Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope ya had a good day walking with the Lord in His blessings. I had a good day on campus, 3 Latina girls, Gisela, Nataly and Sandra each prayed to receive Jesus today so that was great. God blessed me today. They were all bright cheerful young women. Their stories are below if you have some time. Please pray they grow in their faith.

Gisela was sitting at a counter height table at the end of the cafeteria. She is a had a cute short elflike face with a pretty smile and wore rhinestone dangling bling earrings and a necklace of the same look. She had shoulder-length brown hair and glasses with light brown rounded corner rectangle lenses, bright eyes.  She had a black T-shirt on with some kind of gold logo on it. She wanted to help her parents when they got old. I asked her what she would say to God if she died and He asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “I don’t think I’m worthy of going to Heaven,” she replied. “I’m not worthy of going to Heaven either,” I replied softly. She thought she had a 60% chance of going to Heaven. She said she pretty much only went to church, “on the big holidays, when it is really crowded.” I began to go through verses with her. I quoted Jesus saying eternal life was knowing God and this meant God lived inside us with the Holy Spirit. In comparing it to a blood transfusion I said for God to transfuse His life into her he would have to make her His type by taking away her sins. I asked her what the big thing was that Jesus had done to take away our sins and she knew saying, “He died for us.” I agreed and explained how Jesus’ blood cleansed us from all sin and was a payment to God. I told her that Jesus had earned the righteousness of God by perfectly fulfilling the Old Testament Law and so He can give this righteousness to whomever He wants. I told her Isaiah 61:10 saying we were wrapped in a robe of God’s Righteousness and clothed with His salvation. The New Testament tells us this garment of salvation is Jesus in Galatians 3:27, we are clothed with Him. “You don’t go to Heaven because you are good enough but because Jesus is good and you are connected with Him. Like if you marry a millionaire you got a million bucks or if you get adopted into a billionaire’s family you get to live in the mansion and drive the cars.” God adopts us and gives us these things as the blessings of His family. Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead and many saw Him. All this is ours by receiving Christ. Believing Jesus was God He died for our sins and rose from the dead. We are saved by Grace through faith. I asked her if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in what Jesus had done, then He would live inside her and give her strength and take her to Heaven when she died, or if she thought something else. “I would want to be forgiven, “she replied. So I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I talked her through it and read, “It says here does this prayer express the desire of your heart, so would you say it does?” “Yes,” she said. I said that then if she wanted to she could pray it silently and I wouldn’t hear her but God would hear and she’d know she was forgiven and asked if she’d like to do that and she replied “Yes,” again. She took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I explained to her then the likelihood now she would go to Heaven trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus was 100%. I offered her a Bible and she said she had just bought one. Several people I talked to this year had just recently bought a Bible; it seems like God leads me to them to get them started. I told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day for the next year. I explained the Christian life living “By the Spirit’s Power, Inside Out. “First you ask God to transform you on the inside then you do good things on the outside,” I said to her. I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave her a Bible study explained it a bit and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I said it was nice to meet her and I’d see her in Heaven. Thank you so much I appreciate it,” she said joyfully. And I headed out.

It was a beautiful day. I walked out of the MAC arts building finding no one to talk to inside and saw some girls on a bench on the east sidewalk of the BIC building. I had asked a guy there on my way into the building who was not interested but he’d left. Nataly and Sandra were there instead. Nataly looked pretty average she had a slightly larger nose and a long oval face, nice smile, long dark brown hair. She was wearing black leggings and a grey hoodie. Sandra was pretty her hair was in two braids behind her head and a couple finger width strands ran the length of her face. She could have been Selena Gomez little sister. She wore bright blue sweats and a black shirt. When they stood as we parted I realized they were only 5 foot tall. I asked them if they would like to do a student survey for a Bible Study group. Nataly said they were in a Bible study group. I asked them the name of it and they were not sure but they were going to meet with someone this week. So I asked them if they’d like to hear a big question they could think about and they both said, “OK.” “You’re walking down the road,” I began, “and you get hit by a bus, so you’re dead, and you stand before God and He says, ‘Why should I let you into Heaven?’ What would you say?” Sandra asked me to repeat the question and Nataly, still thinking said, “You’re dead.” I repeated it to Sandra. Neither of them knew what to say so I asked if they would like to hear some Bible verses that tell them how to get to Heaven. They both said, “Sure.” So I sat down Indian style at their feet and began to explain the Gospel starting with, “Christianity is like a blood transfusion, I have A+ blood, if you fill me with B- blood I would clot up and die. So God wants to transfuse his life into you, fill you with His Holy Spirit but first He has to make you his type and take away your sin.” I explained how Jesus’ blood had cleansed them from all sins and in random order of the points I make. I told them stories and illustrations to explain salvation by faith. I asked them if they would want to be forgiven by asking if they thought when they were asking for forgiveness for their sins if they were thinking “I know I’ll be forgiven because Jesus died for me or if they thought they hoped they would be forgiven because God saw that they were trying to be good and would do better. Sandra thought she hadn’t been trusting in Jesus and Nataly processed it a bit realizing she thought she would try harder. So then I took out some booklets and I explained that if they wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer they could pray and talked them through it. They both wanted to pray to receive Christ. So I opened a booklet for each of them to the prayer and they each prayed. I took the booklets back skimming over the points and filling in Bible verses on the righteousness of God Jesus earned and how God makes all things into Good. I explained living by the Spirit’s power and wrote that and “Inside out” and “Just ask” inside the booklets. I gave them each Bible Promises for You writing their name and the date and “forgiven!” in each which they liked. I gave them a Bible study retelling the story of Jesus walking on the water for them and gave them The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I told them I would pray a Bible verse for them each day for the next year. I said that if they did not like their Bible study they could always leave it, because I was a bit afraid they were hooked up with the works righteousness cult on campus. I said they’d know if it wasn’t any good, so I’ll pry about that for them. They’d known me for 10 minutes and I did not know the name of the group.  They were both happy. Sandra said, “Thank you,” and Nataly who seemed to know a bit of the Gospel as I went through said, “Thank you. You’re amazing!” “Thank you that’s kind of you to say, “I replied. And they headed off to the north and to the parking lot. It seemed they had just decided to sit for a minute and take in the outside and God led me to them.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism today if you ahd a chance, God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope ya had a good day walking with God as He’s guided you. I had a good day on campus after the road trip we took Thursday through the weekend to attend the wedding of a young woman who had come to Christ through evangelism work at COD 7 years ago. She married a great Christian guy. I’m feeling a little worn from all the driving but Yanni and Katie each prayed with me to receive Jesus today. Their stories are below if you have some time to spend. Please pray they grow in their faith.

