March 2006

"And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire..."

March 4, 2006 - We went to the monthly Flea Market which is hosted at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center. Thousands of people shop at the the Flea Market once a month. We stood in the center aisles and handed out almost 600 Gospel tracts before being told to stop by security. Everything was going great until one of the vendors read one of our tracts, cussed Daniel out and then called for security. We were told that we could not hand out anymore tracts. We spoke with the management and they told us that you have to "pay to play". The cost would be $100 to rent a booth on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I am praying that we might be able to rent the booth once a month. We would like to use the booth space to hand out tracts, do One-2-One (maybe have a $20 Good Person challenge) , show WOTM videos, invite people to church, maybe even Open Air in our booth (Hey, the Ginsu Knife people do it!). This would be an awesome opportunity to talk to people One-2-One and place the written Word of God in hundreds of people's hands!

March 11, 2006 - God had really laid on my heart to do One-2-One this week, however, the weather was not cooperating. It had rained earlier in the morning and it seemed to be a very dreary day. Jordan came over at 10:30am and we had breakfast. Daniel showed up at 11:00am. We watched WOTM episode #20 "How to Witness to Someone Who is Gay" and decided to head to the Bardstown Rd/Highlands area. The weather was a bit damp, but the rain had stopped. As we got closer, we were encouraged that there seemed to be people out and about. We decided to start off with the I.Q. Test Survey Tract. The very first people we came across was two Mormon females in a bus stop. One of their names was Bonnie. I have never come across ANY female Mormons so it was kind of a surprise to us. We had a good conversation and they listened to us. We did not get into any sort of theological debate. I focused in on being saved by grace and not by works. I told them that I knew that they walked around with this great burden of "being perfect". From what I have studied, Mormons take Matthew 5:48 literally. I made sure they knew that we must be perfect, but we cannot be perfect on our own. We are made perfect through Jesus Christ, not by anything that we do. That frees us from the burden of walking around trying to be perfect all the time. Although we should daily strive to walk as Christ would have us walk, we must realize that we will not be truly perfect until we get to heaven. After we spoke with them we turned our attention to another couple that was waiting on the bus. I began speaking with Tasha. Her boyfriend, whose family had a Jehovah's Witness background, kept interjecting and asking me "many different religions" questions. I would try to quickly answer them and get back on the important matter of Tasha's salvation. Just as I was finishing our conversation, the bus came. I handed Tasha the Survey Tract and told her to consider what we had discussed. We then walked further and came across about six or seven people at the bus stop, including Hank. Hank informed us that he had been homeless since 1989. Two ladies walked away after we began to talk about Jesus. Hank continued to listen intently. In the middle of our conversation a lady walked up and interrupted us. She would not tell us her real name, but said we could refer to her as "El Ha". She proceeded to heckle us as we spoke to Hank. She said that we were harassing Hank and pushing Jesus down his throat. It was funny because Hank said, "No they are not" and told us to continue. She went off on tirades about how she worshipped trees, the moon and cats. She was wearing different medallions around her neck. One was a moon god (she said). She said the Bible didn't respect women and that she was all about nature. She also said she was a pagan and a Wiccan. She also said that she was Native American. She sounded very confused. Hank seemed to be receptive, but I was having a hard time getting him to understand that Christianity was more than just asking for forgiveness. This is one of the biggest problems that we come across on the streets. People say, "Yeah, I do this and that, but isn't God a forgiving God? I just ask His forgiveness and He forgives me!" I tell them that He, of course, forgives, but there is also repentance . Asking for forgiveness and then turning away from that sin not wanting to do it anymore. Hank was not ready to repent. I handed Hank the Survey Tract and told him to consider what we had discussed because there was nothing more important than his eternal salvation. I tried to speak to El Ha and let her know that we loved her and cared about her and that was why were speaking of these things. After handing out more tracts, we decided to grab a bite to eat at the Qdoba Mexican Grill. We handed out a few tracts in the restaurant and came out and ran into Anthony. Using the Survey Tract Anthony was able to name 5 of the 10 Commandments. During the course of our conversation I could tell that Anthony had a Christian background. He said that he had two children out of wedlock and was struggling to walk the Christian walk. I first made sure that he was "soundly saved". I then encouraged him to not let his past determine his future. I told him a story about the Burden of False Guilt (grandson kills his grandmother's pet duck with a slingshot). It made sense to him. I encouraged him to pray, read his Bible and continue to go to his church. We then prayed with Anthony. We headed back to the car and called it a day.

