Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed today knowing the love of Christ Jesus. I had a good day on campus and Kinsley prayed with me to receive Jesus. Her story is below if you have some time. Alex studying to do HVAC said he had been trusting in Jesus though he had not been able to explain why God would let him into Heaven moments before hearing the Gospel, saying “there really isn’t anything if I’m gonna be honest”. But he committed to faith when I left him, taking the booklet. Please pray these are blessed and sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

 Kinsley was sitting in the PE lounge alone at a table. She’s a pretty girl with a statuesque edged nose and sharp jaw line; her brown hair was wavy and parted down the middle. She wore a dark blue pullover hoodie with some printing on it I could not make out. Looked a little like actress Courtney Cox with a narrow face. She was willing to do a survey with me when I asked her the big question to see if she was interested. “You’re walking down the road 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?” She replied, “I feel like it’s what you do but it shouldn’t be a list of stuff.” I agreed and said, “Yeah, say you had a boyfriend for a while then you found out he was cheating on you and stealing your stuff, so you cut him loose. He comes back in about a week and says, ‘I know I did you wrong, I was even stealing your stuff and selling it for drugs but I just want you to know, I’m gonna be nice to my next three girlfriends.’ You can’t do good stuff over there to fix your bad stuff here.” She smirked a half grin agreeing and saying “right.” I asked if she would like to hear the Bible verses that answered the question, “Or aren’t you really interested?” She agreed and I asked again if she’d want to do a survey or just hear the verses. She said she’d do the survey. Before she died she wanted to, “Do more good, fulfill my purpose, what if feel like I should do.” She thought the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 60%. I asked if she went to Church at all and said she hadn’t regularly but “currently I’ve gotten more into it because of my boyfriend. So I’ve gotten more closer.” I began to go through verses with her. Saying “Knowing God” was that He lived inside her with His Holy Spirit I asked what Jesus had done back in History to take away the sins of the world. “I actually don’t know at all,” she replied. So I began to explain what Jesus had done in living a perfect life. I told her of His sacrifice and His blood cleansing her, which was also a payment to God. The righteousness of God Christ earned was to her credit. God adopted her and gave her the blessings of His family. I said she needed to receive this by faith and faith saved her. I asked if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in what Jesus had done or thought something else, explaining Islam and the Buddha a bit. “So would you want to be forgiven?” She nodded. So I said then there was a prayer she could pray. I talked her through it and asked if it was the desire of her heart. She nodded I said she could pray it silently and she took the booklet and said, “Do you have multiple of these, “I do but you can keep that one,” I replied thinking she might say she’d pray later but she said, “Thank you.” And she prayed to receive Jesus. I began to go through the Christian life with her and she did not have a Bible, “I just have a small one,” she replied. “Would you like a full Bible?” I asked. I would,” she said. I’d forgotten to put one in my pack but I said if she was going to be here five minutes I could go get one. I had some in my truck. She agreed. I explained the Christian life by the Spirit’s power living “inside out”. 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 telling her Strobel’s story in which she had interest and a Bible study. I told her I’d go get a Bible. I was at the other end of campus but parked by the door so I drove back to the PE building about a quarter mile and gave it to her. She was sitting with a girl when I returned. I gave it to her and she thanked me and I quickly I showed her the study aids in it and wrote the date and “forgiven” in the front. I told her I didn’t know if I would see her again but I would pray a Bible verse for her each day from now until spring and one year after asking God to bless her. She thanked me and I headed out.

 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 week was blessed with good things from above. I had a good week on campus and Alex, Ella, Luis, Nick and Jonny each prayed to receive Jesus. Then Thursday Thalia prayed to receive Christ. Her story is below if you have some time. Please pray she grows in her faith.