Yanni, a Latino guy, was sitting in some benches just inside the doors to the patio at the top of the waterfall. He had a long rectangular face with a block chin and thick nearly straight hair parted down the middle. He wore black sweats and a grey zip up hoodie. He shook my hand as I sat down. He was very reserved but shot me a grin periodically in response to an illustration. I asked him what he would say to God if he died and were asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven. “I don’t want to make excuses,” he began. “I’d ask for forgiveness. I wouldn’t say I was a bad person. I’d ask for forgiveness for wrongs that I’ve done and hope I’d be let in.” He thought he had a 60-70% chance of going to Heaven. He said he went to a Roman Catholic Church. I said that knowing God was that he lived inside you and explained that God had to take away his sins so that was possible. I asked what Jesus had done to take away his sins. “Yeah,” he replied. “What did he do?” I asked. And finally he said, “I know He forgives you I’m not sure how.” So I went on to explain that we owed God a perfect life and that since we could not live a perfect life to merit Heaven Jesus lived a perfect life for us. Then they killed Him, “But that’s what Jesus wants He wants to die because the Bible says without the shedding of blood there’s no forgiveness of sin. Life is in the blood. So when He pours out His blood He pours out a life force on the world and it says in 1John 1:9 ‘the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin.’” I explained that this was also a payment to God for what we owed Him for wrecking His world and hurting the people in it. Jesus earns the righteousness of God and it is given to us when God adopts us as His children. I said this was his by faith in that Jesus was God had died for his sins and rose from the dead. This faith saved him. I asked if he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in what Jesus had done. Then God could live inside him and give him strength and take him to Heaven when he died or did he think something else. He said he wanted to be forgiven. So I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and talked him through it and asked if it expressed the desire of his heart. He nodded. I said he could pray it silently and know he was forgiven. He nodded again and so I gave him the booklet and he prayed to receive Jesus. I told him the likelihood he would go to Heaven now trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus was 100%. I explained the Christian life to him. He did not have a Bible so I gave him one and showed him the study helps in it. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I also gave him Bible Promises for You and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and a Bible Study. He was grateful and said, “Take all this?” I said, “Yeah,” and he said “Thank you.” I told him I would pray a Bible verse for him each day through the end of the year and all the next asking God to bless him. He shook my hand again and I headed off.

I came across Katie up on the north side of the third floor of the BIC building. She was sitting in a lounge that had a window that looked out on the atrium. She was a plump Latina girl with a round face and high cheek bones, a pretty mouth. Her curly hair was pulled up into a bun. She had on a bright blue sweatshirt and black shorts and had clear semi-round glasses on. She was really friendly and happy to talk. She said she wanted to travel to all 50 states and had been to 40 of them. I asked her what she would say to God if she died and He asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “Honestly—I don’t know. I’d probably say there’s other people that deserve it more than me,” she replied. I told her there wasn’t a shortage of space and she grinned. I asked her the likelihood she would go to Heaven. “A solid 96%,” she replied. I asked if she went to Church. “More or less, here and there,” she said. When I asked her what Jesus had done to take away her sin (so God could live inside her) she said she didn’t know, explaining that she hadn’t been to church lately. I explained the Gospel to her. The blood of Jesus cleansing her from all sin and His life as a payment for the life we owed God. I explained the righteousness of God Chris earned to her credit by adoption and that she could receive Christ and by faith be saved. She liked all the examples. I asked her if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in Jesus. Then He would live in her giving her strength by His Spirit and take her to Heaven when she died. Or did she think something else. “I think that I’d like to be forgiven,” she replied. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I talked her through it asking if it expressed the desire of her heart. “Yeah,” she replied. I said she could pray it silently right now and know she was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” I asked. “Yeah,” she replied. She prayed then to receive Christ and crossed herself as she finished. I told her then the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100% trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus. I gave her Bible Promises for You and write her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I also gave her a Bible Study and The case for Christ Answer Booklet. I told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day asking God to bless her for a year. “God bless you, it was nice to meet you,” I said getting up to go. “Thank you. It was nice to meet you too,” she replied and I headed off.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism today if you had a chance God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day was filled with the comfort of the God who makes us complete in Christ. I had a good day on campus.  I came across Hunter who hadn’t known had prayed to receive Christ last semester after I told him the Gospel. Please pray he grows in his faith. I also gave Mo (Mohammed a Twelver Shi’ism Muslim) a book of 60 questions Lee Strobel answers called The Case for Christianity Answer Book. He looked like a thin slightly built Persian Jesus, long hair a beard and an angular pointed nose, wearing Jeans and a Hoodie. When I explained that God’s justice was satisfied by Jesus’ blood which was filled with life he said, “I always wondered how God’s mercy and justice could go together, [as] when He extends his mercy His justice isn’t complete.” I agreed. He said he knew more about Christianity than any of his other family members and was interested in it finding things matching it in the Quran. He had read the Divine Comedy and other Christian works.  I agreed saying that the Quran in many places affirms the teaching of the Bible but nowhere condemns it. He agreed. He felt Ḥusayn was a martyr like a Christ who he believed also went directly to Heaven. Ḥusayn had died heroically. We had a good conversation and I felt God led me to him. Please pray these men come closer to God and Mo finds faith.

