"How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" Romans 10:15
6/23/09 Ahmad about 30
On my way home after a class I stopped at the Chicago River where some men were fishing. I began a conversation with Ahmad, an African-American who grew up in a Baptist family but has converted to Islam. Ahmad was very glad to talk about his adopted religion, and though I have spent some time studying Islam, I learned some new things I hadn’t heard before. For example, I was surprised that Jesus’ reference to the Holy Spirit in John 16 is interpreted by Muslims as a reference to the coming of Muhammad. I respectfully disagreed, but didn’t make that or other points of disagreement the focus of our conversation. Instead I tried to keep the focus on our sin and accountability to God on judgment day, something Muslims believe in. However, their faith in Allah is a belief in a god who lets evil go unpunished, a god who can be bribed by religious works into overlooking our sins. We believe as Christians that God takes sin very seriously, making the ultimate sacrifice in His Son to satisfy his demand for justice for those who have faith in Jesus. This I tried to explain to Ahmad, but it seemed to fall on deaf ears as he told stories from Islam of Allah’s and Muhammad’s forgiveness based on one’s repentance alone. I persuaded him to take a “Why Christianity” booklet, even if he reads it only to better understand Christians for the sake of refuting our beliefs. Please pray that he will read it, and that God will break the hold of Islam on Ahmad’s heart.
6/23/09 Nat, 26
I stopped at a laundromat and handed out million dollar tracts as I walked through. Everyone laughed and thanked me, and I headed back out, where the first man I gave one to, a Chinese man who introduced himself as Nat, was reading his. He had enough childhood experience at a Baptist church that he knew about the Ten Commandments, but not much else. He believed God would say he is a good person, until I confronted him with some of the Ten Commandments. Many people nonchalantly say they aren’t perfect, feeling safety in numbers because nobody is, but when compared personally to the standard of God’s commandments one by one they start to realize their personal guilt before God. So it was with Nat. He expressed his unease with a lot of nervous smiles and fidgeting, and it wasn’t until I talked about forgiveness through faith in Jesus that he began to relax. In the end he was glad to receive more info and my contact info in case he has further questions. Meanwhile, though I didn’t talk to everyone in the laundromat, al least they could see I was willing to answer questions as I talked to Nat, and my hope and prayer is that this might help them take the message of God’s judgment and salvation on their tracts more seriously.
6/24/09 David about 45
Before heading into a grocery store I walked over to a group of African-American men at the back of the parking lot. I planned to hand them all million dollar tracts, but got into a conversation with Dave and his friend right away. They both had some church upbringing but have fallen away and now simply rationalize that “as long as I ask for forgiveness, God will forgive me”, or “my good will outweigh my bad”. These and other excuses and false beliefs were soon exposed with questions about God’s judgment they had never thought to ask. It also seemed like our racial and cultural differences were forgotten as they came face to face with God’s wrath over their sins, and God’s tremendous love expressed in Christ. One interesting analogy that came up in our conversation was when Dave’s friend pictured his sins as being on a kind of heavenly “rap sheet”. I asked “why don’t rap sheets list our good deeds as well as our bad?” They didn’t know, so I told them it’s because society expects us to do the right thing, to obey the laws, and to help people. How much more should God expect of us, since He gave us all good things to begin with, so we can’t pay for our sins with the good deeds God expects us to do in the first place. His friend had to leave early, but I left Dave counting the cost of faith and repentance, having been thoroughly warned of the judgment to come.
6/25/09 Jose and Elsa mid 30’s
As I left the post office I saw a man in his car waiting for his wife and watching their three small kids. He laughed when I gave him a million dollar tract, and when I asked about heaven he said “Maybe this IS heaven!” I said that many people have told me they think they are going through hell on earth, but he was the first to call it heaven. Jose is from El Salvador and told me he grew up very poor, so I can imagine why he is now so grateful. He began to consider some of my questions about eternity, but then went on a tangent about how his mother favors her other grandchildren over his own kids. I spent some time listening and counseling him about this, and afterward felt like I had gained much trust as we talked about various religious issues. He had a lot of questions about major world religions and his Catholic church, especially the worship of Mary and various saints. It was hard to stay on any one subject, but I kept returning to two themes: how in Christ we are saved by God’s grace, not by rituals or good works as in other religions; and how the Bible has precedence over church traditions. Hopefully the trust I gained will help him read some of the info I gave him or to call with additional questions. Please pray that God will bless Jose and his wife Elsa and kids with the truth of His word.
6/26/09 Bernice, Rosalinda, Jessica 17,17,15
On my way home after an evening church meeting, I decided to stop and look for a witnessing opportunity. I wasn’t quite ready to jump into a conversation, so I stopped to go for a walk to pray first. I soon walked up to 3 teens sitting on some front steps. I asked if they were Michael Jackson fans, (no, but their parents were) and we talked about how sudden and unexpected his recent death was. From there I asked what they thought happens after people die. They really didn’t seem to have thought about it before, and didn’t have an opinion to offer. I asked if they had a church background, and Bernice had been to catechism classes, so we talked about what she had learned there and what the Bible teaches. At one point, Bernice’s mother came out to water her plants, eying me suspiciously, so I stopped to introduce myself and explained that I’m from a church in the neighborhood and just sharing my faith. That seemed good enough to her, so I continued to explain the bad news of the law and the good news of Jesus as best as I could. I asked a lot of questions as we talked which helped make it more of a conversation. Just the same, I’m sure it was somewhat overwhelming, and I simply pray God will use this as one stepping stone on their road to a faith relationship with Jesus.
6/27/09 John, about 25
Lately as I greet people with a warm smile and friendly eye contact, very few turn down the million dollar tract and only about half aren’t willing to talk further. I believe that by far most people who avoid a conversation are preoccupied or in a hurry. At a Target store near downtown Chicago today I looked for a conversation but everyone seemed so rushed, until I walked by the music section, where people were just browsing and killing time. I gave a million dollar tract to one man, who began to read it. I pointed out the question on the back, asking if he thought he’d go to heaven. “Well of course not, I’m Jewish” he said and walked away. Near him was John, a bicycle messenger guy who welcomed the conversation. He grew up going to his family’s church but has since decided that organized religion was “manmade” and that if God wanted him to do anything religious “He will let me know”. I asked how he thought God would do that and we began a long friendly conversation in which John gained a new understanding of the law and gospel, showing concern about eternity but not deep conviction. In the end, I asked if he wears a helmet when he does his deliveries, which he does not, and he could see that tomorrow is not promised, that today needs to be the day of salvation. I pray that John clearly heard the Lord speak to him through our conversation.
6/29/09 Andrew about 30
I went for a quick bike ride and rode by Andrew, sitting in front of his house waiting for his two young sons to come out for a baseball game. I stopped, backed up, and said I had an interesting question for him. I began to ask about Michael Jackson’s death as a conversation starter about spiritual things. This was not a good topic, judging from his annoyed expression and short answers. I forged on with some probing questions about his beliefs. He believes people who give more than they take are allowed into heaven and proclaimed himself to be an extremely giving person. I could foresee the conversation turning into a confrontation, so instead of challenging his self-righteousness, I asked Andrew about the most holy people in his church – say, Mother Theresa, or the Pope. I helped him to understand that ALL have sinned, even them, and that the good they have done is simply expected of them and all of us. Their good deeds don’t erase their sins against God. I could see Andrew’s expression visibly soften as he realized that his good deeds won’t save him from his sin either. He became concerned, and truly wondered how anyone could be saved. Now he was really listening. I had the privilege of explaining the meaning of the cross, and what saving faith in Jesus looks like. By this time Andrew’s sons came outside and I joked around with them for awhile, but Andrew seemed truly grateful when I gave him some more information and my contact info.
6/30/09 Daniel and Anna, both about 18
At McGuane Park I walked up to a young couple sitting on a park bench, and got their attention with a million dollar tract. While Anna listened, Daniel talked about his beliefs. He recently started attending Catholic church again after not attending for many years, but has never read the Bible. He readily admitted his guilt in breaking God’s commandments as I talked about them one by one, but didn’t believe hell was a reasonable punishment for his sins. I asked if he remembered the man in Iraq who threw his shoe at President Bush. If he threw his shoe at a dog or an average person, he would not have been punished severely, but since he showed contempt for such an important person, he received several years in prison as punishment. “How much more important is God than the President Bush?” I asked Daniel. “No comparison, God is infinitely more important” he replied, and he understood that a just punishment for breaking God’s laws would also be infinite. When they saw that hell is indeed a reasonable punishment, Daniel and Anna were ready to hear about Jesus, and are counting the cost. The law fulfilled its purpose, according to Galatians 3:23 “So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith.”
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Gospel conversations from the streets and marketplace....
June 15-21
"The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, turning a man from the snares of death." Proverbs 14:27
6/16/09 Tony, about 35
I finished some work at a library and noticed a man reading the newspaper a few tables over. I prayed and before I had time to lose my nerve I walked over and said “Excuse me, I don’t mean to bother you, but I have a somewhat off the wall question for you.” “Go ahead” he replied. “What do you think happens after this life, what do you think comes next?” He didn’t get mad or anything, but just said “I don’t think I really want to talk about that” “That’s okay, have a good day” I said. No harm done. I asked the same of a man working on his laptop another table over. He said “Heaven”. He attended church “not nearly enough” as he put it, and said that he believed that he would go to heaven because he sincerely asked for forgiveness. I agreed that God is merciful and forgiving and He loves us but I said He also loves justice, which means that our sins are not forgiven without consequence – that there was a tremendous price paid on our behalf when Jesus was crucified. I reminded Tony that the basis for our salvation is not anything we can do or how sincere we are in asking for God’s forgiveness, but in what Jesus has already done for us. Please pray for Tony to trust completely in Jesus, and also for the man at the first table who I’m pretty sure heard most of our conversation.
6/17/09 Brian, about 20
I was in the car all day on my way home from North Carolina, and I stopped and talked to Brian, a custodian at a travel plaza. “People tell me I’m a good person” he said in reply to my questions. He seemed shocked and concerned when he realized that by the standard of the Ten Commandments he is not “good”, and that if God is truly just in regards to sin, he deserves to be punished. At this point I asked if he had a church background because I wondered what he already knew about Jesus, and he launched into a detailed description of his uncle’s church, though he couldn’t remember the church’s name. I could tell that hair-splitting over worship styles was a big topic of conversation among his relatives. He told how various relatives have been after him about his faith, yet he didn’t seem to understand the basics of the gospel. I was glad to be able to talk to him about repentance and faith and salvation in Christ without the “hidden agenda” of getting him to join a particular church. Please pray that Brian can sort his way through the confusing messages about church that he is getting from his earthly family, and discover the simple joy of being a part of God’s family!
6/18/09 Ryan, 21
Returning from vacation, I had to change some tires on my truck that had been slashed (It’s a long story involving a local drug dealer who doesn’t like me, please pray for his soul and against his business) While changing my tires, God turned a bad incident around for good! My neighbor, Ryan, came out to polish his car while I worked and we had a long conversation. Ryan has had religion and philosophy classes in both high school and college. He has given up going to church and is trying to find his own way through the maze of religious ideas. However he has no source of authority to base his religious search on, because he doesn’t believe the Bible is God’s word (and hasn’t really read it). When asked what the verdict would be if he was judged by God, he somberly stated he has not been faithful and would be sent to hell. However, his ideas about how he had disobeyed God had to do with failing to follow the religious rituals of his church (Catholic) Rather than dwell on his failures, I talked about the fact that even the most religious people in the world have broken God’s standard, which is the Ten Commandments, and all of us will be held accountable for disobeying Him. We do deserve punishment, but Jesus took our punishment for those of us who trust Him. Ryan wondered why his priest had never explained it so clearly and was glad to take some more info I gave him. Please pray for Ryan to trust in God’s word and believe the good news!
6/19/09 Brian, about 30
I arrived 45 minutes early in downtown Chicago to catch the “Megabus” for an out of state trip and decided to redeem the time by witnessing to someone, so I went for a walk. By using a million dollar tract as a conversation starter I met Brian, who said he had no religious background and is just exploring different religious ideas. He was intrigued to hear about judgment day and his own guilt in breaking God’s commandments. His mouth was truly stopped, as it says in Romans 3:19, as he realized his accountability before God. At this point I began to worry that I would miss my bus, so I didn’t take time to ask him questions to make sure I knew where he was coming from and besides, he was clearly tracking with every word I said (unlike the teenage girls of a few days earlier who didn’t have a very long attention span) I went on to describe why a holy and just God demands punishment for sin, and how God has expressed his love for us through the sacrifice of His Son. In hindsight I wouldn’t have missed my bus even if I had taken more time to explain how an appropriate response is repentance and commitment to Jesus, but I’m glad I was able to give a booklet to help him begin with faith in Christ. I trust the Holy Spirit to help Brian along in his faith journey.
6/21/09 The Engaged Couple about 25
Years ago I read a book called “The Ugly American” about American tourists who are rude and insensitive. They destroy the reputation of our country by their self-centered behavior. When it comes to evangelism, I pray I can find that Spirit-led balance between the extremes of being a people pleaser who is unwilling to speak the name of Jesus for fear of offending, and being an “Ugly Christian”, insensitive and unnecessarily offending, not trusting in the power of God to move in people’s hearts. At the bus stop in Minneapolis I began a conversation with a younger couple and found out they were engaged and he was seeing her off for her bus trip back home to Chicago. I asked some questions about their beliefs and the standard we will be held to on judgment day. They believe our good deeds must outweigh the bad, and I pointed out the problem with this idea, that we can never know how much “good” is good enough. We talked more and I had many more questions to ask them but I cut the conversation short, wanting to give them time to say a proper goodbye to one another. I think I left them curious enough to want to read the info I gave them later, and I moved on to talk with someone else. I just pray my boldness was balanced with sensitivity in a way that allows the Holy Spirit to work in their hearts as only He can.
