Evangelism courses offered through BGEA partnership

William Graham (vice president and associate evangelist of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, executive director of the Billy Graham Training Center at The Cove, and Liberty University trustee and alumnus) is contributing to course materials.

Liberty University’s School of Religion is partnering with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) to offer a cognate and a minor in evangelism under the banner of the Billy Graham School of Evangelism Online.

Two new courses, EVAN 201 and 220, began this fall, while two additional courses launch January 2015. Developed from BGEA’s own training curriculum, the courses offer world-class training tools for sharing the Gospel intended to help further the Great Commission.

As part of the new curriculum, students will hear powerful presentations from renowned evangelist Billy Graham and his son, BGEA President Franklin Graham. Students will also hear from William Graham (’97), who is vice president and associate evangelist of BGEA and executive director of the Billy Graham Training Center at The Cove as well as a Liberty trustee and alumnus.

“I’m excited about Liberty partnering with us in this endeavor, and we pray that it’s going to be a blessing not just in knowledge, but in the ability to reach the world through people recommitting themselves to the work of the evangelist, and to doing evangelism on a daily basis wherever God has called them — whether it’s in the work force or at home with kids or as an evangelist preaching around the world,” William Graham said.

“At the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, we’ve focused on evangelism for more than 60 years and we know some great things that God has used timelessly over decades. Now Liberty students will have the chance to have this information for themselves.”

The new evangelism learning opportunities are not just for religion students, according to Gabriel Etzel, associate dean for the School of Religion.

“This partnership allows us to train students in evangelism from every area at the university through these new programs,” Etzel said, adding that he believes Liberty now has “one of the strongest evangelism training programs anywhere.”

In 2013, Liberty University worked closely with BGEA throughout Billy Graham’s My Hope outreach, during which the ministry’s short film “The Cross” reached millions of viewers through Fox News and the Internet. Before it aired, Liberty screened the television special for student leaders, who promoted the film among the student body. When it went live, more than 400 students fielded hundreds of phone calls from viewers seeking to receive prayer or make a decision for Christ.

Micah Green, then a junior at Liberty, was one of those students privileged to lead a viewer to Christ over the phone using BGEA’s evangelistic training.

“It was a young man who said he was just very ready to turn his life around,” Green said. “I was fortunate to be able to be the one to talk to him. I was weeping with joy. I told him to tell other people of his decision because they would be just as ecstatic as I am … It was an honor to be a part of such a great organization that does this kind of evangelism.”

Dr. David Wheeler, evangelism professor and director of the Center for Ministry Training, presented another life-changing BGEA film called “Defining Moments” in his class earlier in 2013. Upon watching the special, more than 80 students made professions of faith in Christ, and more than 1,000 committed to train with My Hope America.

Now, the new courses and academic specializations mark a new milestone in the relationship between Liberty University and the evangelistic ministry, according to Graham.

“As an alumnus, I rejoice at what God’s going to do through Liberty with this program. I love the school. I serve as a trustee now,” Graham said. “Liberty is one of the very first schools that have joined in this, and now future Liberty students will have some of the best material on the planet provided to them.”