Hunter had not prayed until he got home. So I did not find out until today. He has narrow braids that hang in his eyes touching the top of his nose coming out of a nylon cap, same look he had last fall. He had been baptized 4months before we talked then but had not understood the Gospel. When I asked him what he would say to God, if he died and were asked, “Why should I let you into heaven?” he said. “I mean I don’t think I could say anything except, ‘Let my actions speak for themselves.’” He then told me he’d just been baptized. I asked him the likelihood he would get into Heaven and he said, “I hope like 90%. Not just that I’ve been actually working to be better.” He had not understood that Jesus had died for him and he needed to trust in that blood to be forgiven. He also had not understood the righteousness of Christ that was to his credit when God adopted him. So today I gave him Bible Promises for You and a Bible study and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. He was glad to talk with me and was grateful. So I will be praying for him.

So Thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism today if you had a chance, God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day found you filled up with the fullness of God as you walked with Him in newness of life. I had a good day on campus and Tari prayed with me to receive Jesus. I went through the Gospel with Molly, who thought she had been believing on Jesus already, though she had not seemed to understand the Gospel until I told her. She had mixed blonde hair in the PE, really friendly kid. And I got a quick seed planted with Ashley, a pretty Asian girl at a break in her class in the Science Building. Tari’s story is below if you have time. Please pray he grows in his faith.

Tari was sitting at the base of the stairs where you walk into the SRC building and the bookstore. African American he was a big dude with a short beard and a 3–4-inch afro like a smooth dome on his head. He wore a black polo shirt and faded blue jeans. He had kind of a mischievous grin when something amused him. I asked him if he wanted to do a student survey for a Bible Study group. He said he was in a group already so I asked if he would want to just answer one big metaphysical question. He said, “OK,” without much enthusiasm. So I asked, “You’re walking down the road, and you get hit by a bus. So you’re dead. And you stand before God and He asks: ‘Why should I let you into Heaven?’ What would you say?” He at first said that Christianity was part of his identity. He said he woke up each morning thinking about how he could improve. He had one more line that had something to do with good works towards other in the way he treated them. I said that Christianity was like a blood transfusion. “I have A+ blood, if you fill me up with B- blood by mistake I would clot up and die. So God wants to know and live inside you, transfuse His life into you, fill you with His Holy Spirit, but first he has to make you His type.” So I asked him what God had done to take away his sins. He guessed saying, “The Holy Spirit in you?” I told him the Holy Spirit could not live in him until his sins were removed first. I asked if he would like to hear some Bible verses that explained what God had done, I could show him really quick. He said he would, so I took out a booklet and showed him the verses in it and added more about the Blood of Jesus and the Righteousness of God Christ earned. I explained how Jesus’ blood was a payment of life for the life we owed God for hurting His stuff, taking life. I said that God wanted to adopt Him and give him the blessings of His family, the sacrifice for his sins the blood that cleansed him and the righteousness of God that surrounded him. He received Jesus by faith, so if he believes Jesus was God had died for his sins and rose from the death, not that he just knew the story (which he hadn’t) but that he put his trust in that as a man. So if someone said to him, “Why should God let you into Heaven?” he’d say, “Because Jesus died for me.” That would mean he had faith in Jesus, and Grace, by faith, saved him. I asked if he wanted to be forgiven for his sins trusting in Jesus. Then God could live inside him and give him strength and take him to Heaven when he died. I gave him the Clif Notes version of Islam and the Buddha as alternatives and then asked again if he’d want to be forgiven trusting in Jesus. He nodded. I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and talked him through it and asked if it expressed the desire of his heart. He nodded again. I said he could pray it silently and I would not hear him but God would—would he like to do that? He nodded again so I gave him the booklet and he prayed then to receive Christ. I explained the Christian life to him then. He had a Bible to read and so I gave him a copy of Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I also gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and a Bible Study showing some ways Jesus claimed to be the God of the Old Testament. I told him I would pray a Bible verse for him from now until Spring and one year after asking God to bless him. I got up to go and he said, “Thank you so much I really appreciate it.” And a big smile, “This was great!” You’re welcome I replied. “I’ll see you in Heaven.” “Thank you so much!” he said again and I headed off.