 Thali was sitting just past the glass fire doors in the hall near Starbucks that goes down to the bookstore. She had on a light pink hoodie and pink print pajama pants. She had straight blondish hair and a flat-ish nose, chin came to a point, a bit like singer Kelly Clarkson (Or two twins I once knew Jen and Noel). I asked her if she wanted to do a student survey for a Bible Study group. She said she had a church she had started to go to. I asked her the name and she went to her phone and showed me the picture of the white Church. It had an A frame drive under awning. I guess she had just recently looked it up. It was a “Church of God” denomination. I believe the church that does not use instruments in worship. I said the survey was really about this question, “You’re walking down the road 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?” I asked her if she knew what she’d say. She didn’t seem to have a solid idea so she agreed to do the survey. Revisiting the question she said, “Because I’m a good person, I love animals.” She thought she had an 80% chance of going to Heaven when she died. I began to go through the Gospel with her saying God had to take away her sins to live inside her. I asked what Jesus had done back in History to do that she thought and said, “He died on the cross.” She believed the Gospel and I explained all I usually do, what the blood of Christ did and His righteousness to our credit. “You don’t go to Heaven because you are good but because Jesus is good and you are connected to Him. Like if you marry a millionaire you got a million bucks of if you get adopted into a billionaire’s family you get to live in the mansion and drive the cars.” I said God adopted her and gave her the blessings of His family, the sacrifice for our sins the blood that cleansed us and the Righteousness of God that surrounds us. I explained she was saved by faith; placing her trust in that Jesus was God, died for her sins and rose from the dead. I asked if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in what Jesus had done. “Yeah,” she replied. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray. I talked her through it and asked if it expressed the desire of her heart. She said it did. said she could pray it silently and she said, “Unkay,” I gave her the booklet and she said, “Thank you,” and prayed to receive Jesus. I said that the likelihood she would go to Heaven now trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus was 100%. I began to go through the Christian life with her By the Spirit’s power and living “Inside Out.” She didn’t have Bible but had been meaning to buy one so I said I could give one to her. I showed her the study helps and how a cross-reference works. I wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. “For free?” she said. “Yeah sure,” I replied. “How come?” she asked. I explained people gave me money to buy Bibles and give them to students. She accepted that saying, “Thank you so much.” I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name in it. I gave her The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and a Bible study explaining that. I told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day from now until Spring and one year after asking God to bless her. I had made her late for class and she said, “I have a class at 12:30.” So I said I was sorry and she left right at that time and was probably 2-3 minutes late as she hurried off.

 So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism last week if you had a chance. God blessed the work.

 In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ.

I hope ya had a blessed day walking with the King. I had a good day on campus and Nick and Jonny each prayed to receive the Lord as their savior by His blood and righteousness. Please pray they grow in their faith and commitment to Christ. Their stories in brief are below if you have some time you want to spend. They were the only students I was able to go through the gospel with in several hours on campus today.

 I got to campus and got buttonholed, by a student who is a little unstable and has been there for 10 years (sort of spinning his wheels). Today he had some Latin words he was misinterpreting to tell me. He then made up an interpretation for a patch on my coat. When I finally split from him I headed up stairs.

