CHARLOTTE, N.C. (ANS) -- After months of preparation, Christians across the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico this year opened their homes for meetings and witnessed more than 69,000 people make commitments to Jesus Christ through the 'My Hope' TV outreach.

The programs culminated in a combined total of more than 59,000 home events in March and April, which included a TV program featuring a sermon from Billy or Franklin Graham and a personal testimony from the host.

In the Dominican Republic, 55,391 people made commitments to Christ, with 13,797 doing so in Puerto Rico. Altogether more than 5,500 churches from across the evangelical spectrum were involved in the projects.

Equipped with evangelism training and filled with a passion for the Gospel, the Dominican and Puerto Rican believers opened their homes as part of 'My Hope', a ministry of the Charlotte, N.C.-based Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA). The projects were the largest evangelism outreaches in the history of both the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.

"These faithful Christians took a bold step in inviting their friends and neighbors to their homes, and God truly worked through their efforts and prayers," said Bill Conard, vice president of international ministries for BGEA.

"Projects like this show that evangelism is not only for pastors, but for anyone who longs for those around them to experience the hope and love found only in Jesus Christ."

Conard said: "Collecting results from all churches often takes weeks, and we just recently received the final numbers from Puerto Rico. During that time follow-up efforts were made to help new believers become involved in a local church body and thereby grow in their faith."

He continued: "We’ve been so encouraged by the stories we’ve heard. One small, 70-member church in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, held 11 home meetings as part of 'My Hope.' Of the 71 who attended the gatherings, 62 made commitments to Jesus Christ -- most of them first-time decisions.”

Since My Hope began in 2002, such projects have been implemented in 50 countries.

Upcoming projects this year will take place in Malawi and four sensitive countries in Asia. Preparations are beginning for 2011, for potential 'My Hope' outreaches in Portugal, Spain, Haiti and select African countries.

For more stories, please visit http://bit.ly/ccstQl  . Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico project announcement releases can also be found at http://bit.ly/bbM4HY  (D.R.) and http://bit.ly/cZjHW1  (P.R.).

The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA), which is celebrating 60 years of ministry in 2010, proclaims the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ throughout the world by every effective means available. From its headquarters in Charlotte, N.C., the BGEA directs a wide range of domestic and international ministries, including: large-scale festivals led by evangelists Franklin Graham and Will Graham; Dare to Be a Daniel, a youth evangelism training project; My Hope World Evangelism Through Television; the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team of crisis-trained chaplains; and many others through print, television, telephone, radio and the Internet.

For more information, please visit www.billygraham.org  . Get BGEA news updates on Twitter @ Twitter.com/BGEAMediaPR .

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Media Contact:
Graham Clark
704-401-2116
gclark@bgea.org  

** Michael Ireland, Chief Correspondent of ANS, is an international British freelance journalist who was formerly a reporter with a London (United Kingdom) newspaper and has been a frequent contributor to UCB Europe, a British Christian radio station. While in the UK, Michael traveled to Canada and the United States, Albania,Yugoslavia, Holland, Germany,and Czechoslovakia. He has reported for ANS from Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Israel, Jordan, China,and Russia. Michael's volunteer involvement with ASSIST News Service is a sponsored ministry department -- 'Michael Ireland Media Missionary' (MIMM) -- of A.C.T. International of P.O.Box 1649, Brentwood, TN 37024-1649,at: Artists in Christian Testimony (A.C.T.) International where you can donate online to support his stated mission of 'Truth Through Christian Journalism.' If you have a news or feature story idea for Michael, please contact him at: ANS Chief Reporter