We serve a God of the impossible. The Church in North America is growing at an annual rate of about two percent, yet we Seventh-day Adventists in the Wisconsin Conference prayed to see our churches grow by ten percent or more. We wanted to see our sanctuaries bulging with new friends and family members.

We began preparing for "Hope for Wisconsin." Hope for Wisconsin was an initiative to tell everyone we could about Jesus. There were more than 30 simultaneous evangelistic series of meetings that would be held at the same time. More than 30 pastors, evangelists and Bible workers united to preach about Jesus, and some came from across the country. We did our best to get ready for what God was going to do. Our major emphasis was the city-wide meetings that took place during the month of October 2009. Advertising blanketed all of southeast Wisconsin, including the city of Milwaukee, and we prepared for standing room only at our meetings.

Opening night arrived. The Milwaukee Northwest evangelistic team was ready, the registration table was nicely decorated, and the projector was shining our logo on the screen. It was time for Hope for Wisconsin to begin, and to our disappointment the meeting sites were less than half-full—maybe even only a quarter-full. At the end of the first week, attendance remained steady but low. If we were to ever reach our goal it really was going to be a miracle. We prayed more.

Sermons were preached, people were loved and most of all the Holy Spirit was working. To our amazement, we have had 35 baptisms to date as a result of Hope for Wisconsin. There are more who have decided for baptism. The total baptisms for the year in our district is currently at 41, and it looks like we could reach more than 45. We are astounded at what God has done in response to our prayer for an impossible goal. Not only was God able to use us to reach an "impossible" goal, He surpassed it.

This was an incredible experience. We are thankful for the united spirit of commitment and sacrifice to embrace our commission and proclaim the Good News in our city. Many worked long and hard hours, but all of us will confess the results far exceeded any human effort. To God be the glory!

Adam Case is the pastor of the Milwaukee Northwest and Sheboygan Churches in Wisconsin.