 I was a bit frazzled trying to navigate my first conversation, not really sure why. But I somehow knew I was supposed to look for someone in the cutouts that overlook the SSC lounge (where we have Bible study) from the 3^rd floor. Nick was sitting in the last of them and said he would do a student survey. He looked like a stereotypical Italian guy, though tall, had a boxers nose a bit swollen in the beak. Good-looking guy with straight dark brown hair split I the center randomly with hooks of bangs. He had a black t-shirt on and light gray sweats and looked fit. He wanted to travel. I asked him, “You’re walking down the road 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?” He thought for a moment with an “Um…” then said, “I’d say that I’ve only been helpful and respectful to my parents and those I love.” I asked him the likelihood he would go to Heaven when he died and he said, “I don’t really know how that works,” he replied but then decided it was 100%. I asked him if he went to church and he did sometimes, but wasn’t that into it. “I guess I’d say I’m lukewarm,” he replied. I began to explain the Gospel to him and he knew Jesus had died to take away the sins of the world saying when I asked, “He died for us.” I began to explain things using illustrations with the blood of Christ cleansing him and being a payment to God. I explained the righteousness of God Jesus earned and he said matter-of-factly, “What’s your point?” “That you don’t go to heaven because you’re good but because Jesus is good and your connected to Him,” I replied. “OK,” he said accepting the proposition. I showed him the passage where Jesus rose and said that this was all received by faith. Not just knowing Jesus was God had died for his sins and rose from the dead but placing his trust in what Jesus had done. “So if someone were to ask, ‘Why should God let you into Heaven?’ you’d say, ‘Because Jesus died for me.’” That would mean he had faith in Jesus. And faith saved him. I asked if he would want to be forgiven for his sins or thought something else. He said he would want to be forgiven. So I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray. I talked him through it and asked if it expressed the desire of his heart. He said it did, I said he could pray it silently and I wouldn’t hear him but God would and he’d know he was forgiven. “This?” he asked. “Pray right now?” he asked. “Yeah,” I replied. So he took the booklet and prayed out loud to receive Christ sitting alone with me in the cutout.  When he finished I said, “The likelihood now you are going to Heaven is really 100% trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus.” “It’s really either zero or 100%,” he replied realizing. I agreed. His family had a Bible but he said he’d like one of his own. So I gave him one showing him some of the study aids, cross-references and concordance maps and such. I put the ribbon maker in John. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave him a couple Bible studies. “I guess I wasn’t really as interested in this because my friends who are religious are some of the worst people I know,” he replied. We talked about how hard it was to know what is true right now and I agreed. I used the example of the manual for your car and the light on the dashboard. I said I’d owned a Toyota but now own a Nissan truck. A light went on, on the dash, I thought it was a break light (from what I watched a YouTube) but when I showed it to a mechanic friend he looked at my breaks saying they were fine and then looked at the light. He said it was a low tire light. But he knew that from the manual for my car. Otherwise I couldn’t find out what the light meant. I explained that the Bible was the manual for humans. When things go wrong it tells us why and also how to live. He talked about all the voices on social media and all the lies. I said a lot of influencers were sociopaths, they say 1 out of 100 are, so they just lie to get clicks and followers. They might not even believe what they are saying. The Bible was the truth. We have a Christianized culture I said, but that is going away and people do not know how to live anymore. I explained the Christian life living by the Spirit’s power, “Inside Out.” I gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and Bible Promises for You. I said I would pray a Bible verse for him each day from now until Spring and one year after asking God to bless him. “Thanks for talking with me,” I said. “Thanks for talking with me too, I’ll see you around. Thanks for all this,” he said gesturing to the books and the Bible. I said he was welcome and headed off.

 Jonny was sitting in the upstairs PE lounge his back against the glass wall. He looked Southeast Asian if I were to guess. He had a very large nose for his face with small bumps on it, brown skin and otherwise sharp features. And a warm smile, he was tall and thin and wore a hoodie, green pants cut off at the ankles and had stick straight hair that poured out from under a black ball cap with white letters. He seems like a nice guy. I asked him one thing he would want to do before he died and he said, “Love everybody.” I said that seemed good to me but there were some people I would prefer to love at a distance, thinking of a few dangerous people I knew of. I asked him, “You’re walking down the road 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?” “I don’t know, only if it is your will,” he replied. I asked what he thought it was that got him into Heaven and he said, “Love others, let God love me,” he replied. He thought he had a 50% chance of getting into Heaven. When I first asked him if he’d do a survey he asked how long it would take so I went as fast as I could through the details. Saying, “The rest of this is about what you think of Christianity. Christianity is like a blood transfusion,” I said. God wants to transfuse His life into you, live inside you with His Holy Spirit but first He has to make you His type. So He takes away your sin, then you are perfect and holy inside and you match God and he can live inside you. So what’s the thing Jesus does back in History to take away the sins of the world?” I asked. “He dies on the cross,” he said. “Right,” I said and then pulling out the booklet I quickly explained the blood that cleansed us and was a payment for sin and righteousness of Christ, saying, “Paul says, ‘It is not by my own righteousness but the righteousness that is by faith.’” I read the verses on the resurrection, Christ as the only way and that we were yet sinners when He died for us. I said then he was saved by faith saying all I usually say from there. I said the last question of the survey is would you want to be forgiven for your sins trusting in what Jesus had done or did he think something else. Then I gave him the brief summary of Islam and the Buddha. “So would you want to be forgiven for your sins?” I asked again. “Yes absolutely,” he replied. I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and I talked through it asking if it expressed the desire of his heart. “Yes I think so,” he said. So I said he could pray it silently and know he was forgiven. “Wanna do that?” I asked. “Sure,” he replied. And he prayed to receive Jesus. He crossed himself finishing and I explained the Christian life to him living by the Spirit’s power, “Inside Out.” He had a Bible so I gave him a Bible Study and Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I said that now trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100%. 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. He asked my name again I told him and I said it was on the back of the booklet and my email was there if he had any questions. “If I see ya again I’ll just say hi, but I haven’t seen ya before so who knows.” He thanked me and I said, “I’ll see you in Heaven.” I started to walk away ad he said, “See you at the Eucharist.”  In some churches the Eucharist is referred to as the “marriage supper of the Lamb,” in Heaven. So I think that’s what he meant. I headed out.

