Greenville native Matt Langford was awarded the 2014 Harry Denman Evangelism Award on June 3 at United Methodist Alabama-West Florida Annual Conference held at Frazer United Methodist Church in Montgomery.

Langford, a graduate of Fort Dale Academy and LBW Community College, currently serves as the youth director at First United Methodist Church of Greenville.

The Harry Denman Evangelism Award is named for the founder of the United Methodist Foundation for Evangelism. The intent of the award is to select recipients who are, “exceptional people who possess a passion to help bring others into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.”

Langford was chosen to receive the award from the 142,000 United Methodist church members in central and south Alabama and northwest Florida.

“I am very honored and grateful that I was chosen for this award,” Langford said. “It was very encouraging and affirming of my ministry. I just want to thank God for blessing me with the opportunity to be in ministry, and for having a church like Greenville’s First United Methodist Church that has always supported me and encouraged me from the beginning. I want to thank all my church members for their prayers and their trust in me. I want to also thank my family for their constant love and support as well as my pastor David Saliba for his leadership and guidance in my life.”

Langford said as youth director at FUMC he wants to encourage young people to reach out with the gospel.

“I want to encourage young people to strive to reach people and to strive to share the gospel,” he said. “We are here to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world and each one of is has the ability to do just that.”