Ministry Update December 6, 2015
“Which is more important: souls being saved or your studying?” This is the question Aaron asked the young college student who complained that our unamplified voices were disturbing her and others in the library. Just prior to asking her this question, the young lady professed to be a Christian. So what do you think her answer was? What was more important to her? Surely souls being saved; right? Wrong. Her answer was her studying.
Now we are typically at MSU for about one hour once a week. This young student said that we were too loud for one corner of the library. (My thought was there are three other corners that you can move to.) But Aaron and I are both Alumni’s from MSU. We know there are other places to study at than this one corner of the library. This young lady needs to examine herself to see if she is in the faith. I can assure you that I would gladly study somewhere else or even at a later time instead of telling those proclaiming the Gospel that they are too loud.
The Bible Was Written By Men
Well that was how witnessing at MSU on Wednesday December 2, 2015 ended up. Right before that, while Aaron was preaching a worker came up to me and he was driving a forklift. He wanted me to know that we were wasting our time. Nobody’s listening and we are just talking to the wind. We are only there for ourselves. I tried to hand him a tract but he refused even though he said that he believes in Jesus. I said that Jesus told us to preach from the rooftop what we hear whispered in the ear. He cut me off and said you can’t trust the Bible because it was written by men. I said wait a minute, you told me earlier that you believe in Jesus. He said that he believed in Jesus before he ever read the Bible. I told him we know who Jesus is because of the Bible and that he’s calling God a liar by not believing the Bible. I suggested that he needs to repent and trust Jesus or he will split Hell wide open after he dies. He then asked me how I know that he’s not an angel and I told him that I know he’s not an angel because God would never contradict Himself. Then the man drove off.
God’s Not Real
Just prior to this another older gentleman walked by while Aaron was preaching yelling at the top of his lungs God’s not real. He did the same thing to me when I was bringing a message earlier. I ignored him the first time, but this time I was handing out tracts, so I told him to prove it. Prove that God’s not real. He told me to prove that God was real. I said you are the one running around yelling God’s not real, so prove it. He yelled at the top of his lungs while his whole body was shaking, ”God if you are real, strike me dead, right here and now.” He then looked at me and said, see, God’s not real. I said sir, one day God will answer your request. He will strike you dead and you will find yourself in Hell and you won’t be laughing at that time. I took a picture of him and when he realized it, he raised both arms in the air flipping me off and walked away cussing like crazy. I just said “God bless and have a great day.”
Do You Believe in Free Speech
I was at MSU first, so I started preaching before Aaron. A young man came up to me and wanted to interview me. He wanted to know why I was open-air preaching, especially since he’s seen me there before and he says that no one is listening. I told him because it is biblical and his generation has the largest group of “nones” that is non-religious college students than ever before. I explained that I believe the Bible. I believe that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17). I believe Romans 10:14 how can hear without a preacher. I also told him that Aaron and I plant seeds. That God may bring something to mind to one of these students, even years later. I also said that most of the students walking by are thinking about anything and everything else besides their spiritual life and they need to think about it. He also wanted to know if I believe in free speech. I said most definitely. Then Aaron walked up, so he started talking to the young man and I went back to preaching. Overall it was a wild time witnessing, but the truth went forth and several students took tracts.
Even Crazier Friday Night
The thing about street witnessing is that you never know what’s going to happen. Kelly, Aaron, Erica and I were singing carols when Diana and Elise got there Friday night. About that time a guy that we’ve witnessed to several times in the past stood beside us with a boom box trying to drown us out. If I remember correctly, he is a professing Christian. But he didn’t last very long and quickly walked away.