Everyday Evangelism? Yes, that’s my goal. I didn’t reach it this week for various reasons, mainly procrastination. I think if I thought of it as a commitment, oath or promise to God, I would drive myself crazy, feeling like a failure. Instead, it’s a goal that keeps me on my toes and keeps me praying for the privilege of telling at least one person per day the good news of Jesus. When I fail to reach my goal, I thank God that tomorrow is a new day and pray that I can learn from my mistakes.
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6/16/09 Tony, about 35
I finished some work at a library and noticed a man reading the newspaper a few tables over. I prayed and before I had time to lose my nerve I walked over and said “Excuse me, I don’t mean to bother you, but I have a somewhat off the wall question for you.” “Go ahead” he replied. “What do you think happens after this life, what do you think comes next?” He didn’t get mad or anything, but just said “I don’t think I really want to talk about that” “That’s okay, have a good day” I said. No harm done. I asked the same of a man working on his laptop another table over. He said “Heaven”. He attended church “not nearly enough” as he put it, and said that he believed that he would go to heaven because he sincerely asked for forgiveness. I agreed that God is merciful and forgiving and He loves us but I said He also loves justice, which means that our sins are not forgiven without consequence – that there was a tremendous price paid on our behalf when Jesus was crucified. I reminded Tony that the basis for our salvation is not anything we can do or how sincere we are in asking for God’s forgiveness, but in what Jesus has already done for us. Please pray for Tony to trust completely in Jesus, and also for the man at the first table who I’m pretty sure heard most of our conversation.
6/17/09 Brian, about 20
I was in the car all day on my way home from North Carolina, and I stopped and talked to Brian, a custodian at a travel plaza. “People tell me I’m a good person” he said in reply to my questions. He seemed shocked and concerned when he realized that by the standard of the Ten Commandments he is not “good”, and that if God is truly just in regards to sin, he deserves to be punished. At this point I asked if he had a church background because I wondered what he already knew about Jesus, and he launched into a detailed description of his uncle’s church, though he couldn’t remember the church’s name. I could tell that hair-splitting over worship styles was a big topic of conversation among his relatives. He told how various relatives have been after him about his faith, yet he didn’t seem to understand the basics of the gospel. I was glad to be able to talk to him about repentance and faith and salvation in Christ without the “hidden agenda” of getting him to join a particular church. Please pray that Brian can sort his way through the confusing messages about church that he is getting from his earthly family, and discover the simple joy of being a part of God’s family!
6/18/09 Ryan, 21
Returning from vacation, I had to change some tires on my truck that had been slashed (It’s a long story involving a local drug dealer who doesn’t like me, please pray for his soul and against his business) While changing my tires, God turned a bad incident around for good! My neighbor, Ryan, came out to polish his car while I worked and we had a long conversation. Ryan has had religion and philosophy classes in both high school and college. He has given up going to church and is trying to find his own way through the maze of religious ideas. However he has no source of authority to base his religious search on, because he doesn’t believe the Bible is God’s word (and hasn’t really read it). When asked what the verdict would be if he was judged by God, he somberly stated he has not been faithful and would be sent to hell. However, his ideas about how he had disobeyed God had to do with failing to follow the religious rituals of his church (Catholic) Rather than dwell on his failures, I talked about the fact that even the most religious people in the world have broken God’s standard, which is the Ten Commandments, and all of us will be held accountable for disobeying Him. We do deserve punishment, but Jesus took our punishment for those of us who trust Him. Ryan wondered why his priest had never explained it so clearly and was glad to take some more info I gave him. Please pray for Ryan to trust in God’s word and believe the good news!
6/19/09 Brian, about 30
I arrived 45 minutes early in downtown Chicago to catch the “Megabus” for an out of state trip and decided to redeem the time by witnessing to someone, so I went for a walk. By using a million dollar tract as a conversation starter I met Brian, who said he had no religious background and is just exploring different religious ideas. He was intrigued to hear about judgment day and his own guilt in breaking God’s commandments. His mouth was truly stopped, as it says in Romans 3:19, as he realized his accountability before God. At this point I began to worry that I would miss my bus, so I didn’t take time to ask him questions to make sure I knew where he was coming from and besides, he was clearly tracking with every word I said (unlike the teenage girls of a few days earlier who didn’t have a very long attention span) I went on to describe why a holy and just God demands punishment for sin, and how God has expressed his love for us through the sacrifice of His Son. In hindsight I wouldn’t have missed my bus even if I had taken more time to explain how an appropriate response is repentance and commitment to Jesus, but I’m glad I was able to give a booklet to help him begin with faith in Christ. I trust the Holy Spirit to help Brian along in his faith journey.
6/21/09 The Engaged Couple about 25
Years ago I read a book called “The Ugly American” about American tourists who are rude and insensitive. They destroy the reputation of our country by their self-centered behavior. When it comes to evangelism, I pray I can find that Spirit-led balance between the extremes of being a people pleaser who is unwilling to speak the name of Jesus for fear of offending, and being an “Ugly Christian”, insensitive and unnecessarily offending, not trusting in the power of God to move in people’s hearts. At the bus stop in Minneapolis I began a conversation with a younger couple and found out they were engaged and he was seeing her off for her bus trip back home to Chicago. I asked some questions about their beliefs and the standard we will be held to on judgment day. They believe our good deeds must outweigh the bad, and I pointed out the problem with this idea, that we can never know how much “good” is good enough. We talked more and I had many more questions to ask them but I cut the conversation short, wanting to give them time to say a proper goodbye to one another. I think I left them curious enough to want to read the info I gave them later, and I moved on to talk with someone else. I just pray my boldness was balanced with sensitivity in a way that allows the Holy Spirit to work in their hearts as only He can.
Everyday Evangelism? Yes, that’s my goal. I didn’t reach it this week for various reasons, mainly procrastination. I think if I thought of it as a commitment, oath or promise to God, I would drive myself crazy, feeling like a failure. Instead, it’s a goal that keeps me on my toes and keeps me praying for the privilege of telling at least one person per day the good news of Jesus. When I fail to reach my goal, I thank God that tomorrow is a new day and pray that I can learn from my mistakes.
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June 8-15
6/08/09 Charles, about 60
After work yesterday I went grocery shopping with a list of items I needed and a handful of million dollar tracts, figuring I would hand some out and strike up a conversation as I shopped. However, because of my inability to multitask, I get somewhat confused when trying to do two things at once, and both shopping and evangelism require a certain level of concentration. So its in this state of mind that it becomes easy to fall for silly excuses when it comes to witnessing. I hear this voice in my head say “There’s so many people, how can you ever know where to start” “If you don’t talk to everyone the person you DO talk to will feel picked on” “This person won’t want to talk, he/she is too old, too young, has kids with them, will feel threatened, probably doesn’t speak English, looks like they’re in a hurry, looks mean, looks too easy/obvious to approach (where did THAT come from?)” or “You have lots of time, wait till you get done shopping” and later, “You’ve waited too long, you need to get home”. I did pass out about a dozen million dollar tracks, and everyone took them but one woman who refused. I told her about the question on the back about heaven and the “good person” test. She said ‘I know I’m a good person and I don’t need any test to tell me so”. This kind of took the wind out of my sails, and after that I only made half-hearted attempts at conversations with other people, and so I didn’t start any except with Charles, a homeless man asking for change in the parking lot. He claims to be a Christian, and used all the “church lingo”, yet gave the impression he’d say anything I wanted to hear to get some change. Please pray for boldness for me and salvation for Charles and the people I gave tracts to and for the self-righteous woman.
6/09/09 Charles, about 25
On my way home from an evening class I stopped at Burger King to pass out tracts and hopefully strike up a conversation, only to be limited by non-English speakers at all three occupied tables. I headed out to the parking lot and found Charles, an African American who had grown up Catholic, standing by his car. Through the steps of exposure to the law and God’s judgment and the hope of forgiveness in Christ, Charles knew he needs to change his relationship with his sinful habits from loving sin to hating it, and his relationship with Christ from apathy to loving obedience, and we had a long conversation of what that would look like in his life. Pray for Charles as he counts the cost of following Jesus as his Lord the Savior, especially now that he is much more aware of the cost of NOT following him.
6/10/09 Eddie, about 30
Who should take the initiative to start a conversation about spiritual things? If it is intimidating for believers, imagine the fear unbelievers usually feel about bringing up a topic they know little about. I went riding bike around my neighborhood and handed Eddie, an army reserve soldier, a million dollar tract. When he heard the question about heaven, he seemed to light up, like he was just waiting to talk to someone about spiritual things. His spiritual life consists of watching a preacher on TV, a former army chaplain, at 2 AM after work. I think he was starving for someone to talk to about some of his questions and we had a very good conversation started until he realized he’d be late for work if he didn’t catch his bus. He believed most religions to be basically the same, so I gave him a “Why Christianity?” booklet that explains how Christianity is the only religion that solves the dilemma of the fact that we know God’s law – we have the knowledge of good and evil, yet we can’t keep it, and there are consequences because God is just, and that Jesus satisfies God’s demand for justice. Pray for Eddie. From our conversation I am confident that he is seeking God and that God “will reward those who earnestly seek Him”.
6/12/09 Alexis, Taylor, Ken – 16
I’m on vacation, and there are huge crowds on the beach and around the souvenir shops on Topsail Island, N.C. – so where do I start witnessing? I began looking for the “perfect” person – someone who looks like they aren’t in a hurry and are just waiting for a deep conversation about eternity! Of course I’m reminded these perfect people don’t exist –everyone I see seems busy walking, fishing, hanging with friends, riding bike, shopping, reading, swimming, tanning – too busy to talk, I started thinking. My excuses and defeated attitude spiraled out of control. I’d like to think that after half a year of witnessing to strangers it would be easier than this. I prayed for boldness, and was reminded that passing out million dollar tracts helps me to lighten up and have fun starting a conversation. After handing out a few I began talking with Alexis, Taylor, and their friend Ken who was on the phone. They said they hadn’t thought about spiritual things and agreed with the points I made about eternity, their sin and accountability before God and Jesus’ bearing the punishment we deserve. However, I found myself answering questions they weren’t asking, and their lack of questions and polite agreement made me believe I needed to end the one-sided “conversation” before I wore out my welcome. After what I believe was a good wake up call from a caring Christian adult who said some things that made a lot of sense, I gave them some literature and I pray the seeds planted will grow to repentance and faith in Jesus.
6/13/09 Matt and Jake, both 18,
It was after dark, Saturday night at the beach in North Carolina. I was in the parking lot as Matt parked their customized monster truck. As they got out to join the party at the beach I offered them million dollar bill tracks and asked what they thought about eternity and where they would spend it. These two young men were somewhat distracted at first, but as I asked some of the key questions about how God would see them on judgment day, they grew very respectful and I had their full attention. After hearing the bad news about their guilt and its consequences, I asked if they were ready to hear some good news. “Yes, I hope there is some!” “The good news”, I said, “is that God doesn’t want you to be punished in Hell, so much so that He gave what was most precious to Him – do you know what that could be?” They honestly did not. “Do you know what Jesus did? “He died for our sins” They said it so easily, but I don’t think they ever really thought what it meant before. I went on to explain what real trust in Jesus looks like – that it will lead to repentance, turning from our sins. I gave them a lot to think about and to read about later. Please pray for Jake and Matt.
6/14/09 Bubba, about 40
In order to become better able to reach out to different types of people and in different situations, I approached Bubba on the beach without using the million dollar tract as a conversation starter. I just started a conversation about everyday things, and started talking about spiritual matters by asking “Can I ask you a very interesting question?” He responded with curiosity and interest. I asked, “What do you think happens after we leave this earth?” “What do you mean?”he replied. “If you died today, where would you be tomorrow?” Bubba, a “good ole boy” from North Carolina, told me he believes he will be reincarnated as an animal. After some discussion, he admitted that he didn’t believe reincarnation would go on forever, and he would eventually be judged as to whether he deserved heaven or hell. He had a lot of far out beliefs and fantasies about the next life, but it was easy to bypass these by just asking “Let’s suppose that what the Bible says about judgment day IS true. How would you be judged?” He was able to see and accept that he will be found guilty of breaking God’s commandments, and that hell is an appropriate punishment, and he seemed to understand that Jesus had taken the punishment he deserves; yet he had to swing so far from what he believed at the start of our conversation that it will take time to take it all in. I gave him the “Why Christianity” booklet, which he seemed genuinely thankful for. Please pray that Bubba may know the truth!
6/14/09 Jojo, 17
I ran into Jojo on his way back to the beach from a hot dog stand. After some friendly conversation I asked “What do you believe happens after you leave this earth?” He really didn’t know what he believed. “Heaven, I hope.” I asked if he had a church background. “Oh I’m saved and all that”. “What does that mean to you?” He didn’t know. He remembered “praying a prayer” as a child at church and people telling him he was going to heaven, but really couldn’t remember what he had said in that prayer. He had a sense that God would forgive him because he was sorry and asked for forgiveness, but he had never taken it any further and hasn’t attended church for years. He seemed like a decent and hard-working young man, but he basically lived from day to day with little thought about his future, and the thoughts he did have reminded me of my life insurance policy – I’m vaguely aware that its there but I’ve long since forgotten its terms or details. Jojo’s trust is not in Jesus but in a prayer he had repeated long ago, like some magical formula one must simply repeat. We went on to a long talk about the need for repentance and faith in Christ, and what that would look like in his life. I left Jojo with a booklet about beginning a new life in Christ and the challenge to get things right with God that very day. Pray that he does!
