Blessed Week Witnessing

Blessed Week Witnessing

Ministry Update September 22, 2019

My wife and I were on vacation this week so I wasn’t sure how much witnessing I could work in, but I ended up having a blessed week witnessing. The week started out by handing out Gideon New Testaments with other Gideons at Missouri State University. I didn’t hear how many New Testaments were handed out, but three of us handed out 500 of them in front of Strong Hall. We had a few mockers, but most students were polite, even when they rejected a New Testament. One student told me that he reads his Bible every day. I told him that I do too and was glad to hear this. Charlie and I talked to a student named Ben. The student wanted to know what church we are with and we explained that we are from various churches. I gave Ben an invite card and invited him to visit my church – Crossway Baptist Church.

Witnessing At Mizzou

Then on Tuesday my wife and I drove to Columbia, MO. She visited with her brother and cousin and I met some of my friends who are full time evangelists and we witnessed at Mizzou. I have witnessed many times over the years at the University of Missouri and I’ve never seen mockers like that day. One young man that my friends said mocked them last week at the University of Colorado followed them to Missouri.

The guy and his girlfriend sell some kind of trinkets, but he was one of the most obnoxious hecklers I’ve ever seen. When I first got to Speaker’s Corner, Mike was preaching and this obnoxious jerk was standing on a step ladder that made him taller than Mike. The guy was right in front of him and yelling in his ear as loud as he could. Mike is a big guy and former military, but he handled the situation very Christ-like. He just kept moving around with the obnoxious jerk following him everywhere he went.

I’ve seen this at other times, but sometimes when you have a really obnoxious mocker, it emboldens others and they become more vocal and obnoxious than they normally would. So a student started mocking too, saying very wicked things. Again, Mike kept calm and kept lifting up the precious name of Jesus. Don, Scott and Stephen and I all brought messages too. At some point the police came and said we had to stay on the North half of Speaker’s Corner and the obnoxious guy and other mockers had to stay on the South side. The police said if they had to come back, somebody was going to jail. Thankfully that didn’t happen. But we all had to put up with the mockers the whole time we shared the Gospel.

Play With My Dog And Go To Hell

One mocker had a hacky sack and blared loud music. Later on, someone else set up across from us also blaring loud music. Then the obnoxious guy’s girlfriend got involved and she ran around Speaker’s Corner with a little dog and she was very vile. Every sentence she said started with the f-word and she threw several more in each sentence too. But mainly she kept inviting students to come play with her dog because playing with her dog meant they were going to Hell. (Obviously we never said anything that stupid, but she did). Sadly, a few students did as she said, all of them laughing because they are on the way to Hell.

Scott Lifting Up Christ Jesus

Don and Scott also drew mockers when they preached. Scott was preaching once holding a sign. I grabbed another sign that says Jesus is the way, truth and life and held it up across from Scott and I also handed out tracts. One student walked by and hit my hand real hard and knocked the tract out of my hand. Stephen also open-air preached, but he managed to draw several students who seemed to genuinely listen to the message and some of them asked good questions as well.

Professing Christian

One young man listened to several messages. He professed to be a Christian, but when he talked to Pastor Nathan, the young man couldn’t really relay the Gospel. It was a pleasure to meet Pastor Nathan and his friend Jesse. They live in the Columbia area and they handed out tracts and talked to several students. Mike talked to a couple of Catholic girls and then Mike and Stephen both witnessed to a student who was riding his bicycle. They both clearly shared the Gospel with him. I only handed out between 50 to 75 tracts. Normally I hand out 100 to 200 at MU, but it was a tough day of witnessing, it was very hard soil.

When I brought my last message, the obnoxious guy and his vile girlfriend both yelled at me. I just told them the message wasn’t for them, that I was talking to others. The message was directed toward false converts. Then Don brought the last message of the day and he set the step stool up right at the center line of Speaker’s Corner. It drove the obnoxious guy and his vile girlfriend nuts. But “Stonewall Don” didn’t budge or flinch. I’ve met Mike, Scott and Stephen at other witnessing events in the past (Super Bowl Outreaches and the Kentucky Derby Outreaches), but it was the first time I met Don. Even though it was a tough day of witnessing, I thoroughly enjoyed witnessing with these brothers in Christ and would gladly do so again.

Handing Out Tracts

On Wednesday, I didn’t have a permit to open-air preach at Missouri State University, so I just handed out Gospel tracts. I was wearing a t-shirt that says “I’m a whosoever” on the front and the beginning of John 3:16 on the back. At the first spot I handed out tracts, a young girl said “I like your shirt.” After that I was trying to hand a tract to a young woman and she was about to take it, but a guy stepped right between us. He looked down and said “I’ll take one” so I gladly gave him one and then reached around behind me to hand one to the young lady I was trying to reach in the first place.

The polite mocker walked by me so I asked him why he always asks a question and then walks off. He replied that he’s on the clock, so he can’t stick around. But this time he did tell me that he went to Bible college and used to be a Christian, but isn’t one anymore. I told him that isn’t possible. Salvation is of the Lord. If the Lord saves you, then you are saved. (We can’t be physically unborn and you can’t spiritually be unborn again. The main question is: were you ever really born again?) John says they went out from us because they were never part of us (1 John 2:19).

Do You know Jesus?

Then the guy wants to know if I’m alright with a God who kills babies. I told him we live in a fallen world; God can do what He wants. When He brings judgment on a nation, then He has the right to do so. I told him that he should be more concerned about dying in his sins and going to Hell. I kid you not, the guy had the gull to tell me that he’s going to Heaven because he once believed in Jesus. He doesn’t now, but because he once did, he’s going to Heaven. How deluded is that?

After that I handed out tracts near the bus stop in front of the student union. A lot of students took a tract. A group of five or six Asian students took a tract. All of the young women took one, but the one young man in the group wanted to know what it was. He ended up taking one and I told him that it tells about Jesus. Then I asked “Do you know Jesus?” He admitted that he doesn’t. So I shared the Gospel with him. One of the young ladies standing next to him also listened. Afterwards, I encouraged him to read the tract through twice. (A friend of mine suggested having people read tracts a couple of times). The young man said he would. His name is Coy-Chi. May the Lord save him and his friends.

Mocker Right After The Other

Friday night it was supposed to rain, but the rain held off. I brought a message and had one drive-by mocker right after the other. But the Gospel still went forth. Afterwards, I walked to the square and handed out New Testaments there. It ended up being a short night, but I still had a really blessed week witnessing. May God be glorified and may He draw lost souls to Himself.

(These updates are provided to encourage Christians to share the glorious Gospel with others)