Hallelujah Good Time!
Ministry Update April 10, 2016
Oh we had a hallelujah good time witnessing in downtown Springfield, MO on Friday night April 8, 2016. I thought later that night that the people going into the bars, the ones searching for drugs or looking for immoral sexual relationships may very well die some day in their sins and go to Hell, but they will get there by going around us, by ignoring God’s pleas through us, that they repent and believe the Gospel. Whether they receive or reject Jesus, the truth went forth and God was glorified and the whole time, we had a hallelujah good time!
We had a great time singing hymns to begin and end the night. We had a great time of the glorious Gospel going forth. God used Aaron, Kelly, Brian and myself to lift up the precious name of Jesus in downtown Springfield. I can’t tell you how exciting it is to have four open-air preachers sounding out the Gospel in one night. It was a hallelujah good time because so many people joined us.
There were people who joined us that I don’t even know who they were, but it was a pleasure to sing hymns with them. The open-air preachers were joined by Erica, Diana, Elise, Serenity, Kelly’s son and daughter, Laurie and her three kids and then three gentlemen joined us at the end to finish the night singing hymns. Aaron knew them and they had tracts in their hands, so I think they had been downtown walking around handing out tracts and getting into spiritual conversations with people.
One to One Witnessing
We handed out four Bibles and had several conversations. Kelly is always good at getting into conversations with people and Laurie is too. When I first walked up to the group Friday night, Laurie was already engaged in a one to one conversation with a young man.
I think he had one of those anything goes type of attitudes, but he did take a Bible and I think he took a tract from her. Laurie got into several other conversations during the night and her kids were very bold handing out tracts. I didn’t even get to tell our group that I overheard a guy walking by us talking to his friends about what a shame it was that we were forcing the kids to be out there. They were already past us, so I couldn’t engage them in conversation, but all I thought was we weren’t forcing a single child to be out there. They were there because they wanted to be there!
Born into Christianity
We had a few hecklers as well as a few encouragers. It’s always great to hear encouragers. The only conversation that I got into was with a man named Cliff. He lives in Aurora, but works in Springfield. He told me that his dad is a preacher. So I asked him about his testimony and he said that he was born into Christianity. I gently pointed out to him that Jesus said that we have to be born again.
So I asked him more about his conversion and he said that it happened after he went through something terrible around 12 years ago. Again, he didn’t mention anything about repentance and faith in Jesus. So I talked to him about Matthew 7:21-23 and pointed out that even though we live in the Bible Belt, many people are like the ones Jesus described in these verses. I pointed out that we have to repent and put our faith in Jesus.
It was a great night witnessing and it was a real blessing to have so many people join us street witnessing. It was encouraging. It was uplifting and it was a real joy to sing the old hymns with 16 other people out in the open, right there downtown. And in case you missed it, we really had a hallelujah good time preaching and singing.
One and Done
Aaron and I witnessed on Wednesday at MSU. We both preached and handed out tracts. While Aaron preached, one young man listened to most if not all of his message. When it was over, he walked up to me and took a tract from me and then walked over and talked to Aaron. I didn’t ask him about it, but I think the young man encouraged him.
But the most heartbreaking thing was an older veteran that walked up and encouraged Aaron. That wasn’t the heartbreaking part. That came after the man walked up to me. I thanked him for serving our country. He took a tract from me and I happened to be handing out tracts from my church, Crossway Baptist Church. He looked at it, asked me where Crossway is located and I told him. Then he laid the tract back on top of the other ones I was holding in my hands.
Caught Me Off Guard
Generally I don’t take tracts back after I hand them out. But he caught me off guard and laid it on top of my other ones before I realized what he was doing. As he started walking away, I asked him where he goes to church. He turned back and said he doesn’t. He’s probably in his 60’s and he told me he did that back when he was 22 years old. It was at a First Baptist Church (somewhere – I didn’t catch the town), he was baptized and that was it. He said “I’ve been there and done that” and kept walking away from me so I yelled to him that it isn’t a one and done type of thing.
It really was heartbreaking because Paul tells us that we are not to neglect the fellowshipping with other believers. It’s heartbreaking because so many people believe that this Christianity thing or Jesus thing is just a one-time event. They really believe that it is a been there and done that type of situation. They really believe that it is one and done. If your whole Christianity is based on a one-time experience years ago and you don’t read your Bible, you don’t want to be around other believers, you don’t want to share your faith in Jesus with others, then you missed salvation. You are still lost. You are still dead in your trespasses and sins. You are still on the broad road to destruction. You will be once born but well-done for all of eternity as you suffer the flames of Hell after you die in your sins.
Same Old You
If you are not a new creature in Christ, you are still the same old you. The same old, sinful rebellious you and you will go to Hell after you die. As Kelly preached on Friday night, when you are a new creature in Christ, you don’t go back to the old ways. You don’t become unsaved. When you are truly saved, you are saved. You don’t go back to the mud and mire of sin you used to wallow around in. No, you are a new creature. You now want to please God instead of pleasing yourself. You now want to see others receive such a great of salvation.
ARE YOU SAVED? Have you repented and put your faith in Jesus Christ? Are you a new creature in Christ? Are you sure of your salvation? If so, then you know it isn’t a one and done type of thing. You continually stay surrendered to our Lord Jesus Christ. It’s a daily surrender to the King of kings and the Lord of lords. You may only really be born again one time, but submitting your life to Christ is not a one and done experience. No, it is moment by moment. It is a moment by moment surrender to our Lord and Savior.