Sammy Tippit spoke recently in Monroe, Louisiana where he was initially thrust into an evangelistic ministry that would touch thousands of lives in more than 80 nations. Tippit was asked to preach at the Global Missions Impact conference at First Baptist Church of West Monroe, Louisiana. The church is one of Louisiana’s largest and most dynamic churches.

Tippit spoke at all three Sunday services and challenged the people to impact the world for Christ. He spoke of the power of prayer and having a passion for people. Many in the church made a commitment to impact their world for Christ. The San Antonio, Texas evangelist was invited to the conference by the church’s relatively new pastor, Dr. John Avant, who has a similar burden as Tippit for revival and world evangelism. Dr. Avant came to First Baptist West Monroe from the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention.

The trip to Monroe was a return to Tippit’s revival roots. It was in a small Baptist Church in Monroe that God first showed him what would happen when the church is revived. In 1970, he spoke at an evangelistic meeting in the small church and a spirit of revival captured the people’s hearts.

There was much confession of sin and deep repentance. The people attending the services outgrew the church facilities. The meetings had to be moved to the University campus and they outgrew the facilities there. The services finally ended in the Civic Center with thousands in attendance. Many people came to Christ during those meetings in 1970. From there, Tippit led a group of seven young people to walk across America and call for revival in the nation. The group became known as the “Monroe Seven.”

Ray Mears, the leader of the singing group that was used of God in the revival, and Sammy Tippit met together as Tippit preached in Mear’s home church in Ruston, Louisiana on Sunday evening. Mears and his wife were a part of the “Monroe Seven.” They visited the place where the 1970 revival took place on the university campus. They knelt and prayed, “Oh, God. Do it again.”