As a shepherd you certainly understand the emphasis of Ephesians 4:11 and 12. The perfecting of the saints is our greatest joy and at the same time the greatest challenge. The man that I want to introduce you to can powerfully assist you in this labor.
Norm Sharbaugh is an evangelist and more! As an evangelist he clearly proclaims the Word of Truth and does it in a way that he speaks to the hearts of the young and old. When I say... and more: I am not exaggerating. Norm is a student of the Word and of man. He makes a point of staying current with world affairs. Then in his messages he expertly interweaves the current with the Word and the results are riveting."
I have known Norm Sharbaugh since seminary days over thirty years ago. He is a dear brother and a faithful fellow laborer for the cause of Christ. He is a genuine aid to the people.
Norm is a man of God, devoted to prayer and to living in obedience to God's Word. His love for God is further demonstrated by his love for God's people and for lost sinners. It is further demonstrated by his love for his wife and children. Norm is a compassionate and effective preacher of God's Word. While numbers do not adequately measure the quality of a ministry, the Lord's work through Norm Sharbaugh does get results. In each of his times with us, there have been a sufficient number of decisions for salvation and dedication that even people in the church commented about.
Without reservation I recommend Norm Sharbaugh as one who will be faithful to God without reservation, faithful to the pastor as a fellow laborer, and faithful to the people as a spokesman for God. He has surely been a blessing to us.
Back in 1980, during my first pastorate, a teen came to me with word of a "wonderful evangelist" he had heard in the school chapel that week. This was the first time I heard of Evangelist Norm Sharbaugh. Since that time, Norm has been a great blessing to all those I have pastored. People are always responsive to his practical and powerful messages. Both saved and lost are stirred and challenged as he speaks. People like him and their enthusiasm sparks the decisions they make that change their lives.
I heartily recommend Norm Sharbaugh to you, for meetings in your church. He loves the Lord, the Lord's people and the Lord's leaders. He ably communicates the truth of God's Word. There are always results when Brother Sharbaugh ministers. I would urge you to schedule him for services and watch how the Lord uses him.
It is with delight that I commend to you Brother Norm Sharbaugh for the ministry of Evangelism and Revival. Brother Sharbaugh is a Bible preacher who has a God given ability to help people understand the word of God and to make life changing decisions.
During our meetings with Evangelist Sharbaugh we experienced the blessing of God with over 50 public decisions. I have spent the last several months doing the work of follow up. We have had the privilege of baptizing 20 individuals and receiving a total of 25 individuals into the membership of our church. Several adults were saved at these special meetings. Teenagers made decisions. Young couples made decisions ad there was a sense of revival at First Baptist Church.
Brother Sharbaugh comes well prepared for meetings and is gracious in his assisting the church in having an outreach ministry.
Pastor, I encourage you to consider Brother Norm Sharbaugh for a series of special meetings. If you do, you may well find yourself busy for the next several months concentrating on the results of the special meetings.
It has been my privilege to have Evangelist Norm Sharbaugh speak at our church for three special meetings including Revival, Evangelistic, and Creation emphasis. Each meeting was a blessing to the church and salvations resulted.
My first invitation to Norm was upon the solid recommendation of my dad, Pastor George P. Whitman, who has pastored over fifty years and has used Brother Sharbaugh numerously. My dad said I could trust him to help God's people. I have found him to be correct.
Dear Brothers in Christ,
I would like to encourage you to have Evanyour church and hold evangelistic and revival meetings. We recently had Brother Sharbaugh here and we were encouraged in the Lord. Several decisions were made for salvation, baptism, church membership, and faithful witnessing.
I invited Norm to Mt. Hope to help the young people see the foolishness of the evolutionary theory, since most of the kids of our church go to public schools. He presented that subject well on Tuesday night. But it was his regular messages that touched our hearts. Norm's simple down-to-earth style was attractive to our teenagers.
They enjoyed his humor and challenging messages and came to the meetings.
Bother Norm has a desire to see people won to Christ, and to see believers built up. We enjoyed our time with him. If you are thinking of having special meetings, Norm may be a blessing to you.
By His Grace,
Pastor Joseph O'Neal
Mt. Hope Bible Church
Grass Lake, MI
I have heard Brother Sharbaugh speak on several occasions and because of his dynamic style I was anxious to have our folks hear him. The first two nights the Holy Spirit used Brother Norm and his presentation of the Word to reach into our hearts as believers and help us to see ourselves as our Lord sees us. The sweet, simple manner, the sincerity of the messenger and the power of God's Word was wonderful to behold. All who attended have had a life changing experience. Three weeks have past and we continue to be amazed at the sweetness and the love that we are now sharing a part of. There is an eagerness to help others and a happy spirit in the doing of it. We care more about others feelings and are actually willing to accept another's opinion. There is a bit of revival in the air in young and old alike.
Brother Norm's preaching on "Piercing the Armor of the Philosophy of Evolution" was fantastic. He is able to present facts that clearly define the weaknesses of evolution and the shameful use of those no longer believed philosophies. In their place Brother Norm inserts the truth of God's Word which parallels the actual facts of the history of mankind. Good preaching on this subject also thrilled each of our hearts. We simply had not heard such preaching before.
Perhaps the words of one of our men sums up best how we feel about the man and his ministry. I quote him here, "Brother Norm is really sincere and you can tell that he believes and lives what he preaches." Amen!