So thanks for your prayers for the Ministry and for Evangelism today if you had a chance, God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope you had a great day marching with the righteous and standing on the promises of God. Nikola prayed to receive Jesus today and I prayed over a couple different students who shared some life struggles with me so that was a blessing too. Please pray Nikola grows in faith. His story is below if you want to spend the time.

Nikola was sitting on one of a group of benches against the wall by the exit to the patio, it’s the top of the waterfall turned off still from the winter. He had a mop of semi curly brown hair and a mustache only over his lip, a bit gapped in the middle beard under his chin, good-looking guy. He wore a black Bulls T-shirt with some colorful images on it and black shorts. He was a solid guy, 5×5. He said he went to a Macedonia Orthodox Church and thought he’d like to go back to Macedonia where he had some family and his parents were from. He looked Macedonian to me. I asked him if he was hit by a bus and died what he would say to God to get into Heaven. “That’s a good question,” he replied. I replied that a lot of people I ask that to hadn’t thought about it before. He thought for a minute and then asked me to read him the question again, I did and he then said, “Sorry give me a moment.” I said, “Sure.” He finally came up with, “I’d say, ‘Maybe I didn’t live a good life here, but I’d hope to make it better over there.” I asked him what the likelihood was he was going to Heaven and he thought it was up to God but he’d guess 80%. I began to go through the Gospel with him and after a little rephrasing (in the way I asked the question) he knew Jesus had sacrificed Himself to take away our sins. He then he agreed with the blood of Jesus cleansing us from all sin and I explained the payment of Christ’s blood. The Bible says, “Life is in the blood” [Lev. 17:11] Jesus is the source of all life and when we sin we take life. “If I rollover your foot (with my truck) I took some of your life, if I steal money from you spent your time and life to get that money so now I am stealing life from you,” I explained. So we owe God life. Jesus’ blood is life and so when He pours it out it pays God back for the life we owe Him. “So the real reason God forgives you is He got paid, but He had to pay Himself with the blood of Jesus.” I went on to explained the righteousness of God earned by Christ and given to us because we had no righteousness in our selves because we could not do anything perfect. God adopted us and gave this to us. He needed to receive Christ then to believe Jesus was God died for his sins and rose from the dead. Grace by faith saved him. I asked if he would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done. “Definitely,” he replied. I said then there was a prayer he could pray and read it through for him asking if it expressed the desire of his heart. “Yeah absolutely,” he replied. I said he could pray it silently and asked if he’d want to. “Yeah,” he replied. I handed him the booklet and he prayed to receive Jesus. “I guess you want this,” he said about the booklet but I said he could keep it. I explained the Christian life to him—praying, confessing, he had several Bibles. I explained him the Christian life was by the Spirit’s power inside out, asking God to transform him on the inside so he could do good things on the outside. I gave him Bible Promises for You and wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside and he was grateful saying “Thank you” as I handed it to him. I gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and he thought he might have heard of Strobel. I also gave him a Bible Study showing passages where Jesus claimed to be God. “Thank you. I appreciate it,” he said. I told him I would pray a Bible verse for him each day from now until Spring and one year after asking God to bless him. “Nice to talk with you,” he said shaking my hand. “Yeah God bless you,” I replied. “See you around hopefully,” he said. “Yeah, see you around,” I replied. And I headed out the doors.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism today if you had a chance, God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope you had a blessed day walking in the Lord’s peace. I had a good day on campus though I somehow wrote and then forgot to send my Going Out email. Natalie and Stephanie each prayed with me to receive Christ today. Their stories are below if you have time. Please pray they grow in their faith.

Natalie was sitting in the cafeteria half way through a double patty hamburger, which she did not look big enough to eat given her slight frame. She wore black leggings and a black nylon shirt with kind of a mesh pattern in the long sleeves. She was pretty, with an oval face long eyelashes and a pretty white smile. if I had to guess I’d say she was Japanese in heritage but I didn’t ask. She had a very tiny gold cross on a thin chain around her neck. She had a small nose a small “cupid’s bow” upper lip that went up on the ends like if you pushed up the center of a curly bracket, the bottom lip barely visible. I don’t remember seeing a mouth like that before so if I see her again it might help to remember the image. It becomes difficult to remember faces. Until I had to look hard at faces doing evangelism I don’t think the shape of someone’s mouth occurred to me much before. She wanted to visit some bioluminescent beaches. I looked them up when I got home and they look pretty cool. I asked her what she would say to God if she died and He asked “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “I think that Heaven… I feel like there’s a right answer to this in a way. I think I would say I live in my truth,” she replied. “The Bible says you shall know the truth and the truth will make you free,” I replied. “Oh,” she said as if she hadn’t heard that. (I quoted the verse before it to her later John 8:31,32.) She thought she had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven. I asked if she went to church and she said she’d gone to a Christian Church, it seemed more often when growing up. I began to go through the Gospel with her explaining that knowing God was that He lived inside her and He had to take away her sins to do it. She knew when I asked then that Jesus had died to take away her sins. I explained the blood of Jesus to cleanse her and pay God back for the life we have taken we owe Him for. I explained the righteousness of God Christ earned to her credit when God adopted her and that she needed to receive Christ by faith. Believing that Jesus was God had died for her sins and rose from the dead. This faith saved her. I asked her if she wanted to be forgiven for her sins & explained a couple other possibilities in Islam with a different God or the Buddha. “So would you want to be forgiven for your sins and add this to your truth?” I asked. “I mean I would want to be forgiven and have life in Christ,” she replied. So I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I talked her through it. I asked then if it expressed the desire of her heart. She nodded it did. So I said if she wanted then she could pray it silently, I wouldn’t hear her but God would and she’d know she was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” I asked. She thought for just a moment and then making up her mind said firmly, “Yes.” I said OK and handed her the booklet and she prayed to receive Christ. When she finished I said she could keep the booklet and told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day from now until the end of Spring and one year after asking her to be blessed. I began explaining the life in Christ praying and such. She had a Bible. I said that the Christian life was lived, “By the Spirit’s Power” He gave us all the strength we needed to live life. “First you ask God to change you on the inside then you become a good woman and do good things on the outside.” I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I gave her The Case for Christ Answer Booklet explaining Strobel’s story and a Bible study on the claims of Christ to be the God of the Old Testament. I explained some of how science was now realizing evolution was not true as an example of other apologetics that was out there. “Sorry I think I made your hamburger cold,” I said. “I’m gonna eat it anyway,” she replied with a smile. “Well, thank you for this,” she said as I got up to go. I said “Your welcome,” and “God bless you.” “Thank you,” she said again. “Have a nice day,” she said kindly and I headed off.

