'Power Encounters' Bring Discipleship Results

Circles-Evangelism-Power-EncountersAs great as soul-winning ‘power encounters’ are, there’s more to the story.


There’s nothing more exciting than leading someone to Christ through a “power encounter” hosted by the Holy Spirit. I’ve seen a waitress come to Christ because a group of us out for lunch simply showed Christ’s love and talked to her and gave her words of knowledge—even one about her cat! I’ve also experienced times in which the Spirit of God is so tangible during ministry or a personal interaction that people have asked me, “What is this, and how do I come to know this Jesus you are talking about?”

When Jesus spoke brief words of knowledge to the woman in Samaria, she told the entire village about the Lord. I believe these types of power encounters have been God’s preference for evangelism all along. Other methods have some impact, but nothing gets your attention like finding out that God “has your number.”

Yet the salvation experience isn’t the end of the journey. As leaders, we know the number of times someone has had an encounter and then seemingly dropped off the planet.

Get Spirit-filled content delivered right to your inbox! Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

The answer to this dilemma is the local church. If a person is plugged in, he will discover the truth of God’s ways, be trained in the Holy Spirit, hear the gospel message, develop personal relationships that lead to growth, and hopefully become part of a small group where discipleship and ongoing development occur.

I’m so convinced of the benefit of belonging to a church that I would rather see members of my congregation get people to a Bible-believing, Spirit-filled church than merely get them saved. Believers with little or no ongoing training are quickly led astray.

C. Peter Wagner says, “The single most effective evangelistic methodology is planting churches.” Consider why: When a team sets out to plant, all are actively engaged in the process. They take ownership of it and are eager to see the plant succeed, so evangelism and telling others about the new church is a natural byproduct. To fulfill the Great Commission, we and our ministry teams must be actively and aggressively involved in church planting.

I am not minimizing the importance of existing churches. I am merely describing how greater productivity can occur in evangelism.

Thus, as we teach our members how to wisely win souls, we must also convey to them the importance of seeing new believers grounded in the right local church. This doesn’t always mean encouraging the convert to attend our church. Certainly, that is a great option—the person who shared salvation can then share relationship.

Yet it is important to also have information available about good churches to recommend in different areas of town or even in other states. It’s helpful to have information about churches where the particular emphasis might better interest the new believer.

Because it is God who is at work building His church, setting the members as He pleases, I never worry about “giving away” new people. They are His anyway; it’s all the same kingdom.

As we engage in the awesome privilege of winning the lost through power encounters, let’s remember the ultimate purpose: to make disciples. This is not done in one encounter, no matter how dramatic. Lives are built carefully, one day at a time. I believe healthy, growing, relational churches full of the Spirit and the Word provide that environment.


Ché Ahn is senior pastor of Harvest Rock Church in Pasadena, Calif. He also leads an apostolic network in 36 nations around the world and has written numerous books, including Close Encounters of the Divine Kind. For more information, visit cheahn.org.

Get Spirit-filled content delivered right to your inbox! Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.


Dr. Mark Rutland's

National Institute of Christian Leadership (NICL)

The NICL is one of the top leadership training programs in the U.S. taught by Dr. Mark Rutland. If you're the type of leader that likes to have total control over every aspect of your ministry and your future success, the NICL is right for you!

FREE NICL MINI-COURSE - Enroll for 3-hours of training from Dr. Rutland's full leadership course. Experience the NICL and decide if this training is right for you and your team.

Do you feel stuck? Do you feel like you’re not growing? Do you need help from an expert in leadership? There is no other leadership training like the NICL. Gain the leadership skills and confidence you need to lead your church, business or ministry. Get ready to accomplish all of your God-given dreams. CLICK HERE for NICL training dates and details.

The NICL Online is an option for any leader with time or schedule constraints. It's also for leaders who want to expedite their training to receive advanced standing for Master Level credit hours. Work through Dr. Rutland's full training from the comfort of your home or ministry at your pace. Learn more about NICL Online. Learn more about NICL Online.

Charisma Leader — Serving and empowering church leaders