We are now less than a couple weeks away from Baptism Sunday on Sept. 12 and many North Carolina Baptist churches have pledged to “Fill the Tank” as part of this special day.

I am thankful for the response by churches across our state who have committed to fill their baptistries to celebrate Baptism Sunday. In fact, I’ve heard from numerous churches who have already seen God move as you have faithfully prayed, shared the gospel and trusted the Lord.

Many pastors I have spoken with in the past month have already baptized several new believers who have come to faith in Christ. Praise God! I’m thankful that evangelism and discipleship is the heartbeat of who we are as N.C. Baptists. This is what it means to be a movement of churches on mission together.

Those same pastors that I have spoken with are leading their churches to continue praying, intentionally sharing the gospel and believing that God will save more people who will take their first step of obedience through baptism by Sept. 12.

I’ve also heard testimonies of other churches who have cleaned out their baptistries in anticipation of what God will do. They are also faithfully praying, sharing the gospel, trusting God and believing in faith that the Lord is going to save people between now and Sept. 12.

In fact, that’s all we’re asking you to do through “Fill the Tank.” All we’re asking is that you would fill your baptistry up with water and pray that God would bring people to faith. That’s it! 

If you have not yet registered your church’s commitment to fill the tank, you may do so by visiting fillthetanknc.org. At the site you’ll also find a variety of prayer, evangelism and discipleship resources, as well as a baptism service planning guide that you can use and adapt for your ministry context.

I’ve heard of several churches who are planning special services for Sunday, Sept. 12. We want to celebrate and share how God moves in churches across our state, so please share your story with us. Please visit fillthetank.org and click on the “Submit Story” button to tell us what you have planned and how God moves leading up to Sept. 12 and afterward. Also, be sure to share your stories on social media using the hashtag #fillthetanknc. We want to celebrate with you because the local church is God’s “Plan A” for reaching the lost world around us.

I am praying that God will move in a mighty way in the coming weeks and use “Fill the Tank” as a catalyst for revival and awakening across our state and beyond. Will you join me in prayer? Thank you for your faithfulness and for being on mission together.