History of Alpha by Julie Wiemann (Director of Alpha)

  I love Alpha, and here at the Ridge we love it too.  One of the many reasons we so enjoy using this tool of Alpha is that most people do not like the word "evangelize".   They associate evangelism with people who stand on the street corners handing out 4 Laws tracts, or they think of the apostle Paul the evangelist, and they have no interest in being persecuted for their faith and spreading the gospel.   That's one of the great things about Alpha.  It's an easy way for us to share our faith in an atmosphere that is relational, non-confrontational, and super simple.  

  Most people don't realize that Alpha is run around the world and was started in a church called Holy Trinity Brompton in London.   They started it so that they could reach the un-churched population of London and start cell churches or in their words "pastorates" in London.   It was so effective in reaching people who had not been inside the church that a man named Nicky Gumbel decided to take it global.   Now Alpha is run in over 167 countries world-wide.  That's exciting.  Even more exciting is the fact that people are starting to see Alpha as an opportunity to evangelize in their neighborhoods, their workplaces, in prisons, in bars before or after work, even senior citizen homes.  Last fall our very own Scott Hanson spent 10 Sunday evenings doing Alpha with co-workers from Homemakers Furniture Store.  He says it was a great experience and a great way to share his faith.  I wonder who else from the Ridge may get a vision to use Alpha to spread the gospel outside the walls of Prairie Ridge. Yet one more reason to love Alpha!