 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 walkin’ in the light of His word. I had a good day on campus. I taught a Bible study and Luis prayed to receive Jesus today. Please pray he grows in his faith. His story is below if you have some time. Alexia did not have assurance of salvation; she answered the question wrong but thought she was believing on Jesus after I went through the Gospel so I encouraged her and gave her a Bible Study. And I talked to a guy Ricky who had been in Cook County on a gun charge and was wearing the ankle bracelet for another month. He’d receive Christ in prison and we talked about how scary that place is spending a month surrounded by murderers. That was interesting, I talked to him quite a while after I went through the Gospel with him and encouraged him in the Christian life. He looked like a boy. God really kept him in there and he realized it had been a blessing he’d been caught. I gave him some books and a Bible Study.

 Luis was sitting at a table in the PE lounge. He was wearing black sweats and a black and light shade of patterned black (kind of camo) short sleeve shirt.  There were few people in the room, though a couple guys (both Christians) I had talked to before rolled by us and said hi. One knew him also but looked at his face and kept going as we were in the middle of the gospel then and he was dead serious. He had his headphones on, pulled them up to pinch his head as I asked him. I said as he looked up and saw his face, “Oh I’ve talked with you before.” He said I had asked him to do a student survey before. Then he’d said he didn’t have time. He had a mop of brown curls and a mustache the width of a pencil that was not as long as his mouth. He had a small goatee that was long enough for him to tug on {like a golf ball) which he did a bit as we talked. He’s a good-looking guy with kind of a hawk nose rounded on the bridge. He agreed to do a survey saying, “You can talk to me about it.” I asked him one thing he would like to do before he died and he said, “Leave my family financially stable.” I asked him, “You’re walking down the road 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?” “That you probably shouldn’t to be honest,” he replied. I asked what he thought it was that got someone into Heaven. “Following Him, [as] one of His disciples, His sons,” he said. He said he had gone to church when he was younger and that he believed, “I just haven’t been following it. I stopped following the rules He wants a man to follow,” He confessed. I began to go through the Gospel with him, he knew Jesus had died for the sins of the world and he was very serious and listened carefully but either looked at the booklet or over to the corner where no one was sitting and didn’t meet my eyes. There was a lot of activity in the gym, some group, I think they were all women, were swinging their legs back and forth on one foot through the glass doors. But he wasn’t distracted, he listened to the analogies and the verses. He even gave a word of ascent here and there and said, “Right.” I explained all I usually say about the blood of Christ to cleanse him and be a payment for sin. Jesus lived a perfect life for us, His righteousness to our credit, Jesus was our robe of righteousness our garment of salvation.  “You don’t go to Heaven because you are good but because Jesus is good and you’re connected to 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. So God adopts you into His family and gives you the blessings of His family. He gives you the sacrifice for your sins, the blood that cleanses you and the righteousness of God that surrounds you. So you got someplace to go, Heaven, and something to wear when you get there, the robe of God’s righteousness.” I was praying as I talked that God would work. I explained that he was saved receiving Christ, believing Jesus is God died for your sins and rose from the dead, “Not that you just knew the story but that that’s what you put your trust in, so if someone would say to you, ‘Why should God let you into Heaven?’ you’d say, ‘Because Jesus died for me.’ That would mean you had faith in Jesus and faith saves you.” I read him the verses.  I asked him if he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in what Jesus had done. Then the Spirit would live inside him and give him strength and take him to Heaven when he died or did he believe something else and I told him the CliffsNotes version of Islam and the Buddha. “So would you want to be forgiven for your sins?” I asked again. He nodded. So I said, “Well if you want to be forgiven there’s a prayer you can pray.” I talked him through it and asked if it expressed the desire of his heart he nodded again and so I said he could pray it silently and know he was forgiven. I slid him the open booklet and he looked at it. Then he stared off to the corner again and then he pulled his shirt up at the neck like an NBA player using the collar to wipe sweat from his face for a free throw over his eyes. I sat and then looked down and waited a minute. Finally he recovered himself and took the booklet and looked at the prayer and prayed to receive Christ. When he’d finished I said, “Amen?”  and he nodded. I reached out offering him my hand and said, “Your sins are forgiven man,” and he shook it. “I appreciate it,” he said. I explained the Christian life to him and encouraged him that the power of the Spirit was the way we lived the Christian life. Inside out. I told him I had a couple books for him and gave him Bible Promises for You and wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave him a Bible study and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet telling him Strobel’s story. I told him I would keep him in my prayers each day praying a Bible verse for him until Spring and one year after. I gave him a Bible study on the deity of Christ. “I appreciate it man,” he said, “Sorry for tearing up on you.” “It’s all good man if it’s real it’s all-good,” I said shaking his hand. Tough looking dude. I told him if I saw him I’d just say hi, no strings attached and I headed off. It kind of took it out of me so I headed out and down the hall and around the corner and sat on the floor and took some notes and took a minute headed for the Bible Study.