After we sang a few hymns, I brought a message “Are You Dumber Than a Demon?” I knew it would be controversial, but it was the message God laid on my heart. After I finished, a guy walked up to Aaron and told him that we are too harsh. He did this while Kelly preached after me. What’s interesting is that Aaron remembered the guy from two years ago. This time the guy said he couldn’t find anything unbiblical about what we were preaching, but that we were too harsh. He wanted to know “Why can’t you be more ‘loving’ and stop coming out here and preaching to everyone?” Aaron replied “I could most certainly hate you and stay home, watch TV, do a puzzle, take a nap, play a video game…. while you slip into Hell with no warning, but then I would have to hear you curse me at the Judgment Seat for my times of apathy, silence, and indifference.”
They talked the whole time that Kelly brought a message and had a good conversation. While that was going on, Erica, Diana and Elise and I were standing nearby handing out tracts. Some people took tracts while others rejected them. I tried to hand a tract to a guy, he wouldn’t take it, but then he opened his pizza box and showed me his pizza. I’ve had some strange reactions to Gospel tracts, but that was right up there with some of the strangest encounters. Earlier a young man told Erica that he was glad we were out there and while I was on the box a man walked up and gave me a dollar for the ministry.
Kissed by a Homosexual
Then Aaron started preaching and a crazy young man came up to him. So I went up and distracted him. While I was talking to him, a homosexual ran past me, and then he hugged and kissed Aaron right off the box. As Aaron stated later, no wonder the Bible calls it vile affections. Aaron handed me a can of pepper spray and told me to spray the guy if he comes back around. The young man had been walking away, but stopped and headed back when Aaron started preaching against homosexuality. So I held the can of pepper spray out and I would have sprayed him if he had continued walking toward us. I guess he figured out that I would spray him so he stopped and spit on me before he turned and walked away. His boyfriend was standing there laughing the whole time.
God Wants Him to Preach
Then just as if on cue, the crazy guy started yelling at the top of his lungs. He kept it up, so I asked him why he hates God. He told me that he doesn’t hate God; he loves God. Before I could say anything, he said God wants Aaron to preach. I said “I know God wants him to preach, so why are you trying to distract him?” He said God wants me to do this. I said no He doesn’t, God never goes against Himself. Then the young man turned around and walked off.
I’ll Punch You in the Face
But the crazy night still wasn’t over. A drunk guy stood right in front of Aaron and the man looked at me and said that he wanted to talk. I said what do you want to talk about? He said Jesus. So I said lets go over to the side and talk. I turned around and he was over trying to hang on Elise. Diana yelled at him to get away from her daughter. I told him that I thought he wanted to talk. So he walked over beside me and started telling me that he lives above the bank where we witness and that we are keeping him awake. Please keep in mind that he walked up to us from across the street and he was very, very drunk. Obviously he hadn’t been in bed trying to sleep and we seriously doubt that he really lives there.
He started saying that we had to stop. Then he walked back over to Aaron and started threatening to punch him in the face. After being attacked here a while back, Aaron doesn’t have much patience with people threatening him and I don’t blame him. So Aaron stepped off then box and told the guy to back away or he would spray him. The guy mouthed off for a while, but then walked away. The best part is as he was walking away, a bouncer from the bar across the street came over to defend Aaron. The bouncer hollered at the man to keep on walking. Erica thanked the bouncer and handed him a Gospel tract. This was great because I’m sure that the bar owner doesn’t like us preaching to their patrons who step outside to smoke, but the bouncer knew it wasn’t right for the guy to threaten Aaron. It was a real blessing to have the bouncer come over and help us out.
Caroling To End The Night
Then we sang carols to end the night. Several people driving by in cars gave us a thumbs up, some people waived to us and others walking across the street stopped and recorded us singing. But the best part was several people stopped and started singing with us. How do you think the crazy night ended? It ended with us singing the very last song and a guy walks up and says that he wanted to sing too. So we sang another line or two. Who was the young man that wanted to sing? The very same young man that earlier had threatened to punch Aaron in the face! It was a crazy way to end a crazy night.
(You never know what’s going to happen when you’re out street witnessing. These updates are posted to encourage Christians to share their faith in Jesus Christ our Lord with this lost and dying world.)