8/24/12 John,
20
After another busy
day, I set out late at night to initiate a gospel conversation. A group of friends kicked out of a Dunkin'
Donuts for loitering were hanging around out front, and I ended up talking to
one of them, a 20 year old self-confessed gangbanger named John, who had a beer
in hand and was somewhat inebriated. I
wasn't sure if the conversation would be worth the effort. Would he be able to think logically? Would he even remember anything I said
later? Yet he wanted to talk, and
clearly has been considering God's role in his life. John was born into the gang environment and
though he knows it is wrong doesn't feel like he has had any options. "I do believe in God, and I always take
Him seriously every time I'm in County."
He's been in juvenile detention or the county jail 7 times since the age
of ten, has been drinking and drugging through his teens, and makes his way
through petty crime and street hustling.
He has a second child on the way through a second girlfriend, though
he's not sure if the child is his, and says that he wants a child to take care of
to give himself someone to be responsible for.
"I'm tired of this life", he said, "It's time for me to
grow up". What to tell him? He's heard the Gospel and "prayed the
prayer" multiple times in jail. He
knows he needs to change but I don't believe he has the character tools and
other personal resources he needs to do so.
His jailhouse understanding of the gospel emphasizes belief and ignores repentance,
yet his need for change in almost every area of life is too overwhelming for
him to consider all at once. I tried to
give him a mental picture to understand belief and repentance. "Imagine jumping out of an airplane
without your parachute. You could say
you believe in the parachute all you want, but it wouldn't do any good unless
you put it on. Jesus is like the
parachute - you need to put Him on in your life". Where to start? I gave him some small steps, thinking about
how Jesus said in the Parable of the Talents "You have been faithful
with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things" (Matt 25)
I gave John a small booklet to read that explains his need for repentance
as well as faith. "My name and
number are right there on the first page.
Read this and write down five questions about it so I know you are
serious, and then call me and we'll talk over coffee right here at this Dunkin'
Donuts." Please join me in prayer
for John. I won't hold my breath waiting
for him to call, but I hope he knows the responsibility to show repentance
through a few small steps belongs to him.
1 comment:
That's awesome Jeff. I hope he calls.
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