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After work yesterday I went grocery shopping with a list of items I needed and a handful of million dollar tracts, figuring I would hand some out and strike up a conversation as I shopped. However, because of my inability to multitask, I get somewhat confused when trying to do two things at once, and both shopping and evangelism require a certain level of concentration. So its in this state of mind that it becomes easy to fall for silly excuses when it comes to witnessing. I hear this voice in my head say “There’s so many people, how can you ever know where to start” “If you don’t talk to everyone the person you DO talk to will feel picked on” “This person won’t want to talk, he/she is too old, too young, has kids with them, will feel threatened, probably doesn’t speak English, looks like they’re in a hurry, looks mean, looks too easy/obvious to approach (where did THAT come from?)” or “You have lots of time, wait till you get done shopping” and later, “You’ve waited too long, you need to get home”. I did pass out about a dozen million dollar tracks, and everyone took them but one woman who refused. I told her about the question on the back about heaven and the “good person” test. She said ‘I know I’m a good person and I don’t need any test to tell me so”. This kind of took the wind out of my sails, and after that I only made half-hearted attempts at conversations with other people, and so I didn’t start any except with Charles, a homeless man asking for change in the parking lot. He claims to be a Christian, and used all the “church lingo”, yet gave the impression he’d say anything I wanted to hear to get some change. Please pray for boldness for me and salvation for Charles and the people I gave tracts to and for the self-righteous woman.
6/09/09 Charles, about 25
On my way home from an evening class I stopped at Burger King to pass out tracts and hopefully strike up a conversation, only to be limited by non-English speakers at all three occupied tables. I headed out to the parking lot and found Charles, an African American who had grown up Catholic, standing by his car. Through the steps of exposure to the law and God’s judgment and the hope of forgiveness in Christ, Charles knew he needs to change his relationship with his sinful habits from loving sin to hating it, and his relationship with Christ from apathy to loving obedience, and we had a long conversation of what that would look like in his life. Pray for Charles as he counts the cost of following Jesus as his Lord the Savior, especially now that he is much more aware of the cost of NOT following him.
6/10/09 Eddie, about 30
Who should take the initiative to start a conversation about spiritual things? If it is intimidating for believers, imagine the fear unbelievers usually feel about bringing up a topic they know little about. I went riding bike around my neighborhood and handed Eddie, an army reserve soldier, a million dollar tract. When he heard the question about heaven, he seemed to light up, like he was just waiting to talk to someone about spiritual things. His spiritual life consists of watching a preacher on TV, a former army chaplain, at 2 AM after work. I think he was starving for someone to talk to about some of his questions and we had a very good conversation started until he realized he’d be late for work if he didn’t catch his bus. He believed most religions to be basically the same, so I gave him a “Why Christianity?” booklet that explains how Christianity is the only religion that solves the dilemma of the fact that we know God’s law – we have the knowledge of good and evil, yet we can’t keep it, and there are consequences because God is just, and that Jesus satisfies God’s demand for justice. Pray for Eddie. From our conversation I am confident that he is seeking God and that God “will reward those who earnestly seek Him”.
6/12/09 Alexis, Taylor, Ken – 16
I’m on vacation, and there are huge crowds on the beach and around the souvenir shops on Topsail Island, N.C. – so where do I start witnessing? I began looking for the “perfect” person – someone who looks like they aren’t in a hurry and are just waiting for a deep conversation about eternity! Of course I’m reminded these perfect people don’t exist –everyone I see seems busy walking, fishing, hanging with friends, riding bike, shopping, reading, swimming, tanning – too busy to talk, I started thinking. My excuses and defeated attitude spiraled out of control. I’d like to think that after half a year of witnessing to strangers it would be easier than this. I prayed for boldness, and was reminded that passing out million dollar tracts helps me to lighten up and have fun starting a conversation. After handing out a few I began talking with Alexis, Taylor, and their friend Ken who was on the phone. They said they hadn’t thought about spiritual things and agreed with the points I made about eternity, their sin and accountability before God and Jesus’ bearing the punishment we deserve. However, I found myself answering questions they weren’t asking, and their lack of questions and polite agreement made me believe I needed to end the one-sided “conversation” before I wore out my welcome. After what I believe was a good wake up call from a caring Christian adult who said some things that made a lot of sense, I gave them some literature and I pray the seeds planted will grow to repentance and faith in Jesus.
6/13/09 Matt and Jake, both 18,
It was after dark, Saturday night at the beach in North Carolina. I was in the parking lot as Matt parked their customized monster truck. As they got out to join the party at the beach I offered them million dollar bill tracks and asked what they thought about eternity and where they would spend it. These two young men were somewhat distracted at first, but as I asked some of the key questions about how God would see them on judgment day, they grew very respectful and I had their full attention. After hearing the bad news about their guilt and its consequences, I asked if they were ready to hear some good news. “Yes, I hope there is some!” “The good news”, I said, “is that God doesn’t want you to be punished in Hell, so much so that He gave what was most precious to Him – do you know what that could be?” They honestly did not. “Do you know what Jesus did? “He died for our sins” They said it so easily, but I don’t think they ever really thought what it meant before. I went on to explain what real trust in Jesus looks like – that it will lead to repentance, turning from our sins. I gave them a lot to think about and to read about later. Please pray for Jake and Matt.
6/14/09 Bubba, about 40
In order to become better able to reach out to different types of people and in different situations, I approached Bubba on the beach without using the million dollar tract as a conversation starter. I just started a conversation about everyday things, and started talking about spiritual matters by asking “Can I ask you a very interesting question?” He responded with curiosity and interest. I asked, “What do you think happens after we leave this earth?” “What do you mean?”he replied. “If you died today, where would you be tomorrow?” Bubba, a “good ole boy” from North Carolina, told me he believes he will be reincarnated as an animal. After some discussion, he admitted that he didn’t believe reincarnation would go on forever, and he would eventually be judged as to whether he deserved heaven or hell. He had a lot of far out beliefs and fantasies about the next life, but it was easy to bypass these by just asking “Let’s suppose that what the Bible says about judgment day IS true. How would you be judged?” He was able to see and accept that he will be found guilty of breaking God’s commandments, and that hell is an appropriate punishment, and he seemed to understand that Jesus had taken the punishment he deserves; yet he had to swing so far from what he believed at the start of our conversation that it will take time to take it all in. I gave him the “Why Christianity” booklet, which he seemed genuinely thankful for. Please pray that Bubba may know the truth!
6/14/09 Jojo, 17
I ran into Jojo on his way back to the beach from a hot dog stand. After some friendly conversation I asked “What do you believe happens after you leave this earth?” He really didn’t know what he believed. “Heaven, I hope.” I asked if he had a church background. “Oh I’m saved and all that”. “What does that mean to you?” He didn’t know. He remembered “praying a prayer” as a child at church and people telling him he was going to heaven, but really couldn’t remember what he had said in that prayer. He had a sense that God would forgive him because he was sorry and asked for forgiveness, but he had never taken it any further and hasn’t attended church for years. He seemed like a decent and hard-working young man, but he basically lived from day to day with little thought about his future, and the thoughts he did have reminded me of my life insurance policy – I’m vaguely aware that its there but I’ve long since forgotten its terms or details. Jojo’s trust is not in Jesus but in a prayer he had repeated long ago, like some magical formula one must simply repeat. We went on to a long talk about the need for repentance and faith in Christ, and what that would look like in his life. I left Jojo with a booklet about beginning a new life in Christ and the challenge to get things right with God that very day. Pray that he does!
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june 1-7
Jeremy and Shawn, about 17, were hanging out in front of a convenience store on 31st. Luke and I had gone out to witness and gave them the million dollar tracts which started a good conversation. Their basic belief was that God would judge them by seeing if they had done more good than bad, and if they did need to be punished He would send them to purgatory for a while. We pointed out that we can’t bribe God into forgetting about our sins with good behavior, and that the idea of purgatory is nowhere in the Bible. We explained how Jesus paid for our sins on the cross, and that saving faith and trust in Jesus will lead us to repentance. They seemed to agree but were unwilling to follow Jesus in all areas of their life. We urged them to count the cost, that tomorrow is not promised, and gave them some more info. 6/2/09
Ethell, about 45. 6/3/09 On my way home from a meeting, I knew I probably wouldn’t be leaving the house the rest of the evening, so I parked my car and went for a walk around several residential blocks. I wasn’t quite ready to witness at first, but the nice thing about going for a walk is I can collect my thoughts and pray, and no one really knows what I’m doing. At a street corner I saw a group of four obviously gay men; three went into the corner store and I gave the fourth a million dollar tract. We began what could have been a very good conversation about how God judges what is “good” – based on the Ten Commandments; I had no need to refer to other lifestyle issues that people often get defensive about. However, when his friends came out, I gave them each the million dollar tracts. Upon finding out they were religious tracts, one man started proclaiming he is going straight to hell, which got everyone laughing and provided an excuse for them to walk away. Pray for them. Immediately I ran into a police officer named Ethell who very confidently stated he would go to heaven. He is a pastor’s son and grew up going to church. I told him that many people who I’ve talked to also believe they are Christians, and because I want to see him in Heaven, I asked him what he bases his salvation on. After a lot of “church talk”, he finally admitted he doesn’t believe there is a hell but that people are reincarnated until they “get it right”. When asked why Jesus died on the cross he stated that he believed it was Jesus’ ultimate miracle to get people’s attention and get them to take him seriously. I told him that I have just recently read through the four gospels just for the purpose of comparing Jesus’ teaching on Heaven and Hell, and that Jesus warned people about Hell more than he talked about Heaven. Ethell admitted he hasn’t been reading his Bible or going to church, and that he has been forming his opinion of God based on his own terms, not God’s. He said he would read the booklet on Christianity I gave him. Please pray for Ethell.
Andrea, about 25 6/4/09 After a meeting was over late at night, I still hadn’t met my goal of at least one witnessing conversation that day, so I asked Marty to drop me off several blocks away from my house and I would walk the rest of the way, hoping I could run into someone on the sidewalk. It turned out to be a young lady named Andrea, walking her huge pit bull. I gave her a million dollar tract and asked her about heaven. She happily proclaimed she would be going to heaven, having grown up going to a Lutheran Church and being a good person. We talked about judgment day and that God’s standard for goodness is His commandments. She said, “at least I haven’t murdered anyone”, so I talked about Jesus’ teaching that hatred is like murdering someone in your heart. She unapologetically mentioned living with her boyfriend, but I chose not to make that an issue, because the commandments about lying, stealing murder (hatred) were convicting enough. While we talked she seemed to transfer her hope from being a Lutheran to being a good person to being truly sorry for her sins to hoping God wouldn’t care about her “small” sins. I explained that her hope needs to be in Christ alone. All this time, her dog was making the conversation difficult, so I was just happy to ask her some good questions to get her thinking about eternal things, and I gave her a booklet explaining faith in Christ more clearly. Pray that she will repent of her sins and transfer her hope and faith for salvation to Jesus!
Mike, 50 6/5/09 I’ve known Mike from many years of seeing him around the weight room, but could never have more than a superficial conversation with him because of his frequent profanity, opinionated and exaggerated claims and self-centered attitude. In a conversation a few days ago he told me how much he and his wife have been struggling with infertility and how they now have a miracle baby, and I asked him about how his faith in God had been affected (he is Catholic). Today he told me he had thought he would die a few weeks earlier due to a false diagnosis of cancer. I asked him if he had done any serious thinking about eternity and he definitely agreed that he had. He said he tried to be good but due to his very aggressive temperament he just believes that “God made me this way” and basically put the blame on God for his bad behavior. The only thing that kept him from really doing something wrong was his “Catholic guilt”. I explained that people who think that they must earn their way to heaven are never really sure if they are “good enough”, and that this paranoid type of guilt comes from that uncertainty. I told him about the hope we can and should have in Jesus, and I could see the lights coming on in his head as he listened. Please pray that we can talk further and that God will give him a new heart that he may repent and believe the good news of Jesus!
Amelia, about 40, and Dillon, her teenage son, 6/6/09
More often than not, opportunities for evangelism are right under our nose! For our all-church day of service, Nick and I were disappointed that no one wanted to do direct evangelism. We decided to go out on our own regardless, but at the last minute Amelia and Dillon, from another church location, joined us. As we walked to the park where we were going to witness we talked with Amelia and Dillon. We found that Dillon has been very caught up in the gang drama in his neighborhood. I asked him if he had friends who have been killed, which he had, and what he thought happens next to them. He seemed fixated on how they would be remembered – with no thought as to what happens to their soul. So I asked him directly, what would happen to his soul if he died. He didn’t seem to have thought about it, so we told him about judgment day and our accountability before God. All the while his mother listened, and it was tempting to just assume she was a Christian, but a few questions revealed that she believes that she isn’t saved yet but needs to work on it by being a better person. This led to a good conversation about the basis of our salvation. Being very new to church, Amelia seems to have been obedient to the small steps of faith God has placed in front of her, and she stated that she believed God had arranged for our conversation. Amelia is beginning the First Steps book with a mentor. Pray for Amelia & Dillon!
Galilo, about 30 6/7/09 I tried to arrive early for our church softball double-header in order to find someone to begin a conversation before the game. As I parked my truck and got out, Galilo, who was doing yardwork outside his house, said a friendly hello so I decided to give him a million dollar tract, and he was very interested in my questions about whether he was a good person and how God judges us. Does God compare us to other people or some other standard? Even before I went through the Commandments he very obviously knew he was guilty. He got a far-away look in his eyes and said he had done some very bad things when he was younger, and I could see from his scarred face that he had led a rough life. He said his girlfriend (also out doing yardwork) was religious and they had gone to church, but when I explained the Gospel he was very glad to hear it so clearly. He agreed that he wasn’t right with God and needed to repent and put his faith in Jesus. I didn’t want to give him a false assurance of salvation by leading him in a “sinners prayer” because this tradition, found nowhere in the Bible, leads many people to trust in a prayer they prayed at one time rather than in the Lord they pray to, so I warned him that tomorrow isn’t promised and encouraged him to get right with God before going to bed that night. Please pray for Galilo!
