In the days leading up to the college football national championship, which featured two teams from the Southeastern Conference, chants of “S-E-C! S-E-C!” could be heard across the country.

For Oklahoma football fans like me, these chants bring at best an eye roll, and at worst a cringe reaction. For all Christians in Oklahoma, though, another SEC is coming that should bring a great reaction that will lead to Gospel-sharing action.

I refer to the upcoming Oklahoma State Evangelism Conference (SEC), which is just around the corner. Set for Jan. 29-30 at Oklahoma City, Southern Hills, the 2018 SEC will feature some of the most impactful speakers and content you can hear.

The keynote speakers include evangelist and pastor Ed Newton, who is a favorite speaker in Falls Creek circles, and Gregg Matte, pastor of Houston, Texas, First, which is a leader in SBC life that played a vital role in the recent disaster relief response to Hurricane Harvey.

On Monday morning, during the senior adult session, Oklahoma Baptists will hear from renowned speaker Junior Hill, as well as our own Anthony Jordan. On Tuesday, there are nearly 20 breakout sessions on a number of topics to choose from that will help participants share the Gospel in their communities and around the globe.

Several special events are scheduled throughout the event, including the Women’s Session, the Oklahoma Conference of Southern Baptist Evangelists meeting, the Oklahoma Young Pastors Partnership lunch, the SAC/Bi-vocational Pastors Dinner, the African American Pastors Dinner and others. To view a full schedule of events, visit www.bgco.org/sec.

All of these events will be preceded by a special Night of Prayer, which takes place on Sunday, Jan. 28, at Oklahoma City, Southern Hills, at 5 p.m. All throughout the SEC, we will enjoy worship through music led by Matt Blagg.

Year by year, the SEC proves to be an essential and helpful event that keeps the urgency of evangelism in front of us. Adrian Rogers once said, “If the devil can’t make you bad, he will make you busy.”

If we are not careful, in 2018, we will get too busy to share the life-saving message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the people God puts in our path. It is not that we don’t want to share the Good News with people; it’s that we sometimes get busy, distracted or lack the boldness to do so.

By taking part in SEC, I believe God will rekindle a desire and enhance your know-how on how to share Jesus with others. Perhaps more importantly, this event will be a time to consider anew what God has done for each of us individually.

It has been said that our conversations are the overflow from our passions. Find someone who is passionate about college football, and you can hardly stop them from talking football. Find someone who has a cool hobby or favorite TV program, and they are sure to be talking about it.

Let’s pray that, after the 2018 SEC, we can’t stop talking about Jesus. Let’s pray that the chants of “Jesus saves! Jesus saves!” heard in Oklahoma drown out any old football conference talk.

To register for this free-to-attend event, which is made possible by the Cooperative Program giving of Oklahoma Baptists, go to www.bgco.org/sec today.