This Is Very Edifying

This Is Very Edifying
Ministry Update December 29, 2019

Friday night witnessing downtown, I had encouragers, mockers and a couple of homeless people threaten me. The highlight of the night was Jimmy. He’s a homeless guy that listened to the whole message. When he first walked up, I said, “Do you have a question?” He replied, “No, I just want to listen.” So I walked over and talked to him afterwards and he said, “This is very edifying. This is just what I needed tonight.”

With all the usual mockers, it was great to hear someone say this. Thanks be to God and praise be to God. Jimmy and I talked to for a while. He said that he’s been off drugs and that he frequently reads the Bible. Jimmy appeared to be a genuine believer. He loved hearing the name of Jesus being lifted up in the open. I thank God that he was there. The crazy guy that has cussed me out and threatened me several times, came over cussing and threatening me Friday night.

Jimmy told him to leave me alone. The crazy guy was shaking he was so mad. He was telling people to not listen to me. At one point I asked why he gets so mad and he just started cussing and going crazy. Another time he walked over to me with his arms raised in the air and said, “Who needs to hear this?” I replied “Everyone” and kept preaching. Eventually he went away.

Mockers And Encouragers

Later on, several people were cutting through the parking lot across the street. I was just saying that the message was foolishness to those who are perishing (1 Corinthians 1:18). Right on cue, one woman started mocking God. I pleaded them to repent and trust Jesus. I said, “You are mocking God. You are just going to mock on and keep on walking straight into Hell.” Then a vehicle came out of the same parking lot going the wrong way, they stopped right in front of me and both the driver and passenger gave me a quick encouragement and both gave a thumbs up to the Gospel message.

After I said goodbye to Jimmy, I walked around downtown handing out New Testaments and Gospel tracts. I ran into some other guys preaching on the square. A crazy guy was cussing them out and then that crazy guy attacked a car that was driving by. This crazy guy followed the driver up the street and kept hitting the car. Then he chased a couple that were walking across the street. As I walked on South of the square, two police cars went flying past me. I’m sure they were headed toward that crazy guy. I don’t know if he was strung out on drugs or not, but he definitely was looking for a fight.

Demon Possessed Guy Threatens Me

There was a large crowd outside the Outland Ballroom, so I handed out Gospel tracts there. The majority refused to take one, but some of the people did. Then I walked a couple of more blocks, turned a corner and was headed back to my car which was parked near where I started from. Just as I turned the corner, a crazy/demon possessed man across the street started walking in step with me, yelling, cussing and saying someone he called “he” was going to sodomize me. But he used very vile language when describing this. I just ignored him and kept walking. The guy would cuss me out, threaten me and then say he was sorry and say something about mercy and grace. Then he’d go right back to cussing and threatening again.

As I stopped at the next corner, I looked over and he was headed right toward me, swinging his backpack over his head, like he was going to try to hit me with it. He was a big guy and I have to admit that I was afraid. I said a quick prayer. “Lord, you have protected me this far tonight, I pray that you continue protecting me.” The guy was about five or six feet from me when the light changed, so I crossed the street. I could see my shadow in the sidewalk, so I kept looking to see if his shadow came upon me, but it didn’t.

Next thing I know, he went back across the street, walking in step with me again and began cussing and threatening me once again. The worst part was when I got to the next corner, I needed to cross the street where he was at, to get to my car. There was no way I was going to walk right toward him. I really believe the guy is demon possessed. To avoid him, I walked to a nearby convenience store instead. I bought a soda and thankfully, he was gone when I crossed the street and walked to my car.

Typical Christmas Eve

At noon I witnessed in front of Hobby Lobby on Christmas Eve. No, I wasn’t protesting Hobby Lobby. They are a great company. They just happen to be on a busy corner near an entrance to the mall. So I took my sign that says Repent And Believe The Gospel on one side and Jesus Came to Save His People From Their Sins on the other side and I did a little open-air preaching. The title of this post Typical Christmas Eve is not meant as a slam on Christmas Eve. Rather, it is meant to say that this year witnessing on Christmas Eve was very similar to every other time I’ve done this before.

It was a typical Christmas Eve in how people react to the open proclamation of the glorious Gospel. This year was very typical. In fact, I told my wife afterwards that if she had asked me beforehand how I thought witnessing would go on Christmas Eve, this is exactly like I would have described it. This could have been any of the other previous Christmas Eve’s witnessing, just changing the year. This year I had several mockers, people yelling as they drove by. But there were many more supporters or what I like to call encouragers. At least six or eight people honked in support, waved and/or gave a thumbs up. It was very encouraging to see people unafraid to show their support for Jesus Christ our Lord.

Typical Professing Christian Saying This Isn’t The Way You Reach People

Then I also had the usual (or typical) professing Christian stop to tell me that this isn’t the way that you reach people. She told me that she believes in preaching the Gospel and she claims that she does so – one to one, but that open-air preaching isn’t how you should do it. What I’m doing “runs people off.” Sadly, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard this by well-intentioned and well-meaning people.

She had to leave before I could ask her the question, but I wanted to ask her if prophets in the Old Testament preached in the open as well as John the Baptist, the Apostles Peter and Paul, and Jesus, as well as others throughout church history like George Whitefield and Charles Spurgeon, then what makes her think that we are past this form of evangelizing? If it was good enough for the prophets, apostles and others through the church age, why in the world would we not employ the same method today? Romans 10:14 says: How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? But what else can I say? It was just another typical Christmas Eve witnessing.

(May God bless the messages, New Testaments and Gospel tracts that were handed out. These updates are given to encourage Christians to share the Gospel with others.)