When a church is committed to evangelism, the creativity which originates from the Holy Spirit makes it possible to come up with all kinds of approaches and strategies to evangelize with. Such was the case with a vibrant church in the huge city of Shanghai. Last November, four couples were ready to tie the knot having nurtured their relationship within the church circle. While celebrating this once-in-a-lifetime occasion, they asked how they could witness for the Christ who had brought them together.
Their young enthusiastic elder, Dennis, suggested that they use the wedding as a means of evangelism, an attempt to reach non-Christian parents, relatives and friends of the four couples. Hence, every segment of the event was a testimony of how God put things together to culminate in the union of their hearts. The brides did all their preparations at church the where they hosted a pre-wedding party. Church leaders entertained the guests by sharing the role of the church in nurturing young people and providing an environment where they could find their life partners.
After that, the wedding party proceeded in an open top tour bus to a larger church (their church was too small for the ceremony) that they had rented for the actual wedding ceremony. En route to the ceremony, the wedding couples and their friends rode on top of the open tour bus, shouting, “We are getting married! God loves us and God loves you!” The bus purposefully chose the most frequented roads where hundreds of tourists and locals heard the message and saw their banners decorating the bus.
The ceremony highlighted the importance of the Fifth Commandment as the couples bowed in typical Chinese style in honor of their parents and gave gifts of appreciation to them. Later at the wedding banquet, the couples gave moving testimonies of how God led them and answered their prayers in providing them with a soul mate.
Many seeds were sown that day and they pray that the God of the Harvest will soon bring precious fruit into His Kingdom.