Dear Brother Norm,
Just a note to say, "Thanks" for being God's instrument at Bailey Road. We love you and rejoice to see God use you in reaching souls for His glory. My ministry is always enriched following your ministry. God uses you to challenge a pastors thinking, lifestyle, behavior, etc. The Holy Spirit is always in the forefront working in lives as you minister. Thank you for being available to Him.
Also Norm, I have to say that I have complete confidence in you to minister to the sheep God has entrusted to my care. You have never undermined, but always supported my ministry. I wish other brothers in the ministry could experience your love, counsel, support and teaching as I have.
We are praying that you have continued fruit, safety and opportunities to minister. We are praying for John's pending surgery. Our deacons are sending an extra gift to be used toward any medical needs.
Again, my thanks for being you in God's hand! Psalm 60:4
Sincerely,
Les Webster
Pastor David J. Grinnell
York Baptist Church
Milan, Michigan
To those who are looking for a good evangelist.
In May Norm Sharbaugh held meetings for us. In the twenty years I have pastored her at York Baptist Church, these were the best attended meetings we have ever had. While we did not see very many saved, there was a large number of dedications and commitments by the people. Every one really loved Brother Norm. He was right where the people were. He was very gracious and very friendly with the people. His message was very timely. The people responded to him and his preaching. In this day when it seems that many evangelists do more harm than good for the church, Brother Norm was a pastor's friend and is an asset to the church. I would have him back for another week without hesitation. I would highly recommend him. If you are looking for a man that does a good job, is dependable, and won't tear the church apart but will preach the Word, and support the pastor, CALL NORM SHARBAUGH!!!
Rev. Robert McGhee
West Endicott Baptist
Church Endicott, New York
Dear Fellow Pastors,
I wanted to let you know how much we appreciated the ministry of Evangelist Norm Sharbaugh in our midst for our evangelistic/revival meetings April 21-26, 2002. His challenging messages were well received by our people, evidenced not only by the response to the invitations, but also by consistent attendance during the week.
Brother Sharbaugh's sincere love for the Lord, for His Word, and for His people is very evident, as well as his burden for the lost. His messages were both edifying for the saved and evangelistic for the unsaved.
His effective use of slide presentations on the subjects of Creation vs. Evolution, and on Prophecy, as well as his books: "The Treasure In Earthen Vessels" (a religion teacher encounters the gospel); and "ammunition: For Piercing the Armor of The Philosophy of Evolution" greatly enhanced his ministry.
We appreciated his good communication with us prior to the meetings, with suggestions as to getting ourselves prepared by means of such things as "40 Days of Prayer" and also providing us with suggestions for prayer requests. Also, his suggestions as to advertising, as well as scheduling special nights during the week were a great help. We had:
Bring a Friend Night
Word of Life Night
Family Night
We thank the Lord for the number of decisions that were made for salvation, assurance, dedication, and baptism during the course of the meetings.
I want to highly recommend to you Evangelist Norm Sharbaugh and his ministry. He will greatly bless your church, as you have him come and minister the Word of God. For further information, please feel free to contact me. e-mail address: McGee6448@cs.com
Pastor Gene Haymaker
Maranatha Baptist Church
Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
(This note was in the envelope with my love offering.)
Dear Brother Norm,
I want to thank you for your ministry to our church this week. God is good! I know that you are aware of the decisions that have been made both in and out of the services. I believe our people had the opportunity of seeing what it is like when God works, and not just us. For quite some time it has been that our ministry was in a survival mode, and now once again I see our people revived and ready to fight the spiritual battle that faces us. I do not know how God dealt with each individual, but I do know that God brought prayer and compassion back to our church. Please pray that God will give us the strength to "pray and not faint."
God bless you! Please be assured of our prayers for you and your family. Please keep me informed of any way that we can pray.
To His Glory,
Gene Haymaker
Pastor Merlyn Jones
Faith Baptist Church
Mount Vernon, Ohio
Attendance has been better at his meetings than any other evangelist or Bible teacher that we have had. I think his sense of humor, punctuality and dynamic style encourages folks to return. I've never had to apologize to our people after the meetings were over. I cannot say that of every speaker we have had.
Pastor Charles Jacobs
Grace Baptist Church
Moweaqua, Illinois
I have heard Brother Sharbaugh speak on several occasions and because of his dynamic style I was anxious to have our folks hear him. The first two nights the Holy Spirit used Brother Norm and his presentation of the Word to reach into our hearts as believers and help us to see ourselves as our Lord sees us. The sweet, simple manner, the sincerity of the messenger and the power of God's Word was wonderful to behold. All who attended have had a life changing experience. Three weeks have past and we continue to be amazed at the sweetness and the love that we are now sharing a part of. There is an eagerness to help others and a happy spirit in the doing of it. We care more about others feelings and are actually willing to accept another's opinion. There is a bit of revival in the air in young and old alike.
Pastor George A. Heyboer
First Baptist Church of Knox
Knox, Indiana
Dear Fellow Pastors:
On January 9, 2000, we invited Evangelist Norm Sharbaugh to present a "mini" creation seminar in our three services. Brother Sharbaugh speaking with the aid of his slides presented the Scriptural explanation for the creation view of our origin. He shared the failure of evolution to answer the Scriptures or scientific evidences often ignored by evolutionists. He used vocabulary easily understood by our people.
Our people expressed deep appreciation for the presentations and the evangelistic emphasis. Some said the presentation really helped them solidify their beliefs in creation from the Scriptures.
Kind regards,
George A. Heyboer