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Ethell, about 45. 6/3/09 On my way home from a meeting, I knew I probably wouldn’t be leaving the house the rest of the evening, so I parked my car and went for a walk around several residential blocks. I wasn’t quite ready to witness at first, but the nice thing about going for a walk is I can collect my thoughts and pray, and no one really knows what I’m doing. At a street corner I saw a group of four obviously gay men; three went into the corner store and I gave the fourth a million dollar tract. We began what could have been a very good conversation about how God judges what is “good” – based on the Ten Commandments; I had no need to refer to other lifestyle issues that people often get defensive about. However, when his friends came out, I gave them each the million dollar tracts. Upon finding out they were religious tracts, one man started proclaiming he is going straight to hell, which got everyone laughing and provided an excuse for them to walk away. Pray for them. Immediately I ran into a police officer named Ethell who very confidently stated he would go to heaven. He is a pastor’s son and grew up going to church. I told him that many people who I’ve talked to also believe they are Christians, and because I want to see him in Heaven, I asked him what he bases his salvation on. After a lot of “church talk”, he finally admitted he doesn’t believe there is a hell but that people are reincarnated until they “get it right”. When asked why Jesus died on the cross he stated that he believed it was Jesus’ ultimate miracle to get people’s attention and get them to take him seriously. I told him that I have just recently read through the four gospels just for the purpose of comparing Jesus’ teaching on Heaven and Hell, and that Jesus warned people about Hell more than he talked about Heaven. Ethell admitted he hasn’t been reading his Bible or going to church, and that he has been forming his opinion of God based on his own terms, not God’s. He said he would read the booklet on Christianity I gave him. Please pray for Ethell.
Andrea, about 25 6/4/09 After a meeting was over late at night, I still hadn’t met my goal of at least one witnessing conversation that day, so I asked Marty to drop me off several blocks away from my house and I would walk the rest of the way, hoping I could run into someone on the sidewalk. It turned out to be a young lady named Andrea, walking her huge pit bull. I gave her a million dollar tract and asked her about heaven. She happily proclaimed she would be going to heaven, having grown up going to a Lutheran Church and being a good person. We talked about judgment day and that God’s standard for goodness is His commandments. She said, “at least I haven’t murdered anyone”, so I talked about Jesus’ teaching that hatred is like murdering someone in your heart. She unapologetically mentioned living with her boyfriend, but I chose not to make that an issue, because the commandments about lying, stealing murder (hatred) were convicting enough. While we talked she seemed to transfer her hope from being a Lutheran to being a good person to being truly sorry for her sins to hoping God wouldn’t care about her “small” sins. I explained that her hope needs to be in Christ alone. All this time, her dog was making the conversation difficult, so I was just happy to ask her some good questions to get her thinking about eternal things, and I gave her a booklet explaining faith in Christ more clearly. Pray that she will repent of her sins and transfer her hope and faith for salvation to Jesus!
Mike, 50 6/5/09 I’ve known Mike from many years of seeing him around the weight room, but could never have more than a superficial conversation with him because of his frequent profanity, opinionated and exaggerated claims and self-centered attitude. In a conversation a few days ago he told me how much he and his wife have been struggling with infertility and how they now have a miracle baby, and I asked him about how his faith in God had been affected (he is Catholic). Today he told me he had thought he would die a few weeks earlier due to a false diagnosis of cancer. I asked him if he had done any serious thinking about eternity and he definitely agreed that he had. He said he tried to be good but due to his very aggressive temperament he just believes that “God made me this way” and basically put the blame on God for his bad behavior. The only thing that kept him from really doing something wrong was his “Catholic guilt”. I explained that people who think that they must earn their way to heaven are never really sure if they are “good enough”, and that this paranoid type of guilt comes from that uncertainty. I told him about the hope we can and should have in Jesus, and I could see the lights coming on in his head as he listened. Please pray that we can talk further and that God will give him a new heart that he may repent and believe the good news of Jesus!
Amelia, about 40, and Dillon, her teenage son, 6/6/09
More often than not, opportunities for evangelism are right under our nose! For our all-church day of service, Nick and I were disappointed that no one wanted to do direct evangelism. We decided to go out on our own regardless, but at the last minute Amelia and Dillon, from another church location, joined us. As we walked to the park where we were going to witness we talked with Amelia and Dillon. We found that Dillon has been very caught up in the gang drama in his neighborhood. I asked him if he had friends who have been killed, which he had, and what he thought happens next to them. He seemed fixated on how they would be remembered – with no thought as to what happens to their soul. So I asked him directly, what would happen to his soul if he died. He didn’t seem to have thought about it, so we told him about judgment day and our accountability before God. All the while his mother listened, and it was tempting to just assume she was a Christian, but a few questions revealed that she believes that she isn’t saved yet but needs to work on it by being a better person. This led to a good conversation about the basis of our salvation. Being very new to church, Amelia seems to have been obedient to the small steps of faith God has placed in front of her, and she stated that she believed God had arranged for our conversation. Amelia is beginning the First Steps book with a mentor. Pray for Amelia & Dillon!
Galilo, about 30 6/7/09 I tried to arrive early for our church softball double-header in order to find someone to begin a conversation before the game. As I parked my truck and got out, Galilo, who was doing yardwork outside his house, said a friendly hello so I decided to give him a million dollar tract, and he was very interested in my questions about whether he was a good person and how God judges us. Does God compare us to other people or some other standard? Even before I went through the Commandments he very obviously knew he was guilty. He got a far-away look in his eyes and said he had done some very bad things when he was younger, and I could see from his scarred face that he had led a rough life. He said his girlfriend (also out doing yardwork) was religious and they had gone to church, but when I explained the Gospel he was very glad to hear it so clearly. He agreed that he wasn’t right with God and needed to repent and put his faith in Jesus. I didn’t want to give him a false assurance of salvation by leading him in a “sinners prayer” because this tradition, found nowhere in the Bible, leads many people to trust in a prayer they prayed at one time rather than in the Lord they pray to, so I warned him that tomorrow isn’t promised and encouraged him to get right with God before going to bed that night. Please pray for Galilo!
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May
Abel, Lenny, David, teens
5/1/09 As they sat at a table at Burger King, I gave them Million Dollar Bill tracts and began a conversation about their beliefs. They were cynical and unwilling to take it seriously for quite some time, mocking God and those who believe, but after a while they seemed to take the idea of judgment and our accountability to God a little more seriously, but not enough to care about the good news of Jesus, so lest I “throw my pearls to the swine” I told them they weren’t ready to hear the good news I wanted to tell them. I think they were a little shocked when I walked away, but God isn’t through with them yet – pray for them!
Joshua and Robin, early 20’s
5/2/09 They sat and heard Nick preaching at Millenium Park. I asked the afterward what they thought of it and they claimed that they weren’t really listening. Joshua seemed to think that none of it applied to him because he is Jewish. He believes people should just live a good life, not for a reward or fear of punishment but just because it’s the right thing to do, and after death we cease to exist. I explained how many people take pride in “being good” just because they are good, and thinking that they are above or better than people who do it for a reward or fear of punishment. We went over the commandments and they agreed they hadn’t kept them. They agreed to hear me out as I explained Christianity just for the sake of better understanding it, and I explained how we can’t earn our way to heaven but that good works and obedience to Christ are a natural response of gratitude to what Christ did on the cross. They appreciated the conversation. Pray that what they heard would move from their intellect to convicting their conscience in the way only the Holy Spirit can.
Jim, about 40
5/2/09 Jim was sitting at a bench at Millenium Park. He goes to a Catholic church, loves the priest there and really doesn’t believe he is guilty of breaking any of the ten commandments. He thinks it is wrong to be self-righteous and arrogant, but in his own way he clearly is. As much as I tried, he couldn’t see the need for a savior personally. He understands Jesus died for our sins, but I think he believes it was someone else’s sins that put Jesus on the cross, not his own. Pray for the conviction of sin that only the Holy Spirit can bring!
Josh and David, mid 20’s
5/2/09 I talked primarily to Josh at a table at Millenium Park. During the whole conversation he never indicated any belief in the Bible or attempts to follow it, but smugly asserted his own ability to decide upon truth based on his intellect or reasoning skills. He didn’t think anyone could know if they will be saved or not. As he walked away he made sure that I knew he has read the Bible through many times as part of his studies for his doctoral dissertation. Pray for these men who consider themselves intellectually superior to anyone who, with child-like faith, puts their trust in Jesus, the One who created and sustains their intellect in the first place!
Dave, 22
5/3/09 After our first softball game, while waiting for the second game, I began a conversation on the sidewalk by asking a young man walking by if he would answer an interesting question. He stopped walking and seemed very curious, so I asked what do you think will happen after we die? We began a long conversation. Dave admitted to being a partier who really just lives from day to day without any thought about the future, but he has attended New Life Midway a few times with his cousin. He was clearly convicted by the law and gladly heard the good news of Christ. He said he had never heard it clearly explained before. I prayed for him right there in the park and encouraged him to put his faith in Christ that very day. I thank God for showing me through WOTM that people need to be convicted by the law before they are ready to receive grace – this is a correction to the “modern gospel” which only wants to give people the good news of Jesus without telling them the bad news of God’s wrath and the punishment we deserve because of our sins.
Will you pray for these people this week?
(keep in Bible for your prayer time)
Omar, about 45 and 4 younger guys.
5/5/09 I walked up to the only group hanging out on the campus lawn at Concordia College and began to ask them about the school and students there. Turns out they were custodian workers on a break. I asked them what they thought happens after we die and the leader, Omar, said he grew up Muslim but no longer believes in religion. He agreed that judgment day is a possibility and they all seemed to think they would do okay before God. I took them through several commandments and they were clearly getting convicted. Omar, their foreman, said they had to get back to work, so I gave them a few “Why Christianity” booklets.
Willie, about 40
5/6/09 I first talked with Willie while handing out MDB’s at Lowe’s a few weeks ago and we were both amazed when I went up to hand him a MDB tract in Hyde Park and we realized we had talked a few weeks earlier. He claims Jesus as his Savior and said he would be glad to hand a few MDB tracts along to others. Pray that God will bring to pass whatever purpose he had for us talking a second time….
“Train” about 50
5/6/09 On the sidewalk in Hyde Park I met “Train”, an older Buddhist man, whe said he did not believe in eternal life. I told him of the Biblical teaching of the law and judgment day. He did not want to hear any more of it and walked away.
Leon, about 60
5/6/09 On the sidewalk in Hyde Park, I gave him a MDB tract and asked him the million dollar question, will he go to heaven. He said he really didn’t think much about religion, and I reminded him of the law and his accountability on judgment day. He said he would think read the MDB and think about it.
Atonio, 20
5/11/09 After passing out Million Dollar tracts in the cafeteria at Chicago State, I went back to a young lady who had read the tract and asked her what she thought. She was very agreeable to the fact that she had broken God’s commandments, though not many, and still believed God would see her as a good person. I explained that though God is loving, He also loves justice and will punish sin wherever it may be found, not just the ‘really bad” sins. I helped her to see she breaks God’s commandments more often than she thinks by going through a few. She seemed concerned and thoughtful so I told her about what Jesus had done, which she already knew, and I explained that she needed to put her trust completely in Him to the point of repenting of her sins, not just passively believing in him like someone who believes a parachute can save them though they do nothing to put it on before jumping out of a plane. Pray that she will “put on” Jesus as the Lord and Savior of her life!
Scott, about 45
5/12/09 On my way from work to a class I am taking I stopped at Armour Square park to find someone to witness to. I walked up to Scott who was sitting on a bench, greeted him and asked if I could ask an interesting question. I said, it’s not something people get asked every day. This really seemed to get him curious, so I asked what he thought happens after this life. He thought for a while and said, I don’t know, what do YOU think? I told him that I believed what the Bible said is true about judgment day and heaven and hell. He believed himself to be a good person in God’s sight, so I took him through the “good person” questions. He seemed convicted, but suddenly told me he had to get going. I was able to quickly share the good news of Jesus and give him some literature, but he was clearly not comfortable being confronted by his sin.
Mike and Karen, about 30
5/12/09 While at Armour Park I also gave million dollar tracts to Mike and Karen, who from outward appearances are living a very outwardly sinful lifestyle. They gladly took the MDB’s and when I pointed out the question about heaven and good person questions on the back, they read through them and quickly admitted to breaking all of them often. We talked about how they will be accountable to God on judgment day and they had a lot of questions. Karen is less willing to trust the authority of the Bible. Both grew up Catholic. While Karen left for a phone call, I explained the bad news of sin and punishment and the good news of salvation to Mike, who had some good questions and was willing to admit he still loved his sins and wasn’t ready to give them up. Pray they’ll understand the need for repentance, to hate their sin and love God rather than love their sin and to be apathetic toward God. I gave them the “Why Christianity?” booklets.
Gail, 20?
I stopped at Fairplay on my way home from work, looking for a chance to strike up a conversation with someone. As I wheeled a shopping cart around the store I ran into Gail, who as a kid was involved in our youth group. I haven’t seen her in half a year or so, so I caught up with her life. She has two young kids and takes care of her mother who has MS. I told her that even though she had been at our youth group I didn’t feel we had really explained the Bible very clearly, and asked her if she thought she would go to heaven and why. She thought she would go because she is very sorry for her sins. She sees herself as someone who is becoming a better person and believes God sees her as a good person because of that. She didn’t realize that God’s justice demands punishment for ALL our sins, even those in the past that we have confessed and are sorry for. Simply being sorry doesn’t satisfy the demands of justice. I explained how Jesus paid the penalty for her sins, and that her trust must be in what He has done for her, not in the sincerity of her own repentance. She agreed, and I gave her a booklet explaining Christianity more clearly and encouraging Christian growth.
Joseph, about 20
5/14/09 As I went grocery shopping I hoped to give this everyday chore eternal value, so I handed out million dollar tracts as I pushed my cart up and down the isles. I told most of the people I gave them to about the “million dollar question” on the back asking whether they would go to heaven, not really challenging them to answer right there because I really had to get my shopping done but I still wanted to hand out some MDB’s to get people to think about eternity. So I would tell them about the good person test, saying that I failed it myself. They would laugh at this but I believe it got most of them curious enough to read about it later. Out in the parking lot I saw a young man sitting in his car and gave him one, asking him about heaven and whether he was a good person. Joseph told me he followed Christ but was getting discouraged because of his sin, mentioning losing his temper while working in the grocery store. I tried to encourage him by letting him know that the fact that he is struggling against his sin is a sign that he repents of it, and repentance is a good indication of genuine faith in Christ. I told him to keep struggling with God’s help, not just his own effort, and I asked him if he would like me to pray for him. He did, and was probably surprised that I prayed for him right there in the parking lot, but I believe it meant lot and he was encouraged.