Stephanie was sitting on a couch on just the other side of a high-backed couch near the payment windows at school screening her (and I) from the windows as I sat on the other side of her. She was a Latina with fair skin and a small nose in a round face with a bit of a chin beneath it. Her hair was behind her head in a long ponytail.  Her face scrunched up into a cute smile when something struck her as funny. She was above average in stature and wore purple flared leggings and a black sweatshirt. She said she drove an hour to school each day. She was friendly and sincere. She thought she’d like to go skydiving. I asked her what she would say to God if she died and were asked “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “I don’t know if I deserve forgive…,” she trailed off seriously. “I don’t know if I was meant to be. I want to go if He wants. I’ve done a lot of sins. I’m not sure to be honest.” She thought she had about a 75% chance of going to Heaven when she died. She went to a Roman Catholic Church. The first one she’d gone to had closed and combined with another, she’d tried that one but now went to a third one. I began to go through the Gospel with her saying eternal life was God living inside her. And she knew Jesus had died to take away our sins so the Holy Spirit could live in her. I explained how the blood of Jesus cleansed us from all sin and was how God got paid with the life in Christ’s blood. I said this was the symbolism in the mass. The wine was symbolic of His blood and the bread of His body and it’s reminding you Jesus died for you and so your sins are forgiven. “Have you heard of the word Eucharist?” I asked. She said “Yes.” “The word Eucharist means ‘Thanksgiving’” I said. “It does?” she said surprised. I said it did in Greek, suggesting in taking it you are being thankful. I went on to explain the righteousness of God Christ earned that God gave her when He adopted her. I said 500 people saw him rise at one time along with the apostles.  “So that’s Christianity when you think about it. God loves you, He want to know and live inside you, but he can’t because of sin. So Jesus pays for your sin. So the Bible says God demonstrates his love for us, while we were still sinners Christ died for us. So how do you hook up with everything God did for you, you believe it or receive it,” I said. Then I explained that and that her good stuff could not fix her bad stuff. She was really engaged all through. I asked if she would want to be forgiven or thought something else. “I would want to be forgiven,” she replied. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I talked through the prayer with her and asked if it expressed the desire of her heart. “It does,” she replied. I said she could pray it silently and God would hear her and asked if she would want to do that. ‘Yeah,” she said and took the booklet with the prayer in it and prayed to receive Jesus. I told her then I would pray a Bible verse for her each day ‘til Spring and one year after asking God to bless her. I said the likelihood she would now be forgiven was 100% trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus. I explained by a story that it matters who dies the work saying that because Jesus does the work it’s worth an infinite amount. I went through the Christian life living By the Spirit’s Power asking for God’s help in everything and asking God to transform her “Inside Out”, then she would become a good person and do good things. I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I gave her The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and said she could find more of Strobel’s stuff on line if she liked it to listen while she drove to school. I also gave her a Bible Study and explained it a bit. “Nice to meet you I’ll see you in Heaven,” I said getting up to go. “Be careful driving,” I said. “Thank you so much, nice to meet you. Be safe,” she said. And I headed off.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry of evangelism God truly blessed today.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed with good works God prepared for you to walk in. I had a good day on campus and Tim heard the Gospel and wanted to be forgiven saying he would pray later as he was late for class. So I’ll pray for him hoping he will truly receive the Lord. And Rachel prayed with me to receive Jesus. Their stories are below if you have time. Please pray they grow in their faith.

