Search for evangelism partners leads layman to Southwestern Seminary

Michael Craiglow, a retired electrical engineer in Grapevine, Texas, felt the urge to witness to people about Jesus. He prayed that God would direct him to one or two others with whom he could partner for door-to-door evangelism. God answered his prayers by leading him to the Everyday Evangelism program at The Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Craiglow, who gave his life to Christ in 1980, discovered Southwestern’s evangelism program online last December, and he emailed Matt Queen, L.R. Scarborough Chair of Evangelism, to inquire if he could participate in the daily efforts. “Dr. Queen gave his permission, and I was glad that this door opened for me,” Craiglow says.

Early in the spring semester, before COVID-19 restrictions put the seminary’s door-to-door efforts on hold, Craiglow participated every Thursday as teams of Southwestern Seminary students and faculty ventured into adjacent neighborhoods to share the Gospel. After joining these teams for five weeks, Craiglow reflected, “I look forward to EE each week, and EE is definitely the highlight of my week.”

Across these five weeks, Craiglow personally saw two people come to faith in Christ.

One young woman was led to a profession of faith by a Southwestern Seminary student at the woman’s front door. A second woman was led to the Lord over the phone as Mark Leeds, the seminary’s registrar, spoke with her mother.

“The mother called her daughter on the telephone,” explains Craiglow, who accompanied Leeds on this experience. “And Dr. Leeds led the daughter to the Lord over the telephone.”

Craiglow says he has enjoyed “having contact with and working with the SWBTS students who are taking part in EE,” explaining that they are “young, intelligent, mature, and have answered God’s call on their lives.”

He says he participates in the seminary’s Everyday Evangelism program not only from a desire to reach lost people for Jesus, but also to encourage the students in their efforts.

“I hope to be able to make friendships with some of the students and see how God uses them after they graduate from SWBTS,” Craiglow says.