Brit Lit Class, about 15 high school juniors
5/14/09 As a substitute teacher I am allowed to talk about my religious faith when students ask, but the problem is they rarely ask. So I decided to conduct a somewhat generic ‘Spiritual Survey” that the kids could voluntarily participate in. Well in this British Literature class the students were all very willing to respond, so I asked questions about their belief in God, life after death, morality, sin, justice, and punishment. When I asked how they thought they would do on judgment day, they were asking me all the specific questions about repentance and faith in Christ that I love to answer. Many thought “praying the prayer” was their ticket to heaven but didn’t think much about repentance. Pray for them, they face a lot of temptation every day.
Chris (18) Diane (about 20)
5/16/09 After sitting and hearing the sermon on the Mount read in public at Millennium Park, and some closing preaching by Nick, I asked this African American couple what they thought about it and if they had a religious background. Diane was quick to say that she did, and when asked if she knew she would go to heaven, she said she would, that she was actively involved in her church, growing in her faith in Jesus Christ. Chris on the other hand said that he knew he would go to hell. He knows he is living in sin and is not willing to give it up. “I’m only 18, maybe next year” he said. He basically feels he is young and would miss out if he repented of his sin right now. I appreciated his honesty, and reminded him that tomorrow is not promised; that the Bible says today is the day of salvation. Diane began trying to convince him of the need to turn to the Lord, but focused more on faith in Jesus than on the need for repentance. I didn’t try to soft pedal the repentance that Jesus requires and deserves; I said can you imagine a man on his wedding day vowing faithfulness to his bride 364 days a year, leaving one day for himself. The bride would be crazy to accept that, and Jesus obviously deserves no less. I left them with Diane still trying to convince Chris not to wait with repentance.
Cindy, about 30, Sylvia, about 12
On my way home from dropping off a friend at the hospital, I stopped at McGuane Park to try to start a conversation with someone, and as we met on the sidewalk I offered Sylvia’s mother, Cindy, a million dollar tract, but she said “no thanks”. I said, “Well let me explain what these are for. On the back is the million dollar question ‘Will you go to heaven’” She said “oh yes” but didn’t really know why. This led to a good conversation about the fact of her sin and God’s justice resulting in judgment and God’s love resulting in giving his Son Jesus. Cindy just recently started going to Central Assembly, another church in the neighborhood and I encouraged her to continue and said I’ve heard some very good things about the pastor there. I think she left the conversation with a much better understanding of the faith. I would conclude that the MDB tracts or any tracts can be a great conversation starter regardless of whether people initially take them.
Joseph, about 17
5/19/09 A day earlier I had been very busy after work, and I kept thinking “The night is young, I’ll have a chance to witness to someone later” and I kept putting it off. Well no one crossed my path and I ended the day talking to no one but just being reminded that if I don’t intentionally reach out to someone, it most likely won’t happen. So the next day was a nice day but I had a class until late in the evening, so I knew if I didn’t find someone to talk to it probably wouldn’t happen again just like the day before I arrived at my class 45 minutes early and went for a walk to the 7 Eleven. For some reason, I felt very intimidated to talk to anyone, so I decided to just hand out tracks and see what would happen. I usually can’t hand out the million dollar bill tracts without laughing along with the people and talking about them, so eventually I asked Joseph, a high school kid with his girlfriend, what he thought happens after people die. He said, “Well I went to a Catholic school”, like he had it all together. After some questions about the Commandments and his sin, he changed his mind and said, “Well I really don’t believe in life after death anyway”. I asked him what happens if it really is true that he will stand before God on judgment day, and he knew he was in trouble, but didn’t really want to talk more, probably because he was with his girlfriend who said nothing. So I asked him to really take some time to consider eternity, told him I would pray for him, and let them go on their way.
Frank, 18 and his two friends.
5/20/09 I let Frank and his two buddies hang out in my classroom during a free period, and as I did my Spanish lessons I overheard them talking about all the gang drama going on. I asked them if they knew anyone their age who had been killed, which they had very recently, and what happens after death. They were very open to talking about eternal life, God, and judgment day, and were very shocked to see how they compared to God’s standard, the Ten Commandments, and to realize that they had basically broken them all and would indeed be held accountable. I spent some time talking about God’s infinite holiness and justice, and how God has every right to demand that the punishment fit the crime. They saw that hell really is a reasonable punishment when we rebel against God by breaking his laws, and they were truly convicted of many of their sins, even being amazed at how many times they caught themselves using God’s name disrespectfully in that very conversation. The bell rang, so I stressed John 3:16 to them, gave them some literature, and let them go to their next class.
5/21/09 Lisa, about 30 and Warren, about 40
On my way home from work I stopped at the park to pass out million-dollar bill tracts and try to have a witnessing conversation with someone, which is a daily goal for me. People were out enjoying the nice weather and a dozen or so laughed when I gave them the MDB’s. I encouraged them to read the question on the back which asks if they would go to heaven and to see if they could pass the “good person test” which I failed. This always seems to make people curious as to whether they could pass it themselves, so they often start reading it. I didn’t have much time to work with, but I did talk with Lisa who was exercising her dog. She is a Christian who just took a class and became a “minister” in her church. I told her about biblical evangelism, which shares the truth about our sin, accountabilty to keep God’s commandments, and judgment day which helps prepare people to receive the good news of Jesus with repentence and faith. I encouraged her to be more intentional about evangelism and pray that she will. I also spoke with Warren, who also puts his faith in Christ, though when first asked his trust seemed to be in being a good person. Further questions really showed that he knows his good deeds can’t save him or make up for his sins, but his trust in is Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. I find that many Christians aren’t ready with an answer for the hope that is within them, but when we regularly share our faith it is a benefit not only to others but a constant reminder to ourselves of what we believe. I pray that Warren and Lisa will share their faith on a regular basis.
Joni, 41 my sister
5/25/09 One of the reasons I began witnessing to strangers was to become more prepared to witness to those I know and love. I’ve had some long conversations with Joni, my sister, that eventually ended up going in circles because she doesn’t accept the authority of the Bible. After leaving it alone for over a year I began the conversation again, and found she was glad to talk about it but unfortunately still stuck in the same place due to her lack of trust in God’s Word. This time I was better able to direct the conversation and avoid going in circles. I was able to bypass a lot of her intellectual excuses and get to the heart of the matter – her opinion that she is a good person worthy of heaven. She asked what she could possibly be doing wrong and I explained that she has created her own image of God that she is comfortable with, but she is unwilling to accept God on His terms, which He clearly reveals in the Bible. We plan to talk more. Please pray for her to believe that God reveals himself in His Word.
Al, about 40 5/26.09 I missed a few days of witnessing because I didn’t intentionally go out of my way to look for someone to talk to, but just waited for God to provide an opportunity without my help. Well that may sound pious or spiritual, and its true that opportunities are sometimes given to us in unexpected ways, but the truth is that we are called to be fishers of men, and the fish don’t usually jump in the boat on their own. We have to put our hook in the water. So after my Tuesday evening class it was dark and still raining hard, so on my way home I stopped at Dominicks and began to push a grocery cart around. I decided to give out Million Dollar tracts and hopefully start a conversation. The first person I gave one to was Al, who said “Oh, I already have one. It’s on my refrigerator” “Where did you get it?” “I found it on the ground at the Taste of Chicago last year.” “Did you read the back?” Al said he hadn’t paid much attention to the message on it, and that though he was Catholic he hadn’t really been going to church. I asked him how he felt he’d been doing based on the Ten Commandments, and he easily agreed he has broken them and deserves God’s wrath. He was clearly humble and just hoping God would be merciful to him. I explained that God’s justice demands punishment for sin, but that God’s mercy has made salvation possible through faith in Jesus. Al brightened up and sincerely talked about his love for Jesus. He was glad to have things explained so clearly, and thanked me for spreading God’s word to people like himself. We talked for awhile and I gave him a booklet that explains how we can begin and grow faith in Christ.
Grocery Shoppers 5/27 and 5/28 Sometimes I find that I just lose my boldness in starting witnessing conversations. This time I think it was because I have drifted away from the Lord and allowed my own busy-ness to take priority. My goal is one conversation per day, but if I can’t do that I try to hand out at least 10 “million dollar” tracts. I handed them out as I did various errands, like at the grocery store. Usually, I lighten up because its fun to surprise people with the “million”, and often a conversation is easy to start because of it, but on these days I just had short conversations asking people the million dollar question – “will you go to heaven?” I would then usually say “Are you a good person?” “Oh yes” they all said. I’d say “You look like a good person” and I then asked them to “take the “good person test – its harder than you think - I failed it myself!” They usually get this curious look on their face and I really feel they are then interested enough to read the back of the tract on their own. Please pray for the 20 or so people I gave the tracts to.
Jan, about 30
After a two day drought of witnessing it was more difficult than usually to “break the ice” and start a conversation, so I just decided to start by walking around the Dominick’s parking lot and handing out million dollar tracts. First person I talked to was Jan, sitting in her car. She didn’t want the tract so I just said “I’d like to explain what this is about – it asks the million dollar question – will you go to heaven?” I guess I feel that whether or not a person takes the tract, at they know that I’m trying to share my faith. Jan knew full well, and told me sadly that she didn’t think she would go. I asked her why and she told me she had recently slipped up after being sober for many years. She seemed very hopelesss, so I tried to reassure her that God isn’t through wtith her yet. I was thinking that God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble, so I tried to emphasize his forgiveness. I didn’t know if she had a true godly sorrow, but I asked if I could pray for her, which I did before leaving. Pray for a godly sorrow leading her to repentance and faith in Jesus.
Raul, 25 5/31/09
I gave Raul a MDB tract as he walked to Dominicks and asked him some of the opening questions. He continued to walk as he answered, but instead of trying to continue the conversation by walking with him I stood my ground and he stopped and came back to talk. He turned out to be a Catholic who hasn’t really read the Bible, but has a very religious Grandmother and mother which seemed to be part of the reason why he thought he should go to heaven. I explained that “God doesn’t have any grandchildren, that he personally needed to put his faith in Jesus Christ for salvation. He was thankful for a clear explanation of the Gospel, and said he would read the literature I gave him.
Durdana, about 50, is a woman from India working as a substitute teacher. I struck up a conversation in the teachers lounge, asking about her background and customs. She is a Muslim, and was quick to assert that Muslim’s believe that Jesus was a great prophet, not the son of God. I focused the conversation on God’s justice – would He let sin go unpunished? She eventually agreed that He wouldn’t, and I pointed out that Jesus had never sinned, but Muhammed had, which she agreed to. I asked if Muhammed had to be punished for his sins. At this point, she said that these were things only her cleric could answer. I gave her a “Why Christianity” booklet which compares major religions. She said she would read it, I pray that she will.
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5/1/09 As they sat at a table at Burger King, I gave them Million Dollar Bill tracts and began a conversation about their beliefs. They were cynical and unwilling to take it seriously for quite some time, mocking God and those who believe, but after a while they seemed to take the idea of judgment and our accountability to God a little more seriously, but not enough to care about the good news of Jesus, so lest I “throw my pearls to the swine” I told them they weren’t ready to hear the good news I wanted to tell them. I think they were a little shocked when I walked away, but God isn’t through with them yet – pray for them!
Joshua and Robin, early 20’s
5/2/09 They sat and heard Nick preaching at Millenium Park. I asked the afterward what they thought of it and they claimed that they weren’t really listening. Joshua seemed to think that none of it applied to him because he is Jewish. He believes people should just live a good life, not for a reward or fear of punishment but just because it’s the right thing to do, and after death we cease to exist. I explained how many people take pride in “being good” just because they are good, and thinking that they are above or better than people who do it for a reward or fear of punishment. We went over the commandments and they agreed they hadn’t kept them. They agreed to hear me out as I explained Christianity just for the sake of better understanding it, and I explained how we can’t earn our way to heaven but that good works and obedience to Christ are a natural response of gratitude to what Christ did on the cross. They appreciated the conversation. Pray that what they heard would move from their intellect to convicting their conscience in the way only the Holy Spirit can.
Jim, about 40
5/2/09 Jim was sitting at a bench at Millenium Park. He goes to a Catholic church, loves the priest there and really doesn’t believe he is guilty of breaking any of the ten commandments. He thinks it is wrong to be self-righteous and arrogant, but in his own way he clearly is. As much as I tried, he couldn’t see the need for a savior personally. He understands Jesus died for our sins, but I think he believes it was someone else’s sins that put Jesus on the cross, not his own. Pray for the conviction of sin that only the Holy Spirit can bring!
Josh and David, mid 20’s
5/2/09 I talked primarily to Josh at a table at Millenium Park. During the whole conversation he never indicated any belief in the Bible or attempts to follow it, but smugly asserted his own ability to decide upon truth based on his intellect or reasoning skills. He didn’t think anyone could know if they will be saved or not. As he walked away he made sure that I knew he has read the Bible through many times as part of his studies for his doctoral dissertation. Pray for these men who consider themselves intellectually superior to anyone who, with child-like faith, puts their trust in Jesus, the One who created and sustains their intellect in the first place!
Dave, 22
5/3/09 After our first softball game, while waiting for the second game, I began a conversation on the sidewalk by asking a young man walking by if he would answer an interesting question. He stopped walking and seemed very curious, so I asked what do you think will happen after we die? We began a long conversation. Dave admitted to being a partier who really just lives from day to day without any thought about the future, but he has attended New Life Midway a few times with his cousin. He was clearly convicted by the law and gladly heard the good news of Christ. He said he had never heard it clearly explained before. I prayed for him right there in the park and encouraged him to put his faith in Christ that very day. I thank God for showing me through WOTM that people need to be convicted by the law before they are ready to receive grace – this is a correction to the “modern gospel” which only wants to give people the good news of Jesus without telling them the bad news of God’s wrath and the punishment we deserve because of our sins.
Will you pray for these people this week?