I felt a nudge when I first got to school to go up to the third floor of the BIC so I locked my coat and headed up. Tim was sitting on the outside bench of a glassed-in lounge half of the way down the hall on the south side of the building. All I could see of his hair was a couple thick stiff braids poking out of either side of his black hoodie he had pulled pull up. He wore black sweats for pants.  His face was down but he looked like another guy who I had talked to this year. I went inside the lounge but no one wanted to talk so coming out I asked him just to be sure. He thought we might have talked before but didn’t remember anything and I knew when he told me his name and got a good look at his face I was thinking of someone else. I asked him what he would say to God to get into Heaven, “I don’t know,” he replied. “I’m a sinner and I don’t deserve to go to Heaven.” I asked how likely it was he would go to Heaven if God just had mercy on him. “I feel like I got faith and hope, I still got a shot,” he replied. He knew Jesus had died on the cross to take away the sins of the world. I went through the Gospel and he seemed to believe as when I asked him if he wanted to be forgiven he said he did and he said the prayer expressed the desire of his heart. But then he said he would pray later. It turned out he was already late for class. “Thank you I ‘preciate it,” he said. I said I’d pray for him if he somehow let me know he’d prayed so maybe I’ll run into him again. “Thank you Bro, stay blessed,” he said standing to go and he hurried off.

Rachel was sitting on a bench in a connecting hall outside the dental office where they teach students to do cleanings. She had what looked like a long shag hair cut that was died a deeper blonde. She had a black motorcycle helmet on the bench next to her and had ridden a 200cc to school, I think she said it was a Kawasaki. She asked if I had a bike for some reason and I told her what I road and owned. She wore a black hoodie with white lettering of some kind on it I couldn’t make out well. Her jeans were faded light blue. She was pretty had a perfect mouth and high cheek-bones, dark eyeliner around her eyes. I asked her what she would say to God if she died and He asked why should I let you into Heaven. “That’s a hard question,” she said, thinking a minute. “I don’t know how to answer that. She thought she had a 75% chance of going to Heaven and seemed like a caring person. I asked her if she ever went to Church. She said she went with her mom and told me what road it was on. I began to go through the Gospel with her and told her God loved her and wanted to live inside her but to do that He had to take away her sins. I asked, “So what is the thing God does to take away your sins with Jesus.” “I don’t know,” she said without thinking in the least like the concept didn’t trigger a thought in anyway at all. So I just went into the Gospel explained the blood of Christ filled with life that paid for the things she owed God for wrecking His stuff. His righteousness was to her credit when He adopted her and made her His child. All this was hers when she received Jesus. So if someone asked why God should let her into Heaven she’d say “Because Jesus died for me.” I asked her if she wanted to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done, then he would live in her by His Spirit and take her to Heaven when she died or thought something else? I explained a bit of Islam and the Buddha saying again, “So would you want to be forgiven?” “Yeah,” she said. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and talked her through it asking if it was the desire of her heart. “Um hum,” she said. I said she could pray it silently and I wouldn’t hear but God would, “Wanna do that?” I asked. She nodded in response and she took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. “Your sins are forgiven,” I said brightly when she’d finished. She grinned in response. “Now if you go down you’ll go up,” I said referring to riding her motorcycle as we’d talked about the dangers of it. She had a Bible her aunt gave her whom she said “Worked at a Church.” Apparently her aunt had gotten it from there. I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and forgiven!” in the front and she expressed that she liked it and said, “Thank you,” as I handed it to her. I gave her The Case for Christ Answer Booklet, which she also liked and a Bible Study explaining that when Jesus walked on water He was claiming to be the God of the Old Testament. “I feel like when you explain it that way it makes a lot of sense,” she said taking the Bible Study. I said that was the Holy Spirit in both of us helping her understand and also God had given me some things to say that sound good. That seemed to make sense. I explained the Christian life living By the Spirit’s Power “Inside Out”. I said God could help her even on her Bike and help make us better at things. I’d told her that I prayed when I first started out on a ride.  I told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day through Spring and the next Year after asking God to bless her. She was thankful and I got up to go. She asked me where the bathroom was to I told her, it made me wonder if she was a student or just meeting some friends. I bumped into her as she cut across the lounge from the bathroom a little later and told her I had forgotten to tell her the likelihood she would now go to Heaven trusting in the righteousness and blood of Jesus was 100%. “Thank you,” she said and we parted ways.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism today if you had a chance. God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your week was blessed with all good things from above. I had a good week earlier at school Afonso, Anzhelo, Jack*, Jackson* each either prayed to receive Christ or confessed their faith and on campus Thursday and Yaireli [ur el ee] and Jay each prayed with me to receive Jesus. Their stories are below if you want to spend the time please pray they grow in their faith. I had a long talk through tears with Esther who had some struggles with her faith (lost friends she could not reach, one died in suicide) and her Pentecostal denomination, which she feared the rejection of her family were she to leave it. Please pray her faith grows stronger. Jackson committed to believing on Christ Wednesday but had to run to class so I hope to run into him again, his father had just started taking the family back to Church. He had straight dishwater blonde hair was tall and thin and had pointed features and a wide smile, wearing a Glenbard West Hilltoppers green zip neck fleece sitting in the MAC.

