New Orleans Seminary’s Caskey Center for Church Excellence is celebrating the milestone of 10,000 professions of faith as the result of more than 10 years of student evangelism efforts.  

Caskey Center students have carried out weekly evangelism efforts since the Center’s launch in 2014. As of March 3, students have initiated more than 87,000 Gospel conversations, which have resulted in the recent mark of 10,000 professions of faith.  

Blake Newsom, director of the Caskey Center and associate professor of expository preaching, said this amazing milestone is ultimately about 10,000 different changed lives.  

"10,000 professions of faith is an incredible and miraculous accomplishment,” Newsom said.  

“Such an awesome number might have the effect of looming so large that we forget the individuals captured in such a number. I'm struck by how the Gospel narratives present Jesus intersecting with and transforming the lives of all sorts of individuals. The Gospels force us to look below the broad, universal scope of Jesus' ministry to the individual lives touched by the Savior.  

“As we celebrate 10,000 professions of faith, let's think of the individuals transformed by the power of the Gospel of Jesus. As a result of our students sharing the Gospel, churches are healthier, families are stronger, communities are better and the world is experiencing the power of Jesus' transformative work. We celebrate these 10,000 professions and look forward to more lives being transformed by the power of Jesus."   

Since its launch in 2014, the Caskey Center has provided resources and training for pastors and ministry staff members through scholarships, conferences and research.  

The Center, named in memory of evangelistic Louisiana pastor Steve Caskey, represents the dream of an anonymous donor family to see Louisiana churches re-engage in the task of evangelism. 

One of the most notable ways the Center helps pastors is through a full-tuition scholarship program for undergraduate and graduate students at NOBTS and Leavell College who serve at normative size churches in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi.  

To qualify for the scholarship, students must serve as paid or bi-vocational pastors or staff members in a church with an average attendance of 250 or less (Louisiana) or in churches with an average attendance of 150 or less (Alabama and Mississippi). Many of the more than 200 yearly scholarship recipients serve as lead or senior pastors. 

The Center also provides additional scholarships for some students in Indiana, Montana, and Wyoming. 

Since the donor family wanted evangelism to be a top priority of the program, consistent gospel witness became a requirement for recipients. To help students achieve consistency and provide accountability, the program requires students to report at least one gospel conversation per week.  

Jeff Farmer, associate director of the Caskey Center and professor of church ministry and evangelism, said the keys for hundreds of NOBTS students sharing the Gospel over the years have been prayer and a willingness to boldly share God’s truth.  

“We cannot effectively represent Christ our King unless we are mentally and spiritually aligned with Him,” Farmer wrote in an article on the Caskey Center website.  

“Prayer is the primary vehicle for aligning our hearts, attitudes, and lives with God. Evangelistic prayer enables us to serve in our role as priests. We intercede on behalf of those who are disconnected with God, and then we proclaim the Word of God to those for whom we have prayed.   

“We must be willing to step outside of our comfort zone and steer conversations towards the Gospel. Our faithfulness always bears fruit. Whether it is seeing someone come to faith in Christ or growing in our own Christlikeness.” 

Jamie Dew, president of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and Leavell College, spoke about the Center’s incredible accomplishment.  

“Thanks be to God for the Caskey program,” he said. “We celebrate this with great joy and hope for many more professions of faith in the years to come.” 

The learn more about the Caskey Center and available scholarships, click here.