(keep in Bible for your prayer time)
Omar, about 45 and 4 younger guys.
5/5/09 I walked up to the only group hanging out on the campus lawn at Concordia College and began to ask them about the school and students there. Turns out they were custodian workers on a break. I asked them what they thought happens after we die and the leader, Omar, said he grew up Muslim but no longer believes in religion. He agreed that judgment day is a possibility and they all seemed to think they would do okay before God. I took them through several commandments and they were clearly getting convicted. Omar, their foreman, said they had to get back to work, so I gave them a few “Why Christianity” booklets.
Willie, about 40
5/6/09 I first talked with Willie while handing out MDB’s at Lowe’s a few weeks ago and we were both amazed when I went up to hand him a MDB tract in Hyde Park and we realized we had talked a few weeks earlier. He claims Jesus as his Savior and said he would be glad to hand a few MDB tracts along to others. Pray that God will bring to pass whatever purpose he had for us talking a second time….
“Train” about 50
5/6/09 On the sidewalk in Hyde Park I met “Train”, an older Buddhist man, whe said he did not believe in eternal life. I told him of the Biblical teaching of the law and judgment day. He did not want to hear any more of it and walked away.
Leon, about 60
5/6/09 On the sidewalk in Hyde Park, I gave him a MDB tract and asked him the million dollar question, will he go to heaven. He said he really didn’t think much about religion, and I reminded him of the law and his accountability on judgment day. He said he would think read the MDB and think about it.
Atonio, 20
5/11/09 After passing out Million Dollar tracts in the cafeteria at Chicago State, I went back to a young lady who had read the tract and asked her what she thought. She was very agreeable to the fact that she had broken God’s commandments, though not many, and still believed God would see her as a good person. I explained that though God is loving, He also loves justice and will punish sin wherever it may be found, not just the ‘really bad” sins. I helped her to see she breaks God’s commandments more often than she thinks by going through a few. She seemed concerned and thoughtful so I told her about what Jesus had done, which she already knew, and I explained that she needed to put her trust completely in Him to the point of repenting of her sins, not just passively believing in him like someone who believes a parachute can save them though they do nothing to put it on before jumping out of a plane. Pray that she will “put on” Jesus as the Lord and Savior of her life!
Scott, about 45
5/12/09 On my way from work to a class I am taking I stopped at Armour Square park to find someone to witness to. I walked up to Scott who was sitting on a bench, greeted him and asked if I could ask an interesting question. I said, it’s not something people get asked every day. This really seemed to get him curious, so I asked what he thought happens after this life. He thought for a while and said, I don’t know, what do YOU think? I told him that I believed what the Bible said is true about judgment day and heaven and hell. He believed himself to be a good person in God’s sight, so I took him through the “good person” questions. He seemed convicted, but suddenly told me he had to get going. I was able to quickly share the good news of Jesus and give him some literature, but he was clearly not comfortable being confronted by his sin.
Mike and Karen, about 30
5/12/09 While at Armour Park I also gave million dollar tracts to Mike and Karen, who from outward appearances are living a very outwardly sinful lifestyle. They gladly took the MDB’s and when I pointed out the question about heaven and good person questions on the back, they read through them and quickly admitted to breaking all of them often. We talked about how they will be accountable to God on judgment day and they had a lot of questions. Karen is less willing to trust the authority of the Bible. Both grew up Catholic. While Karen left for a phone call, I explained the bad news of sin and punishment and the good news of salvation to Mike, who had some good questions and was willing to admit he still loved his sins and wasn’t ready to give them up. Pray they’ll understand the need for repentance, to hate their sin and love God rather than love their sin and to be apathetic toward God. I gave them the “Why Christianity?” booklets.
Gail, 20?
I stopped at Fairplay on my way home from work, looking for a chance to strike up a conversation with someone. As I wheeled a shopping cart around the store I ran into Gail, who as a kid was involved in our youth group. I haven’t seen her in half a year or so, so I caught up with her life. She has two young kids and takes care of her mother who has MS. I told her that even though she had been at our youth group I didn’t feel we had really explained the Bible very clearly, and asked her if she thought she would go to heaven and why. She thought she would go because she is very sorry for her sins. She sees herself as someone who is becoming a better person and believes God sees her as a good person because of that. She didn’t realize that God’s justice demands punishment for ALL our sins, even those in the past that we have confessed and are sorry for. Simply being sorry doesn’t satisfy the demands of justice. I explained how Jesus paid the penalty for her sins, and that her trust must be in what He has done for her, not in the sincerity of her own repentance. She agreed, and I gave her a booklet explaining Christianity more clearly and encouraging Christian growth.
Joseph, about 20
5/14/09 As I went grocery shopping I hoped to give this everyday chore eternal value, so I handed out million dollar tracts as I pushed my cart up and down the isles. I told most of the people I gave them to about the “million dollar question” on the back asking whether they would go to heaven, not really challenging them to answer right there because I really had to get my shopping done but I still wanted to hand out some MDB’s to get people to think about eternity. So I would tell them about the good person test, saying that I failed it myself. They would laugh at this but I believe it got most of them curious enough to read about it later. Out in the parking lot I saw a young man sitting in his car and gave him one, asking him about heaven and whether he was a good person. Joseph told me he followed Christ but was getting discouraged because of his sin, mentioning losing his temper while working in the grocery store. I tried to encourage him by letting him know that the fact that he is struggling against his sin is a sign that he repents of it, and repentance is a good indication of genuine faith in Christ. I told him to keep struggling with God’s help, not just his own effort, and I asked him if he would like me to pray for him. He did, and was probably surprised that I prayed for him right there in the parking lot, but I believe it meant lot and he was encouraged.
Brit Lit Class, about 15 high school juniors
5/14/09 As a substitute teacher I am allowed to talk about my religious faith when students ask, but the problem is they rarely ask. So I decided to conduct a somewhat generic ‘Spiritual Survey” that the kids could voluntarily participate in. Well in this British Literature class the students were all very willing to respond, so I asked questions about their belief in God, life after death, morality, sin, justice, and punishment. When I asked how they thought they would do on judgment day, they were asking me all the specific questions about repentance and faith in Christ that I love to answer. Many thought “praying the prayer” was their ticket to heaven but didn’t think much about repentance. Pray for them, they face a lot of temptation every day.
Chris (18) Diane (about 20)
5/16/09 After sitting and hearing the sermon on the Mount read in public at Millennium Park, and some closing preaching by Nick, I asked this African American couple what they thought about it and if they had a religious background. Diane was quick to say that she did, and when asked if she knew she would go to heaven, she said she would, that she was actively involved in her church, growing in her faith in Jesus Christ. Chris on the other hand said that he knew he would go to hell. He knows he is living in sin and is not willing to give it up. “I’m only 18, maybe next year” he said. He basically feels he is young and would miss out if he repented of his sin right now. I appreciated his honesty, and reminded him that tomorrow is not promised; that the Bible says today is the day of salvation. Diane began trying to convince him of the need to turn to the Lord, but focused more on faith in Jesus than on the need for repentance. I didn’t try to soft pedal the repentance that Jesus requires and deserves; I said can you imagine a man on his wedding day vowing faithfulness to his bride 364 days a year, leaving one day for himself. The bride would be crazy to accept that, and Jesus obviously deserves no less. I left them with Diane still trying to convince Chris not to wait with repentance.
Cindy, about 30, Sylvia, about 12
On my way home from dropping off a friend at the hospital, I stopped at McGuane Park to try to start a conversation with someone, and as we met on the sidewalk I offered Sylvia’s mother, Cindy, a million dollar tract, but she said “no thanks”. I said, “Well let me explain what these are for. On the back is the million dollar question ‘Will you go to heaven’” She said “oh yes” but didn’t really know why. This led to a good conversation about the fact of her sin and God’s justice resulting in judgment and God’s love resulting in giving his Son Jesus. Cindy just recently started going to Central Assembly, another church in the neighborhood and I encouraged her to continue and said I’ve heard some very good things about the pastor there. I think she left the conversation with a much better understanding of the faith. I would conclude that the MDB tracts or any tracts can be a great conversation starter regardless of whether people initially take them.
Joseph, about 17
5/19/09 A day earlier I had been very busy after work, and I kept thinking “The night is young, I’ll have a chance to witness to someone later” and I kept putting it off. Well no one crossed my path and I ended the day talking to no one but just being reminded that if I don’t intentionally reach out to someone, it most likely won’t happen. So the next day was a nice day but I had a class until late in the evening, so I knew if I didn’t find someone to talk to it probably wouldn’t happen again just like the day before I arrived at my class 45 minutes early and went for a walk to the 7 Eleven. For some reason, I felt very intimidated to talk to anyone, so I decided to just hand out tracks and see what would happen. I usually can’t hand out the million dollar bill tracts without laughing along with the people and talking about them, so eventually I asked Joseph, a high school kid with his girlfriend, what he thought happens after people die. He said, “Well I went to a Catholic school”, like he had it all together. After some questions about the Commandments and his sin, he changed his mind and said, “Well I really don’t believe in life after death anyway”. I asked him what happens if it really is true that he will stand before God on judgment day, and he knew he was in trouble, but didn’t really want to talk more, probably because he was with his girlfriend who said nothing. So I asked him to really take some time to consider eternity, told him I would pray for him, and let them go on their way.
Frank, 18 and his two friends.
5/20/09 I let Frank and his two buddies hang out in my classroom during a free period, and as I did my Spanish lessons I overheard them talking about all the gang drama going on. I asked them if they knew anyone their age who had been killed, which they had very recently, and what happens after death. They were very open to talking about eternal life, God, and judgment day, and were very shocked to see how they compared to God’s standard, the Ten Commandments, and to realize that they had basically broken them all and would indeed be held accountable. I spent some time talking about God’s infinite holiness and justice, and how God has every right to demand that the punishment fit the crime. They saw that hell really is a reasonable punishment when we rebel against God by breaking his laws, and they were truly convicted of many of their sins, even being amazed at how many times they caught themselves using God’s name disrespectfully in that very conversation. The bell rang, so I stressed John 3:16 to them, gave them some literature, and let them go to their next class.
5/21/09 Lisa, about 30 and Warren, about 40
On my way home from work I stopped at the park to pass out million-dollar bill tracts and try to have a witnessing conversation with someone, which is a daily goal for me. People were out enjoying the nice weather and a dozen or so laughed when I gave them the MDB’s. I encouraged them to read the question on the back which asks if they would go to heaven and to see if they could pass the “good person test” which I failed. This always seems to make people curious as to whether they could pass it themselves, so they often start reading it. I didn’t have much time to work with, but I did talk with Lisa who was exercising her dog. She is a Christian who just took a class and became a “minister” in her church. I told her about biblical evangelism, which shares the truth about our sin, accountabilty to keep God’s commandments, and judgment day which helps prepare people to receive the good news of Jesus with repentence and faith. I encouraged her to be more intentional about evangelism and pray that she will. I also spoke with Warren, who also puts his faith in Christ, though when first asked his trust seemed to be in being a good person. Further questions really showed that he knows his good deeds can’t save him or make up for his sins, but his trust in is Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. I find that many Christians aren’t ready with an answer for the hope that is within them, but when we regularly share our faith it is a benefit not only to others but a constant reminder to ourselves of what we believe. I pray that Warren and Lisa will share their faith on a regular basis.
Joni, 41 my sister
5/25/09 One of the reasons I began witnessing to strangers was to become more prepared to witness to those I know and love. I’ve had some long conversations with Joni, my sister, that eventually ended up going in circles because she doesn’t accept the authority of the Bible. After leaving it alone for over a year I began the conversation again, and found she was glad to talk about it but unfortunately still stuck in the same place due to her lack of trust in God’s Word. This time I was better able to direct the conversation and avoid going in circles. I was able to bypass a lot of her intellectual excuses and get to the heart of the matter – her opinion that she is a good person worthy of heaven. She asked what she could possibly be doing wrong and I explained that she has created her own image of God that she is comfortable with, but she is unwilling to accept God on His terms, which He clearly reveals in the Bible. We plan to talk more. Please pray for her to believe that God reveals himself in His Word.
Al, about 40 5/26.09 I missed a few days of witnessing because I didn’t intentionally go out of my way to look for someone to talk to, but just waited for God to provide an opportunity without my help. Well that may sound pious or spiritual, and its true that opportunities are sometimes given to us in unexpected ways, but the truth is that we are called to be fishers of men, and the fish don’t usually jump in the boat on their own. We have to put our hook in the water. So after my Tuesday evening class it was dark and still raining hard, so on my way home I stopped at Dominicks and began to push a grocery cart around. I decided to give out Million Dollar tracts and hopefully start a conversation. The first person I gave one to was Al, who said “Oh, I already have one. It’s on my refrigerator” “Where did you get it?” “I found it on the ground at the Taste of Chicago last year.” “Did you read the back?” Al said he hadn’t paid much attention to the message on it, and that though he was Catholic he hadn’t really been going to church. I asked him how he felt he’d been doing based on the Ten Commandments, and he easily agreed he has broken them and deserves God’s wrath. He was clearly humble and just hoping God would be merciful to him. I explained that God’s justice demands punishment for sin, but that God’s mercy has made salvation possible through faith in Jesus. Al brightened up and sincerely talked about his love for Jesus. He was glad to have things explained so clearly, and thanked me for spreading God’s word to people like himself. We talked for awhile and I gave him a booklet that explains how we can begin and grow faith in Christ.
Grocery Shoppers 5/27 and 5/28 Sometimes I find that I just lose my boldness in starting witnessing conversations. This time I think it was because I have drifted away from the Lord and allowed my own busy-ness to take priority. My goal is one conversation per day, but if I can’t do that I try to hand out at least 10 “million dollar” tracts. I handed them out as I did various errands, like at the grocery store. Usually, I lighten up because its fun to surprise people with the “million”, and often a conversation is easy to start because of it, but on these days I just had short conversations asking people the million dollar question – “will you go to heaven?” I would then usually say “Are you a good person?” “Oh yes” they all said. I’d say “You look like a good person” and I then asked them to “take the “good person test – its harder than you think - I failed it myself!” They usually get this curious look on their face and I really feel they are then interested enough to read the back of the tract on their own. Please pray for the 20 or so people I gave the tracts to.