Yaireli was sitting on a bench outside a bit of a corner computer lounge that’s now on the NW corner of the 1^st floor of the BIC. She’s a short slight Latina with a cute chipmunk face and shoulder length dark brown hair. She was wearing a Dark blue Winnie the Pooh sweatshirt and black sweats. She was a meek, friendly kid. She said she wanted to travel. I asked her what she would say to God if she died and He asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “Umm,” she said thinking a bit, “To be honest I don’t know.” I asked her if she went to Church and she said her church was Catholic. I asked what she thought they would say would get someone into Heaven. “Be more respectful and caring for others not committing crimes, respect everyone,” she replied. She thought she had about a 75% chance of going to Heaven. I went on to read her the verse that said knowing God was eternal life and that God wanted to know and live inside her [John 17:3]. But because he could not be in the same place as sin He had to take away her sin then she’d be perfect and holy and God could live inside her. I asked how God took away her sins. I think she used the word “reverence “and added you had to “show Him you loved Him”. I said something like, “Well this is how the mechanism works and began to explain how the blood of Jesus cleansed her from all sin and was a payment to God. “True, true,” she said in response. some things coming back to her possibly. I explained this was the symbolism behind the mass or the Eucharist and that that word meant “thanksgiving”. So when she took it she should just say thank you as it was reminding her Jesus died for her.  I explained the righteousness of God, Christ earned for us, that was to her credit when God adopted her as His Child. I explained that we had to receive this by faith believing, “Jesus is God He died for your sins and rose from the Dead.” I explained that this faith saved her and her good stuff could not fix her bad stuff. I asked then if she would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done. Then He would live inside her, giving her strength and take her to Heaven when she died or did she think something else.  “That one,” she said pointing to the circle with Christ inside her on the throne of her life. So I said that if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I talked her through it and asked if it expressed the desire of her heart, she thought it did so I asked if she would like to pray it silently and she said, “Yeah.” I handed her the booklet and she prayed then to receive Christ. I explained the Christian life to her then reading the Bible (which she had) and prayer and I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I gave her The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and a Bible study. I explained now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus and His blood the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100%. I told her I would pray a prayer for her each day “from now until Spring and one year after asking God to bless you.” I told her I was sorry I kept her so long since it was oblivious she had to go. “No it’s OK, “she replied. “Have a good one,” I said. “OK. By bye,” she said sweetly and hurried off.

Jay was sitting under the stairs near the entrance to the bookstore. He was a small Filipino guy and he had a smallish handsome face with a thin mustache like Michael Jordan puts out there. He had on a light grey puffy coat and jeans. He said he went to a Roman Catholic Church on Sundays. He said he wanted to own a 2025 Nissan GTR NISMO so I looked it up “The pricing begins at $120,990 for the base Premium model and extends to $220,990 for the top-tier NISMO model.” So I hope that works out for him.  I told him my dream car when I was young was a 67 Corvette. (It’s a pretty bad look for an evangelist to drive a sports car that would set you back a hundred grand however so I long ago decided I’ll wait and just drive what God loans you in Heaven. It might be a chariot but I have always liked horses.) I asked him what he would say to God if he died and was asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” His hand went up and covered his mouth his eyes widened a bit. He began to think. “I don’t know he said after a bit. I asked him the likelihood he would get into Heaven. I’ve not done anything that bad-bad.” He replied. “I always help people. If I see a homeless person on the road I buy them food.” I said that it was best to buy people food because you don’t know them and they might abuse drugs or alcohol. He agreed. “So you are hopeful,” I said and he said “Yeah.” I began to explain the Gospel to him that God loved him and wanted to know and live inside him. As I explained the Blood of Christ cleansing us from all sin it seemed pretty novel but he took it all in sincerely. I explained that this was how God was paid and so he was just to forgive us [1John 1:9] because there was a payment. I explained the Eucharist as symbolic of this and that he should just say thanks in taking it. Jesus had earned God’s righteousness and it was too his credit when God adopted him. “So that’s Christianity. God loves you, he wants to know and live inside you, but he can’t because of sin. So the Bible says ‘God demonstrates His love for us, while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.’” I said he had to believe, Jesus is God, died for his sins and rose from the dead. If he trusted in this work of Christ for him he had faith and faith saved him. I asked if he wanted to be forgiven for his sins trusting in Jesus. Then God could live inside him and give him strength, take him to Heaven when he died. Or did he think something else and I gave him a few sentences on the false religions of Islam and the Buddha. “So would you like to be forgiven trusting in Jesus?” I asked again. “Yup,” he said. So I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and I talked him through it asking if it expressed the desire of his heart and he nodded. I asked if he would want to pray it silently and he nodded. Then he took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I explained the Christian life to him also, living “By the Spirit’s Power” “Inside Out” and said everything in Christianity was “Just Ask” God wanted to help him and guide him. I told him the likelihood he would now go to Heaven was 100% trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus. I gave him Bible Promises for You and also wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside and he thanked me as I gave it to him. I wrote his name in The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I told him I would pray a Bible verse for him each day from now until the end of Spring and one year after asking God to bless him. I explained the Bible study a bit and he laughed at the tale I told of the disciples in Matt. 14:26 “It is a ghost!”. I asked if he had any questions. He said he didn’t think so. “Well I’ll see you in Heaven, it’s cool to meet you,” I said. “Yes Sir! Thank you!” he replied and I headed up the stairs.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism this past week if you had a chance God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Third Watch Ministries, NFP                                                           Bob & Ellen Bollow

P.O. Box 1283                                                                                             April 3, 2025

