Luis Palau partnered with one of America's most liberal and least churched cities and a gay mayor to serve the share the love of Christ through service to the Greater Portland area. Christianity Today has the story.

"American Christians have been moving away from mass evangelism, stressing church planting and friendship as the best ways to introduce people to the gospel. With Billy Graham no longer conducting crusades, big-splash evangelistic events are more rare. Yet the Portland experience suggests a place remains for large, public evangelism, even in a city as far from the Bible Belt as Portland."

It's inspiring that Palau was able to overcome barriers of prejudice and hold a evangelistic festival. Presumably it was the mobilization and coordinated service projects aimed at healing Portland's social problems that afforded him the trust of the local government.

What specific experiences have you had with gaining the trust of people who are otherwise hostile to the gospel?