Jan, about 30
After a two day drought of witnessing it was more difficult than usually to “break the ice” and start a conversation, so I just decided to start by walking around the Dominick’s parking lot and handing out million dollar tracts. First person I talked to was Jan, sitting in her car. She didn’t want the tract so I just said “I’d like to explain what this is about – it asks the million dollar question – will you go to heaven?” I guess I feel that whether or not a person takes the tract, at they know that I’m trying to share my faith. Jan knew full well, and told me sadly that she didn’t think she would go. I asked her why and she told me she had recently slipped up after being sober for many years. She seemed very hopelesss, so I tried to reassure her that God isn’t through wtith her yet. I was thinking that God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble, so I tried to emphasize his forgiveness. I didn’t know if she had a true godly sorrow, but I asked if I could pray for her, which I did before leaving. Pray for a godly sorrow leading her to repentance and faith in Jesus.
Raul, 25 5/31/09
I gave Raul a MDB tract as he walked to Dominicks and asked him some of the opening questions. He continued to walk as he answered, but instead of trying to continue the conversation by walking with him I stood my ground and he stopped and came back to talk. He turned out to be a Catholic who hasn’t really read the Bible, but has a very religious Grandmother and mother which seemed to be part of the reason why he thought he should go to heaven. I explained that “God doesn’t have any grandchildren, that he personally needed to put his faith in Jesus Christ for salvation. He was thankful for a clear explanation of the Gospel, and said he would read the literature I gave him.
Durdana, about 50, is a woman from India working as a substitute teacher. I struck up a conversation in the teachers lounge, asking about her background and customs. She is a Muslim, and was quick to assert that Muslim’s believe that Jesus was a great prophet, not the son of God. I focused the conversation on God’s justice – would He let sin go unpunished? She eventually agreed that He wouldn’t, and I pointed out that Jesus had never sinned, but Muhammed had, which she agreed to. I asked if Muhammed had to be punished for his sins. At this point, she said that these were things only her cleric could answer. I gave her a “Why Christianity” booklet which compares major religions. She said she would read it, I pray that she will.
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April
John, about 50
Date:4/3/09 at McDonald’s
Conversation: John had listened quietly a month earlier when I witnessed to his friend, Hunter, who claims to be a Christian but shows no outward evidence of his faith. John is Catholic, and trusts in his religious activity for salvation. I pointed out that we are judged according to the 10 Commandments, and helped him to see he is personally responsible for breaking God’s laws. John appreciated our conversation, but showed little conviction or concern for his spiritual state. I didn’t go on to talk of salvation that comes only through repentance and faith in Jesus, because he was unconvinced of his need for a savior and needed to leave. I gave him the booklet “Why Christianity”.
Mike and Andrew, 18
4/4, sitting and smoking on front porch on 29th street. They are seniors at DeLaSalle, and seemed shocked that a stranger would walk up to them and begin a conversation about God. They asked if I was an angel, and were willing to talk about their beliefs. They thought they had it all figured out from their religion classes at school, and believed that all religions lead to God. Their trust was in their Catholic church activities and the “scapula” they wore as a necklace, but didn’t really know what it symbolized. They admitted their guilt when confronted with various commandments. Mike had to leave at that point to help his mother, but Andrew stayed and heard the Gospel explained clearly. He was thoughtful and had some good questions. I left him a Gospel summary and my own contact info in case he had any further questions.
Maybelline, about 25
When she refused to take a MDB tract while shopping at Target, I asked her why in a friendly way and that began a conversation. She explained that her family had been active in a Pentecostal church until she was about 8, when her father abandoned the family for another woman. Since then, she hasn’t attended church. She seemed genuinely convicted by her guilt in breaking God’s law and concerned about judgment day, and was glad to hear the Good News of Jesus explained clearly. I encouraged her to repent and put her faith in Christ, and gave her more info and contact info.
Dan, about 35
Gave him a MDB tract and began a conversation while shopping at Unique Thrift Store. Confronted with his guilt due to breaking God’s commandments. Agreed that he would be found guilty on judgment day but didn’t seem too concerned. Challenged him to think about his eternal future, but he seemed too preoccupied.
Luis and friends, late teens, early 20’s
Approached them while they were playing soccer at the park. Challenged them to think seriously about eternity and judgment day. After a few minutes most began to play soccer again, but Luis stayed to listen. I explained about our accountability to God on judgment day and our guilt in disobeying God’s commands, how we deserve eternal punishment for our rebellion against our eternal God. Luis agreed, heard the law and some of the good news of Jesus, but overall he didn’t seem too concerned. He may have just listened out of respect and courtesy. May God bless him for being courteous!
Liliana, about 30
Talked to Lilliana while we wited at the deli counter. She grew up Catholic, and trusts in her religious activity for salvation. I pointed out that we are judged according to the 10 Commandments, and helped her to see she is personally responsible for breaking God’s laws. She appreciated our conversation, but needed to finish her shopping. Gave her additional info.
Ohalia, about 40, with daughter, about 20
They have attended New Life Midway a few times, but are discouraged to continue by her husband who is devoted to his Catholic church. I talked too much about church, and in hindsight I wish I had shared the Gospel clearly. I was distracted by their excitement about church and I don’t think I should just assume that they understand the way of salvation clearly.
Ricardo, about 17
I began a conversation with him while shopping for groceries. He seemed in a hurry, and surprised me when he stopped his shopping and gave me his full attention to talk about spiritual things. I explained about our accountability to God on judgment day and our guilt in disobeying God’s commands, how we deserve eternal punishment for our rebellion against our eternal God. Ricardo agreed, heard the law and some of the good news of Jesus, but overall he seemed to be in a hurry. He may have just listened out of respect and courtesy. Like Luis a few days earlier, may God bless him for being courteous!
Patrick, Shaunese, Jasmine. 4/16/09 Teenagers at a maternity high school. All claimed to have a church background. They thought that if a person is truly sorry enough about their sins than they can go to heaven. Two somewhat laughingly said they would go to hell because they haven’t repented of their sins. I explained about our personal guilt in breaking God’s laws and how God’s justice demands punishment. When shown that hell is indeed what they deserve, they took it much more seriously than at first. I explained the way of salvation as clearly as I could and they seemed to understand and were grateful for the conversation.
Leo, about 30 4/16/09
After passing out MDB tracts at Burger King, I spoke to Leo who told me he could understand English and seemed genuinely interested. After a few minutes I could tell he really didn’t understand, so I gave him a Spanish MDB and moved on. God bless him for trying!
John and John, 70 and about 45
Sat down to talk to John, 70, at Burger King. John, 45, a postman, was sitting nearby and listened in on the conversation. He heard about our accountability on judgment day and our guilt In breaking the Ten Commandments before he had to get back to work. Gave him more info to read later. The older John was an inactive Catholic who seemed to have a lot of Bible knowledge though his conclusion was that one must be a good person to earn salvation. After much discussion and good questions, and agreement on our sin and need of God’s grace, he still couldn’t let go of his own good works as his basis for salvation.
Pete, Jason, Joey, Kevin, Smokey, all in mid 20’s 4/17/09
I’ve known them for years, and popped in to their apartment for a home visit while they partied. I had shared about God’s law and judgment day with Kevin and Pete about 5 months ago and they remembered the conversation well. They all really listened and had some good questions while I explained about their sin and accountability on judgment day, the just punishment for sin and the way of salvation. I challenged them to repentence and faith in Jesus. They all know where I live if they have questions!
Irma, about 65 4/18/09
Gave her a MDB tract while shopping, and began a conversation. She seemed to have lost hope for living and for heaven. She readily admitted her sin. I tried to encourage her that God isn’t through with her, that there can be hope for her future. She seems to be living through her daughters success, whom she only sees every 3 years because she lives in Australia. It was hard to keep the conversation on track because of her fixation on her daughter.
Sydnor, about 50 4/18/09
Gave her a MDB tract while shopping, and began a conversation. She is a Jehovah’s Witness and her JW memory verses kicked in, though they didn’t really relate to the conversation and she didn’t really have a clear understanding of her own beliefs. She believes her faith is “Christian” though she differs on many key theological issues. Hard to keep her on topic as she constantly went off on a tangent. I challenged her to understand that Christ alone, with no help from us, is our basis for salvation.
Yobda (from Somalia), Tyree, about 30
4/18/09 They were listening to Nick as he preached at Millenium Park. They told me they are active church members and just curious about what Nick was preaching. They told me they believe that one must simply be very sorry about their sins in order to be saved. They didn’t really understand what Jesus has to do with it. I challenged them to a clearer understanding of their faith and to share it with others. In hindsight, I believe they have faith not in Jesus but in their own sincerity of repentance. They have a faulty image of God as forgiving but not concerned about justice and punishment for sin. I pray their understanding of God would be corrected.
Megan, 20, and Dave & Yvette, about 30. They were sitting on a park bench and heard the end of my preaching, so I asked them what they thought of it, which began a good conversation. They all heard an explanation of our guilt in breaking God’s law and agreed. They understood that Hell is the only appropriate punishment for breaking God’s holy commandments. At that point Megan had to catch up to her friends. As I explained about Jesus’ dying and taking our punishment for us, Dave & Yvette seemed increasingly uncomfortable and just wanted to think about it themselves, so I gave them a gospel summary they could read later. They were from a Catholic background.
Jermaine, 18 4/20/09
Good conversation whiled I subbed at Collins High school. Jermaine told me he is a
Christian and attends a non-denominational church. He and a friend are working on a Christian rap CD in which they intend to secretly expose their listeners to the Gospel without offending them. He was very impressed that an adult could talk so freely about their faith in a public setting. I gave him the “good person test” because though he claimed to be a Christian, it turned out the basis for his faith was his church attendance and other good works. He didn’t see himself as a sinner who had broken God’s law and deserved God’s wrath and punishment. He was very encouraged by the conversation and glad to receive a booklet to help him grow in his understanding of Christianity.
Thurmond, about 50
4/23/09 a sub teacher at Dunbar High School, I thought he was reading the Bible. It turned out to be a law book which helped me start an interesting conversation about God’s justice and the consequences of breaking God’s law. Though a regular Baptist church attendee, he claimed he doesn’t believe in God and just enjoys the inspiring sermons about social justice. I asked him if there is a possibility that God DOES exist, which he agreed to, and so I asked him what would happen to him on judgment day if it were all true. He saw himself as a good person and didn’t want to agree that God would punish us for our sins. I think he was challenged with the possibility of judgment day, and I gave him more info to read
Mike, about 25
4/24/09 at Lowes Home Store
With his tattoos and by the way he dressed, Mike clearly looked like a typical gangbanger. But he was very positive when I began a conversation with him, and clearly convicted by the good person test”. I began to tell him about the hope he could have in Christ, and he was very thankful for the conversation and wanted to go home to tell his wife about it. I let him God and trust God to continue the good work He is doing in Mike.
Al, about 30, also at Lowes
Like Mike, Al also had a “tough guy” exterior with his huge size and dreadlocks, but I’m finding out just how deceiving outward appearances can be. He turned out to be a college theology major and very interested in various religions. We talked for some length, agreeing to disagree, and I just tried to impress on him that Christianity is the only religious faith that solves our problem with sin and our inability to “earn” a right relationship with God. I left him with more info and invited him to come to church.
Yvette, about 20 4/25/09
At Bosley Park, after Nick’s Evangelism Crash Course, Markus, Hillary and I went to put our training into action. We met Yvette, who was with an older friend and seemed interested in what we were talking about but embarrassed because her older friend was there. She is from a Catholic upbringing and seemed to have given up trying to keep the faith, but she heard about God’s law and justice, and the hope of forgiveness in Christ. Though she was laughing and joking because of her friend, I pray she will seriously consider what she heard.
Sandy, about 20 4/25/09
At Bosley Park, after Nick’s Evangelism Crash Course, Markus, Hillary and I went to put our training into action. We met Sandy, who was from a Catholic upbringing and seemed to have given up trying to keep the faith, but she heard about God’s law and justice, and the hope of forgiveness in Christ. Though it started raining and I had to hurry toward the end of the conversation, I pray she will seriously consider what she heard.
Jerry, about 60, disabled.
4/25/09 At Fleetwood Roller Rink. He talked about raising his daughter, 14, and multiple marriages. Believed himself to be a good person and hopes he is good enough to go to heaven. Grew up Catholic. The music was too loud for further conversation, but I thank God for allowing me to meet Jerry and pray for his salvation.
Bill, about 40
While waiting for a rain shower to end after class, I spoke to a philosophy professor at CSU. He is teaching a class called Philosophy and Law, and just happened to be teaching that day about law as discussed in the book of Romans. He has been through seminary and studied all the major world religions, and very proud to be able to explain away God and the Bible. His interpretation of Romans couldn’t be more opposite of Paul’s intentions in writing it. He said he grew up in a Christian family, but no longer believes in God or the Bible, other than to use it for inspiration for social justice activities. He is clearly used to arguing his points, and if I was to do it over again I think I could have avoided the intellectual arguments by dealing more with his guilty conscience. Pray for Bill and, more importantly, pray for the many students he is leading astray.
Mikail, about 35
4/28/09 After passing out MDB tracts at the Borders bookstore café in Hyde Park, I spoke to Mickail, a gentleman who seemed deep in thought after reading the tract. He is going through a divorce and said he is re-thinking the meaning of life. He has had some mental instability due to time serving in Iraq. I shared both the law/judgment and the good news of salvation in Christ. He was very encouraged by the whole conversation, yet overwhelmed by it all at the same time. He seemed determined to take God a lot more seriously and think through the things we talked about. I left him additional info and my contact info. In hindsight, I wish I would have prayed for him right there in the bookstore before I left, because though he won’t remember everything we talked about, that would have been the best way to leave him with the hope of Christ. Lord, may I do better next time!