Wheaton, IL 60187  

“There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,

The holy dwelling places of the Most High.” Psalms 46:4

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your “Winter into Spring” has been a blessed one and you are walking by the Spirit in faith not by sight. We are walking this way and asking God for more faith. Hey it’s a gift—you can get more of it. I think many people would at least say we have seen success in ministry in the goal of seeing people pray to receive Christ, 141 this school year. I clicked on the “Look Inside” button in a success book recently at Thrift Books. The Success Principles by Jack Canfield provided the following quote: “If you want to be successful, you have to take 100% responsibility for everything that you experience in your life. This includes the level of your achievements, the results you produce, the quality of your relationships, the state of your health and physical fitness, your income, your debts, your feelings — everything!”  Of course it depends on what you mean by success. But I realized reading this idea would bring disaster to the Christian life, which is about walking by the Spirit’s power. I explain to the students who have prayed to receive Christ that the Christian life is “Inside Out, not Outside In.” First we ask God to transform us, then we do good things. We are not transformed or saved or sanctified by the good things we do by our own strength. After all, our enterprises often seem doomed to woe even when blessed; the more happy the marriage the more sad the death of one spouse in old age. The happier the Story the more sad the ending, unless you stop it in the middle. Ellen and I have watched movies that ended in disappointment. Fortunately they are fiction. So if I don’t like the story ending I say to Ellen, “I’m just going to pretend they were happy, got married and had wonderful children so I can think happy thoughts before bed.” Most movies are forgettable anyway of course. We occasionally watch one again when we realize we forgot how it ended. But in real life such pretending is not possible. And we know Jesus said in John 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” I catch myself pressing a bit sometimes when sharing the Gospel. Then I silently pray and ask God to work in their heart and continue waiting on Him for the outcome as I recite the verses from His word. Psalm 127:1 tells us, “Except the LORD build the house, they labor in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman wakes in vain.” God has sealed us with His Spirit in Ephesians 1:13, but we are to go on walking in the Spirit (Galatians. 5:25).

Everything we have in life is from our gracious God. Though I earnestly want students to trust in Christ, I’m not trying to talk them into a life in Christ. I am hoping to put my “best foot forward” by God’s power. And then I pray for them, knowing only the Holy Spirit can bring sanctification. I think I am good at talking to students about the things of God. But in 1Cor. 1:5 I read that, “in everything you were enriched in Him, in all speech and all knowledge.” Everything we are in life came to us by the nature God gave us and renewed in us and by the events He engineered to shape us. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Eph. 2:10). God has blessed us and it is made possible by your prayers and gifts.

When the covid scare had Illinois shut down in 2021, we decided to go to Florida and talk to students on the beaches that were open. Ellen worked from the condo we were blessed with in the second part of the week (on the cheap from a kind lady we met.) Panama City Beach was taking a hiatus from spring break partiers then by outlawing drinking on the beach. (They have changed the laws back now, for money.) There was not a fraction of the number of people to talk to that I expected. Worse still, on my first day the first 30 people I spoke with said “no thanks.” Then I came across a nice older couple. The wife wrote Christian books the husband proudly informed me. I told them what I was up to and they asked how it was going. I said, “No one has talked to me so far.” They asked how many I had asked. I’d been counting and said more than thirty and, if I’m remembering right, I told them they made 33. “Oh we’ll pray for you,” they promised. After that, 31 people came to Christ in a week of days (given some were lost to rain) and God let me know it was not about me. So below are the students who have prayed with me to receive Jesus this school year so far. Thanks for your help, truly. “This is the way” as The Mandalorian often says. In the words of Paul, “For who regards you as superior? And what do you have that you did not receive? But if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?” (1Cor. 4:7) So as Will said on TV in The Guns of Will Sonnett “No brag just fact.”

I went through the Gospel with a girl Anna this year and have seen her and talked with her since. She’s never prayed the prayer in the booklet. But she said her mom read through it along with all the other verses I wrote in it and she prayed the prayer to receive Jesus. So there is a River the Streams of which make glad the city of God. Some people just have to step near enough to hear the rush across the rocks. When He calls, they’ll jump in.

Here are the students who have prayed this school year. (An * means they said they would pray later.)

David, Jonah, Skylar, Rosslyn, Phil, John, Erick, Lilly, Erick, Matt, Sergio, Jaydi, Brandon, Adrian, Lauren, Camille, Ella, Madi, AJ, Charles, Jomally, Ellie, Madison, Odalys, Jess*, Rebecca, India, Jorie, Markail, Monse, Ethan, Kevin, Kai, Alijana, Michael, Adam, Rita, Arielle, Samantha, Michael, Josh, Reanne, Danielle, Marisa, Tamara, Annette, Ellis, Savannah, Lena, Joseph, Kaycee, Alexa, Malcolm, Daniel, Abbie, Ozzy, Michael, John, Roger, Connor, Q, Brandon, John, J, Diego, Damo, Roy, Victor, Daniel, KD, Charlie, John, Areli, Tamryn, Pablo, Mari, Julianna, Alijah, Cam, Keith, Matthew, Julia, Jessica, Panos, Dailen, Max, Jon, Moe, Salvador, Keri, Yace [ya say], Gianna, Jude, Donte, Jack, Dajah, Aly, Yvonne*, Kiyla, Ian, Gabe, Cory, Nyla, Anthony, Ryan, James, Melody, Quami, Shaun, Zach, Stepan, Alenka, Thomas, Mercy, Emily, Sam, Brendan, Kevin, Jayda, Elizabeth, Jeremiah, Ashley, Joe, Drew, Jess, Natalie, Josh, Julyssa, Joseph, James, Daniel, Kyran, Matthew, Steve*, Shay, Jabari, Jorge, Kejsi [KC}, Jose, Brandon, Kaitlyn, Ivy, Vanna, Princess

Thank you for your faithful prayers & support.

In Him,

bob.thirdwatch@sbcglobal.net

www.thethirdwatch.org