In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Inter-American Division (IAD) being officially established as an administrative regional body by the Adventist World church in 1922, leaders of the IAD cast a vision of and organized for a massive division-wide evangelism explosion during 2022. Consequently, the division’s 24 unions were grouped according to the three official languages (English, French, and Spanish) of the division to carry out major evangelistic endeavors.
The five English-speaking unions (the Atlantic Caribbean Union (ATCU), the Belize Union of Churches, the Caribbean Union, the Dutch Caribbean Union, and the Jamaican Union) came together to conduct the Footprints of Hope, Walking with Jesus Online Evangelistic Series with Evangelist Glen Samuels that was held during January 15, 2022 to February 26, 2022.
With the launch of this online evangelistic series, ATCU put into motion, under God’s guidance, its plan to realize its goal of 1000 baptisms for the kingdom within the first 100 days of 2022. As a result of the working of the Holy Spirit and the hard work of the committed members throughout the union, who allowed God to use them to share the meeting link and witness in so many other ways, ATCU has recorded 511 baptisms at the end of the online series.
“We are so appreciative of the many members who shared the link and contributed to the success of this series for ATCU,” said Dr. Cheryl Rolle, executive secretary of ATCU. “God has truly blessed our effort.”
The services were viewed by thousands on various media platforms and at in-person locations across the territory of ATCU. Among those who accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior were Donald and Fredericka Nottage in Nassau, Bahamas who viewed the series on the big screen erected in the parking lot of the New Providence Seventh-day Adventist Church where they and all who attended were served popcorn as they watched the series. According to Pastor T. Basil Sturrup, the pastor of the New Providence Church, they had both been searching for a church home. On the opening night of the series, Donald received a call at home asking him to assist with someone’s vehicle that had broken down. Donald went out to fix it and his wife, Fredericka, decided to go with him. After completing the work on the car, for some reason, they decided to return home using a route that they never took. On this route, they passed the New Providence Church, saw the big screen, pulled into the yard, and never missed a night after that first experience. They attended the meetings, listened to the sermons, and, through the moving of the Holy Spirit, made their decision to be baptized.
“We praise God for the moving of His Spirit through the perfect blend of public evangelism and digital and media ministry, and for the impact they made in the lives of this family and so many others across the territory of ATCU,” said Dr. Kent Price, ATCU assistant to the president for evangelism.
With a membership of 33,130, ATCU, which is headquartered in Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas, comprises four fields, namely, the Cayman Islands Conference, the North Bahamas Conference, the South Bahamas Conference, and the Turks and Caicos Islands Conference. In addition, Northern Caribbean University, which is located in Mandeville, Jamaica, is jointly owned and operated by ATCU and the Jamaica Union.