Larry, about 35, and Marvin, about 45
4/29/09 On my way home from work I stopped at Food For Less and handed out Million Dollar Bill tracts which led to talking with two guys in separate but very similar conversations. Both agreed to the fact of our sin and that we deserve punishment, both were trusting that their good deeds would earn them God’s favor on judgment day, and both agreed when I explained that Jesus can be our only basis for salvation. They didn’t seem convicted by their sin, so pray that they would repent of their pride and that the conversations were helpful as a reminder to them not to trust in their good deeds but to put their trust in Jesus.
Steve, about 50
4/30/09 While at work I met Steve who is divorced and seems rather cynical about a lot of things in life. I gave him a ride home, and on the way I asked him what he thought happens after we die. He said he believes in reincarnation and wants to come back and explore different times in history. I asked him what he thought would happen if what the Bible says is true about our sin and accountability to God on judgment day. He seemed very impressed by my boldness and asked all about where I attend church and said he would like to attend. He only lives a few blocks away. In hindsight, I think he was trying to change the subject to a safer topic, and I hope in the future I can work harder to keep on the subject even when it gets uncomfortable. Please pray that God will work on Steve’s conscience even though our conversation didn’t get very far.
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Date:4/3/09 at McDonald’s
Conversation: John had listened quietly a month earlier when I witnessed to his friend, Hunter, who claims to be a Christian but shows no outward evidence of his faith. John is Catholic, and trusts in his religious activity for salvation. I pointed out that we are judged according to the 10 Commandments, and helped him to see he is personally responsible for breaking God’s laws. John appreciated our conversation, but showed little conviction or concern for his spiritual state. I didn’t go on to talk of salvation that comes only through repentance and faith in Jesus, because he was unconvinced of his need for a savior and needed to leave. I gave him the booklet “Why Christianity”.
Mike and Andrew, 18
4/4, sitting and smoking on front porch on 29th street. They are seniors at DeLaSalle, and seemed shocked that a stranger would walk up to them and begin a conversation about God. They asked if I was an angel, and were willing to talk about their beliefs. They thought they had it all figured out from their religion classes at school, and believed that all religions lead to God. Their trust was in their Catholic church activities and the “scapula” they wore as a necklace, but didn’t really know what it symbolized. They admitted their guilt when confronted with various commandments. Mike had to leave at that point to help his mother, but Andrew stayed and heard the Gospel explained clearly. He was thoughtful and had some good questions. I left him a Gospel summary and my own contact info in case he had any further questions.
Maybelline, about 25
When she refused to take a MDB tract while shopping at Target, I asked her why in a friendly way and that began a conversation. She explained that her family had been active in a Pentecostal church until she was about 8, when her father abandoned the family for another woman. Since then, she hasn’t attended church. She seemed genuinely convicted by her guilt in breaking God’s law and concerned about judgment day, and was glad to hear the Good News of Jesus explained clearly. I encouraged her to repent and put her faith in Christ, and gave her more info and contact info.
Dan, about 35
Gave him a MDB tract and began a conversation while shopping at Unique Thrift Store. Confronted with his guilt due to breaking God’s commandments. Agreed that he would be found guilty on judgment day but didn’t seem too concerned. Challenged him to think about his eternal future, but he seemed too preoccupied.
Luis and friends, late teens, early 20’s
Approached them while they were playing soccer at the park. Challenged them to think seriously about eternity and judgment day. After a few minutes most began to play soccer again, but Luis stayed to listen. I explained about our accountability to God on judgment day and our guilt in disobeying God’s commands, how we deserve eternal punishment for our rebellion against our eternal God. Luis agreed, heard the law and some of the good news of Jesus, but overall he didn’t seem too concerned. He may have just listened out of respect and courtesy. May God bless him for being courteous!
Liliana, about 30
Talked to Lilliana while we wited at the deli counter. She grew up Catholic, and trusts in her religious activity for salvation. I pointed out that we are judged according to the 10 Commandments, and helped her to see she is personally responsible for breaking God’s laws. She appreciated our conversation, but needed to finish her shopping. Gave her additional info.
Ohalia, about 40, with daughter, about 20
They have attended New Life Midway a few times, but are discouraged to continue by her husband who is devoted to his Catholic church. I talked too much about church, and in hindsight I wish I had shared the Gospel clearly. I was distracted by their excitement about church and I don’t think I should just assume that they understand the way of salvation clearly.
Ricardo, about 17
I began a conversation with him while shopping for groceries. He seemed in a hurry, and surprised me when he stopped his shopping and gave me his full attention to talk about spiritual things. I explained about our accountability to God on judgment day and our guilt in disobeying God’s commands, how we deserve eternal punishment for our rebellion against our eternal God. Ricardo agreed, heard the law and some of the good news of Jesus, but overall he seemed to be in a hurry. He may have just listened out of respect and courtesy. Like Luis a few days earlier, may God bless him for being courteous!
Patrick, Shaunese, Jasmine. 4/16/09 Teenagers at a maternity high school. All claimed to have a church background. They thought that if a person is truly sorry enough about their sins than they can go to heaven. Two somewhat laughingly said they would go to hell because they haven’t repented of their sins. I explained about our personal guilt in breaking God’s laws and how God’s justice demands punishment. When shown that hell is indeed what they deserve, they took it much more seriously than at first. I explained the way of salvation as clearly as I could and they seemed to understand and were grateful for the conversation.
Leo, about 30 4/16/09
After passing out MDB tracts at Burger King, I spoke to Leo who told me he could understand English and seemed genuinely interested. After a few minutes I could tell he really didn’t understand, so I gave him a Spanish MDB and moved on. God bless him for trying!
John and John, 70 and about 45
Sat down to talk to John, 70, at Burger King. John, 45, a postman, was sitting nearby and listened in on the conversation. He heard about our accountability on judgment day and our guilt In breaking the Ten Commandments before he had to get back to work. Gave him more info to read later. The older John was an inactive Catholic who seemed to have a lot of Bible knowledge though his conclusion was that one must be a good person to earn salvation. After much discussion and good questions, and agreement on our sin and need of God’s grace, he still couldn’t let go of his own good works as his basis for salvation.
Pete, Jason, Joey, Kevin, Smokey, all in mid 20’s 4/17/09
I’ve known them for years, and popped in to their apartment for a home visit while they partied. I had shared about God’s law and judgment day with Kevin and Pete about 5 months ago and they remembered the conversation well. They all really listened and had some good questions while I explained about their sin and accountability on judgment day, the just punishment for sin and the way of salvation. I challenged them to repentence and faith in Jesus. They all know where I live if they have questions!
Irma, about 65 4/18/09
Gave her a MDB tract while shopping, and began a conversation. She seemed to have lost hope for living and for heaven. She readily admitted her sin. I tried to encourage her that God isn’t through with her, that there can be hope for her future. She seems to be living through her daughters success, whom she only sees every 3 years because she lives in Australia. It was hard to keep the conversation on track because of her fixation on her daughter.
Sydnor, about 50 4/18/09
Gave her a MDB tract while shopping, and began a conversation. She is a Jehovah’s Witness and her JW memory verses kicked in, though they didn’t really relate to the conversation and she didn’t really have a clear understanding of her own beliefs. She believes her faith is “Christian” though she differs on many key theological issues. Hard to keep her on topic as she constantly went off on a tangent. I challenged her to understand that Christ alone, with no help from us, is our basis for salvation.
Yobda (from Somalia), Tyree, about 30
4/18/09 They were listening to Nick as he preached at Millenium Park. They told me they are active church members and just curious about what Nick was preaching. They told me they believe that one must simply be very sorry about their sins in order to be saved. They didn’t really understand what Jesus has to do with it. I challenged them to a clearer understanding of their faith and to share it with others. In hindsight, I believe they have faith not in Jesus but in their own sincerity of repentance. They have a faulty image of God as forgiving but not concerned about justice and punishment for sin. I pray their understanding of God would be corrected.
Megan, 20, and Dave & Yvette, about 30. They were sitting on a park bench and heard the end of my preaching, so I asked them what they thought of it, which began a good conversation. They all heard an explanation of our guilt in breaking God’s law and agreed. They understood that Hell is the only appropriate punishment for breaking God’s holy commandments. At that point Megan had to catch up to her friends. As I explained about Jesus’ dying and taking our punishment for us, Dave & Yvette seemed increasingly uncomfortable and just wanted to think about it themselves, so I gave them a gospel summary they could read later. They were from a Catholic background.
Jermaine, 18 4/20/09
Good conversation whiled I subbed at Collins High school. Jermaine told me he is a
Christian and attends a non-denominational church. He and a friend are working on a Christian rap CD in which they intend to secretly expose their listeners to the Gospel without offending them. He was very impressed that an adult could talk so freely about their faith in a public setting. I gave him the “good person test” because though he claimed to be a Christian, it turned out the basis for his faith was his church attendance and other good works. He didn’t see himself as a sinner who had broken God’s law and deserved God’s wrath and punishment. He was very encouraged by the conversation and glad to receive a booklet to help him grow in his understanding of Christianity.
Thurmond, about 50
4/23/09 a sub teacher at Dunbar High School, I thought he was reading the Bible. It turned out to be a law book which helped me start an interesting conversation about God’s justice and the consequences of breaking God’s law. Though a regular Baptist church attendee, he claimed he doesn’t believe in God and just enjoys the inspiring sermons about social justice. I asked him if there is a possibility that God DOES exist, which he agreed to, and so I asked him what would happen to him on judgment day if it were all true. He saw himself as a good person and didn’t want to agree that God would punish us for our sins. I think he was challenged with the possibility of judgment day, and I gave him more info to read
Mike, about 25
4/24/09 at Lowes Home Store
With his tattoos and by the way he dressed, Mike clearly looked like a typical gangbanger. But he was very positive when I began a conversation with him, and clearly convicted by the good person test”. I began to tell him about the hope he could have in Christ, and he was very thankful for the conversation and wanted to go home to tell his wife about it. I let him God and trust God to continue the good work He is doing in Mike.
Al, about 30, also at Lowes
Like Mike, Al also had a “tough guy” exterior with his huge size and dreadlocks, but I’m finding out just how deceiving outward appearances can be. He turned out to be a college theology major and very interested in various religions. We talked for some length, agreeing to disagree, and I just tried to impress on him that Christianity is the only religious faith that solves our problem with sin and our inability to “earn” a right relationship with God. I left him with more info and invited him to come to church.
Yvette, about 20 4/25/09
At Bosley Park, after Nick’s Evangelism Crash Course, Markus, Hillary and I went to put our training into action. We met Yvette, who was with an older friend and seemed interested in what we were talking about but embarrassed because her older friend was there. She is from a Catholic upbringing and seemed to have given up trying to keep the faith, but she heard about God’s law and justice, and the hope of forgiveness in Christ. Though she was laughing and joking because of her friend, I pray she will seriously consider what she heard.
Sandy, about 20 4/25/09
At Bosley Park, after Nick’s Evangelism Crash Course, Markus, Hillary and I went to put our training into action. We met Sandy, who was from a Catholic upbringing and seemed to have given up trying to keep the faith, but she heard about God’s law and justice, and the hope of forgiveness in Christ. Though it started raining and I had to hurry toward the end of the conversation, I pray she will seriously consider what she heard.
Jerry, about 60, disabled.
4/25/09 At Fleetwood Roller Rink. He talked about raising his daughter, 14, and multiple marriages. Believed himself to be a good person and hopes he is good enough to go to heaven. Grew up Catholic. The music was too loud for further conversation, but I thank God for allowing me to meet Jerry and pray for his salvation.
Bill, about 40
While waiting for a rain shower to end after class, I spoke to a philosophy professor at CSU. He is teaching a class called Philosophy and Law, and just happened to be teaching that day about law as discussed in the book of Romans. He has been through seminary and studied all the major world religions, and very proud to be able to explain away God and the Bible. His interpretation of Romans couldn’t be more opposite of Paul’s intentions in writing it. He said he grew up in a Christian family, but no longer believes in God or the Bible, other than to use it for inspiration for social justice activities. He is clearly used to arguing his points, and if I was to do it over again I think I could have avoided the intellectual arguments by dealing more with his guilty conscience. Pray for Bill and, more importantly, pray for the many students he is leading astray.
Mikail, about 35
4/28/09 After passing out MDB tracts at the Borders bookstore café in Hyde Park, I spoke to Mickail, a gentleman who seemed deep in thought after reading the tract. He is going through a divorce and said he is re-thinking the meaning of life. He has had some mental instability due to time serving in Iraq. I shared both the law/judgment and the good news of salvation in Christ. He was very encouraged by the whole conversation, yet overwhelmed by it all at the same time. He seemed determined to take God a lot more seriously and think through the things we talked about. I left him additional info and my contact info. In hindsight, I wish I would have prayed for him right there in the bookstore before I left, because though he won’t remember everything we talked about, that would have been the best way to leave him with the hope of Christ. Lord, may I do better next time!
Larry, about 35, and Marvin, about 45
4/29/09 On my way home from work I stopped at Food For Less and handed out Million Dollar Bill tracts which led to talking with two guys in separate but very similar conversations. Both agreed to the fact of our sin and that we deserve punishment, both were trusting that their good deeds would earn them God’s favor on judgment day, and both agreed when I explained that Jesus can be our only basis for salvation. They didn’t seem convicted by their sin, so pray that they would repent of their pride and that the conversations were helpful as a reminder to them not to trust in their good deeds but to put their trust in Jesus.
Steve, about 50
4/30/09 While at work I met Steve who is divorced and seems rather cynical about a lot of things in life. I gave him a ride home, and on the way I asked him what he thought happens after we die. He said he believes in reincarnation and wants to come back and explore different times in history. I asked him what he thought would happen if what the Bible says is true about our sin and accountability to God on judgment day. He seemed very impressed by my boldness and asked all about where I attend church and said he would like to attend. He only lives a few blocks away. In hindsight, I think he was trying to change the subject to a safer topic, and I hope in the future I can work harder to keep on the subject even when it gets uncomfortable. Please pray that God will work on Steve’s conscience even though our conversation didn’t get very far.
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