March 18, 2006 - I met with Daniel in our usual spot in the Highlands. We prayed and headed off. After walking a block or so handing out some tracts and getting a few rejections for One-2-One, we came across Kizaria and her friend. They were sitting on a church's property adjacent to the sidewalk drinking some coffee and holding their dogs (Boxers). We asked them if they wanted to take an I.Q. Test. They were a bit inquisitive about what we were doing and were a bit apprehensive about taking the test. However, they decided to oblige us. We began going through the I.Q. Test Survey Tract. Everything was going good until we started talking about God. As Kizaria began to speak we could tell that she was a secular humanist/moral relativist. I, of course, gave her a few moral relativist analogies to get her to think. She didn't seem quite sure of what she believed and was taking bits and pieces of different religious aspects and molding them into a god of her making. As I was going through the Law and bringing grace, she brought up that she was a social worker and she dealt with a lot of hurting/abused kids and messed up parents. I made the comment, "Well, they simply need Jesus Christ in their lives..." She abruptly interrupted me and said, "That's it!" I was befuddled as to what I said wrong. I was trying to finish up by saying that He was the only one who could heal their hurts and pains and provide the peace that passes all understanding. However, she wasn't even going to let me finish. She began to walk away and I handed her the Survey Tract. She took it! Oh, well, we planted the seed of the Word and gave her some things to think about. We continued on and began a conversation with Billy. Billy showed us a unique talent he had. He placed his fingers on the edges of his eyeballs and pushed in. As he did this, his eyeballs bulged out of their sockets! It was crazy! We laughed and built a quick bridge with him in minutes. He was more than happy to take the I.Q. Test. Billy did admit he was an atheist, but by the end of the conversation he said that he was probably more of an agnostic! Hey, that's one step closer than he was. We talked for about twenty minutes and addressed both his intellect (since he was an atheist in the beginning of our conversation) and his conscience. We went through the Law and then the grace and mercy of God. We gave Billy the Atheist Test tract, the Curved Illusion Tract, the Science Confirms the Bible tract and the I.Q. Test tract. Man, we really loaded him down! We continued down the sidewalk and handed out more Giant Money tracts. We ran into Sister Dunn and Sister Bonnie (LDS missionaries) again at the same bus stop. We briefly spoke with them and gave them one of the Giant Money tracts. We ran into Hank Thomas again and spoke with him briefly. He asked us for some spare change, but we didn't have any on us. I did offer to take him to get something to eat at Dairy Queen (with my bank card), but he said he had just eaten and wasn't hungry. We decided to wrap up for the day and headed to the Wendy's by Bashford Manor Mall to get a quick bite to eat. I started handing out the Giant Money tracts to the employees. They kept asking for another one because some of the employees hadn't gotten one yet. I ended up giving all of the employees one. They loved them! Daniel did the Curved Illusion when he ordered his food and they started asking him what we did. Daniel gave a quick background and the employees said that was awesome how we were spreading the "Good News". We finished eating and were about to walk out the door. A "thuggish ruggish" guy walked in to place an order and Daniel said he would be right out. Daniel went to give this guy a Curved Illusion tract and Daniel asked, "Which one is bigger?" The guy said, "My pockets are deeper." Daniel said, "No, really. Which one is bigger?" The guy said, "All I know is you better get the *&%?#$ out of my face!" Daniel left the tract on the counter and walked out to meet me in the parking lot. While he was walking out he noticed someone in the drive-thru line reading a Giant Money tract I had given them. I guess that was some consolation for what happened inside. All Daniel could say was, "That was not good. That was not good." I encouraged him and told him not to take it personally. Hey, we've all been rejected. They are not rejecting us, but the message we bring...the message of hope, forgiveness, mercy and everlasting life found only in Jesus Christ.

