message Community Church, said the they had already booked five buses to take members to the tour in October, and will launch a new discipleship course the Tuesday after for anyone who makes a new commitment to Christ. The church is also running Christian Life and Witness Courses every night for three weeks, so that as many members as possible can attend before October. “I want to see revival of Greater Manchester,” he said. “I was born in Manchester, and I want to see my city revived.”
Please continue to pray for the upcoming God Loves You Tour, that many searching souls across Manchester would come to find faith in Jesus Christ. Find out more at GodLovesYouTour.com.
