October 13, 2024
CARTERSVILLE, Ga. – A small church in north Georgia has begun the year in a big way, by baptizing nine new believers.
“It’s amazing to see God moving in such a big way with everything we’ve been through in the past couple of years,” said Cassville Baptist Church Pastor Andrew Hackler. “There’s nothing else we can credit this to other than the moving of the Spirit and faithful obedience to what God has called us to.”
Similar instances of revival were reported across Georgia throughout 2022, resulting in a significant increase in baptisms.
An early review of statistical reports submitted by churches to the Georgia Baptist Mission Board show more than 9,000 baptisms in 2022. That's with only about 1,000 of the 3,400 Georgia Baptist churches reporting.
On Sunday, 198 people sat shoulder to shoulder in the Cassville church, applauding as each new believer was baptized.
“It was a huge day for our church,” Hackler said. “It was probably the highest attended service in the history of our church.”
Hackler, who has been pastor at Cassville for the past 2 ½ years, has seen the congregation recover and grow since the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the state. The church is now averaging between 120 and 130 people each Sunday.
The first indication that revival in Georgia may be carrying over into 2023 came just over a week ago when 20 students made salvation decisions at the Georgia Baptist Mission Board’s MOVE Conference, a two-day Christian experience for middle and high school students.
Another 73 said they felt called to become either ministers or missionaries.
“I would tell you that I’ve been doing this long enough to not be surprised by what God can do, but, that said, I would also tell you I was blown away by this,” said Chris Trent, the Mission Board’s next generation catalyst who organized the event. “It’s incredible to see how God moved among so many students.”
The MOVE Conference is the largest winter evangelism initiative for teenagers in Georgia. In all, 132 churches brought more than 2,500 people to the event.
The Mission Board organizes the MOVE Conference as a service to the state’s churches, many of which have made it a mainstay of their youth ministries during the Christmas break.
Trent, who was a longtime youth minister before joining the Mission Board staff, said students have become more sensitive to spiritual matters, as seen in the large numbers of salvation decisions and the calls to ministry. Twenty-five students who had previously given their lives to Christ committed to follow through with baptisms at the MOVE Conference.
“God is stirring among teenagers right now, especially when it comes to feeling called to ministry and missions,” Trent said. “It’s incredible.”
