Battle Log

Tuesday, 16 March, 2021

Posted 16 March 2021, 5:36 PM by Glen Richards. Permalink

New Zealand Mission - Week Three - Dunedin - Day Two

Dunedin is cold!  It was mostly sunny today, but there was a very cold wind.  I’ll be better prepared for the rest of the week.

We started the day's outreach in the Octagon - the center of Dunedin.  There weren’t as many people out as I was expecting (compared to Jan last year), so we would often have to venture out to find fish.  But still, many good conversations were had.

Damien is a Christian who joined us yesterday for lunch, and today he was able to make it for the first half hour or so of the outreach - he was keen to go through the flip chart.  As I was showing it to him, a fish swam past.  I cast my line by asking if he had a minute for a question - a deep one.  He was keen, and so I invited him to try the good person test - a great opportunity for Damien to see it in action!  And it sure was.  The young man was a student from Syria and a Muslim.  We went through the law and the gospel.  He understood it very quickly, but then started gently resisting it.  I had already worked through all the ways people think they can be forgiven, but won’t actually work: good outweighing bad, saying sorry, prayer.  So in his resistance, he tried to raise these reasons and quickly realised he was backed into a corner with the only escape being Jesus.  He softened and said he is currently researching these things.  So I pointed him to the Bible and to Cornerstone International Bible Church (which Damien is a part of) - he seemed very keen.  It was a great chat.

Later I had chats with: a couple of Seventh Day Adventist who had stopped attending fellowship, a couple of electricians on a break, and a young atheist who was starting work soon.

After lunch we moved back to the Uni - outside the Otago Museum.  I LOVE this spot.  Such a flow of people, many who are willing to stop for a chat.  And the chats are so good, people grasp the gospel so quickly and are honest in their response to it.  For example, I had a young lady keen to chat and quickly grasp the gospel.  At the end of the conversation, I checked in to make sure she was still understanding by asking what she would say if God asked her why He should let her into heaven.  She pondered and agreed that she couldn’t point to her goodness anymore, but then she said she knew she wasn’t trusting that Jesus died for her sins.  She was in a pondering phase!  This is great - yet I challenged her to get answers to her questions (she said she had none, but a million at the same time) & pointed her to the Bible and the Church while at the same time showing why there is an urgency to respond.

Another conversation started with me asking if a couple had ever thought about Eternity.  To my surprise the guy asked: “what do you think?”.  From there I explained the law and the gospel - he grasped it very quickly.  And then he started plying me with very good questions - what a joy!

I had an interesting experience approaching a medical student having some relax time - very early I gave him an ‘out’, by asking if he wanted to talk about the deep question I had raised.  He thought about it, and decided he didn’t - but he said something very interesting: “thanks for asking that - most people don’t and I really appreciate you doing it.”  He was happy to receive a tract.  Hopefully he reads it, and the next time a Christian raises a deep question hopefully he will be more willing to engage.

The outreach ended with a wonderful chat with Joe - a philosophy student.  He was very pleasant to talk to, but he started contradicting himself.  The first time he did it, a look of “I’ve been caught” flashed across his face.  But he doubled down and started digging a deeper hole for himself when he continued to contradict himself, time and again.  He even admitted he was being absurd because he loved his sin!  At one point I said, “I wish I was recording this” - it was amazing seeing the lengths he was going to to deny the obvious.  It was hard work, but I was able to get him out of the stratosphere and back to earth so he could hear the law and the gospel.

I know the rest of the team were having great chats too.  Andy had a very very long chat with a Muslim (pictured).

Please keep us in prayer!!!