Churches' Joint Evangelism Efforts Lead to 100 Baptisms

Story by LaTasha Hewitt

In a Pentecost 2025 evangelistic endeavor, Allegheny East Conference’s Coastal Shores church in Virginia Beach, Va., partnered with Potomac Conference’s Virginia Beach (Va.) church. Led by James Hiers, Coastal Shores pastor, and Jorge Quintiana, Virginia Beach pastor, the 10-day event began with nightly meetings at the Virginia Beach church campus. Quintiana opened both the church and baptistry to all who desired to commit their lives to Christ. The churches also implemented a compassion project that emphasized relationship-based evangelism through service, compassion and meaningful engagement with community needs.

Each evening began with united prayer, followed by registration and fellowship. Jermaine Nelson, an evangelist from the South Atlantic Conference (Ga.), delivered Christ-centered messages, consistently calling listeners to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. The response included 100 individuals accepting God—74 baptisms and 26 professions of faith.

One Sabbath, Hiers preached a sermon, “Damaged Goods,” illustrating that though lives may be scarred, their value remains unchanged in God’s eyes. Ten individuals responded to the appeal and were baptized.

To retain the new members, Bible evangelists and engagement teams established follow-up systems, Bible studies and ongoing fellowship opportunities.