March 25, 2006 - Danny, Eric, Daniel and I met at the Cracker Barrel this morning at 10:30am. The place was packed! We didn't get a table until about 11:30 so we sat outside and handed out tracts to most everyone who passed us by. While we did get some rejections, almost everyone who passed by took one. There were multiple people who came out of the restaurant asking "Who's got the Million Dollar bills?" A Christian who received one of the tracts on his way into the restaurant came back out and was inquiring about the tracts. Danny was able to give him more information about the Way of the Master and even gave him a copy of Hell's Best Kept Secret. They finally called our name and we were seated. As coincidence would have it, our waitress, Bianca, was not a Christian and was living an "alternative lifestyle". She was very nice and had a great personality. Eric had opportunity to witness to her for a moment at the conclusion of our meal. She said that she knew her lifestyle was not pleasing to God, but that was the choice she was making at that time. She said she could not reconcile her feelings and what she knew to be right. Eric knew that we should pray for her, so he led us in a prayer that God would reveal Himself to her and open her eyes to receive the Truth. We made sure that Bianca had a tract or two and then we left...passing out Million Dollar bills on our way out of the restaurant. Daniel and I then headed out to the Highlands (Bardstown Rd) to do some One-2-One. We parked in our usual spot, prayed and grabbed some tracts. Not long after we headed down the sidewalk we approached Tim, Paige and Carly with the I.Q. Test Survey Tract. Tim was who were having the main dialogue with, but Paige (Tim's girlfriend) and Carly chimed in occasionally. We we went through the Law and then grace. Tim admitted that he would go to Hell if he died. I asked him if that concerned him. He told me that it really didn't. I asked him if he knew what the Biblical concept of Hell was. He said he didn't so I took the time to explain it to him. We were standing near a Sprint store and they had one of those air powered dancing inflatables sitting up on a three foot hight brick wall. Right in the middle of our conversation, the inflatable fell off the wall and part of the dancing Sprint inflatable's arm landed between my legs. It was crazy! I made a joke to Tim and said, "Maybe God's trying to tell you something here." Tim said that he was not ready although I told him that today was the day of salvation and he did not know when he might die. I explained that once you die it is too late and he must repent or he will perish. As they were about to leave I asked Paige and Carly, based on what they had just heard, where they would go when they died. Paige said she thought she would just go in the ground and that was it. Carly said that she thought reincarnation sounded like a suitable concept. Again, they were about to leave so I couldn't go into depth, but I asked them a question to make them think. I asked them, "Why do you believe what you believe?" Neither of them could cite any legitimate reason other than that is what they came up with in their own mind. I mentioned idolatry and told them that they should not gamble with eternity and they should take the time to investigate to see if the claims that Jesus made were true. At the close of our conversation I told them that they couldn't even decide to make a decision for Christ unless the Holy Spirit was drawing them. And if they did want to become saved it was because He was drawing them! Just some food for thought! We gave them some tracts and continued down the sidewalk. Just moments later we approached John and Shannon with the I.Q. Test Survey Tract. John was the "intellectual" so many Christians are afraid of running into because they won't be able to answer their questions. If you fit into this category, you simply need to study the WOTM and your fears will be gone! Yes, John was an intellectual. He was actually getting most of the questions right. I think the "spell shop" and "what do you do when you come to a green light" did finally stump him! His girlfriend Shannon helped him out with naming most of the Ten Commandments. We found out that Shannon had attended a Christian school for three years. John was so intellectual that he was having a difficult time answering even the most simplistic of questions. It was very, very difficult getting a "yes" or "no" answer out of him. He was carrying on about nothing be absolute. Hey, "absolute is a buzz word for moral relativists! I rephrased his comment into a question. I asked him if he believed that we could be absolute about anything. He emphatically said, "NO!" I then proceeded to tell him that he had just made an absolute statement, thus proving his statement wrong. I took him through the Law and grace (all hypothetically for him) and told him that there was nothing more important than his eternal salvation. He began to talk about the fallibility of the Bible and I began to give historical, archaeological and prophetic evidence about the infallibility of the Bible. I mentioned the Dead Sea scrolls and just eight of the over three-hundred prophecies about Jesus having a 10⁴⁷ chance of coming true for one man. Shannon immediately (and abruptly) interrupted our conversation and said, "Sir, I understand all that you are saying and what you are trying to do, but I know what I believe and we've got to be going." I asked her what she did believe. She said that all of the different religions god's were the same as my God and that there were multiple ways to heaven. I looked at her very calmly and with compassion and said, "Shannon, you mentioned you have had a Christian education for three years, correct? Shannon, now you know deep down that the statement you just made is not true. You know that Jesus is the only way to heaven, don't you? You know that Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Either Jesus was who He said He was or He was a liar or just plumb crazy and I know you don't think he was a liar or crazy." Well, that didn't go over too well. She said, "Are you trying to tell me what I believe?" I told her that I wasn't and that we were just concerned about her. I told her that we cared enough and loved her enough to tell her the truth. That seemed to momentarily subside her flash of resentment. I asked if Shannon had a Bible that John could borrow. She said that she had four of them! I told John to investigate what I had said for himself. I told him to start out in his name...the book of John! I knew he wouldn't forget that. We then headed back to the car, handing out tracts along the way. Thank God for another faithful witnessing opportunity!