Battle Log

It was a cold, wet, and miserable day on Thursday, so we decided not to head to the streets, and I worked online instead.  It was still an amazing day, because my first grandchild was born!  What joy!!

 

Friday was still cold, so we didn’t go out that day either.  But we did hit the streets on Saturday in Riccarton - Roger and Corin were with me.  And on Sunday afternoon, I spent some time on the streets in the city after my regular morning church gathering (by this stage, the Sun was out and bright).

 

So, on Saturday, we had two flipcharts up and running.  Roger had his up at his regular fishing hole at the corner of Riccarton Road and Rotherham Street.  And diagonally opposite, Corin was running a flipchart at the corner of Riccarton Road and Rimu Street.  And I floated in between, catching chats and handing out tracts where I could.

 

For me, the standout chat was a very short interaction.  A group of late teen guys went past, so I offered tracts and tried to engage them in conversation. They all pretty much ignored me, except one guy, who asked what it was about.  I said, “It’s about Jesus”.  He took the tract, but with his friends walking on, he couldn’t stop to talk.  I let him go.  But then, about five minutes later, he and one of his friends came back past in the other direction.  This time, I was able to get them to stop.  The kid who had taken the tract was very keen to chat, and so I started my usual gospel presentation.  Sadly, his friend was uninterested - more than that, uncomfortable, he split and left his friend with me.  I instinctively knew I had to be quick and give an overview of the gospel, and I decided to put my emphasis on grace, knowing that most people misunderstand this bit the most.

 

A moment later, I heard a shout.  It was his friend calling from down the street.  He had to go, but he turned and genuinely thanked me for explaining.  I could tell he was touched.  I don’t normally give out Bibles, but I had a copy of John in my pocket, and so I offered it to him as he left.  He stepped back and took it, thanking me again, and was gone.

 

What a joy and privilege it is to minister in the harvest field of the Lord and plant seeds for his glory!  May there be much fruit.

 

On Sunday (today), I went to my usual spot on the corner of Cashel and Colombo.  After prayer, I started handing out tracts and attempting to start conversations.

 

I had two wonderful conversations.  The first was with a couple of older teen guys.  One took the offered tract but wasn’t going to stop, so I said, “It comes with a question if you have a moment”.  It worked, he stopped, and from there I was able to keep the conversation going.  They both became engaged.  One of them went to a Catholic school, and so he thought he knew the drill.  They heard the gospel, and then I moved into checks, and then one of them started asking good questions.  In the end, they both received tracts and walked off with gospel seed in their hearts.

 

It was getting cold in the shade in my usual spot, and so I decided to cross Colombo to where the sun was on the other side.  It was there that I had my second chat of the day, again older teen guys - three of them this time.  Again, they were Catholic (or at the very least went to a Catholic school).  They were very forthcoming with Catholic vocabulary.  I simply stuck to the script in the chat, and they became engrossed as they came to understand the subtle tension between true faith and works.  The check questions did their job to start to cement the good news into place in their thinking.

 

They were impacted and appreciative.  It was a short chat, but as they left, they each gave me a firm handshake.  And of course they all also received follow-up tracts.

 

Our job is to plough and sow; it’s God’s job to bring increase, in his timing, and for his glory.

 

What an honour I have to represent Christ to people.  Please pray that we stay humble and faithful in this task before us.  All glory to God alone.

 

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