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 day was blessed today and you proved what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. I had a good day on campus and Alex and Ella their stories are below if you have some time. Please pray they grow in faith. I gave assurance of salvation to another Baptist girl (Faith) and also gave a book to a guy (Itzel, curly long hair wearing a watch cap in the cafeteria) who’d heard nothing of the Gospel growing up in a non-churchgoing family who said he could figure it out on his own.

 Alex was sitting on a bench in the MAC arts center lounge on the other side of a false wall they put in for display space, making something of a hallway. He had straight brown hair shot and flat to his head and a small mustache, bad skin like I had in college. He had a boyish face, might have been Latino but didn’t go to Church anymore. He wore a Mardi Gras print button down shirt under a jacket and jeans. He had an oval face with a pointed chin. He was meek. I asked him one thing he would like to do before he died and he said, “Get a family.” Becoming another example of a guy who if they say they want a family they will later demonstrate they are already a Christian or will pray to receive Christ. (It’s a tell.) I asked him, “You’re walking down the road 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?” I’d probably say, ‘I always followed You, even though there’s times when You seemed angry with me. I always asked for help and for Your forgiveness.’” He thought he had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven. I explained God loved him and wanted to live inside him with His Holy Spirit and asked what Jesus had done back in History to take away the sins of the world. “I actually don’t know,” he replied. So I went on to explain that Jesus had died for him as a payment for what he had done and His blood cleansed him. I explained the righteousness of God. I told him God wanted to adopt him and he could be saved by faith. I asked him if he wanted to be forgiven for his sins or thought something else. “I would choose to be forgiven,” he replied. I said then, “If you’d like to be forgiven there’s a prayer you can pray.” I talked him through the prayer and asked if it expressed the desire of his heart. He nodded. So I said he could pray it silently I wouldn’t hear him but God would hear and he’d know he was forgiven. “Yeah,” he replied.  And I said, “Just pretend I’m not here.” “OK,” he said and he prayed to receive Jesus. When he finished I went on to explain the Christian life, praying reading the Bible and living by the Spirit’s power “Inside Out”. I told him the likelihood he would now go to Heaven trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus was 100%. 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.  I gave him I gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I also gave him a Bible study and explained it a bit. “It was nice to meet you,” I said shaking his hand. “Thank you,” he replied. “I’ll see you in Heaven,” I said. “Thank you,” he said again gratefully and I headed off.

Ella was sitting alone in a lounge with vending machines on the first floor, north side of the BIC. The back of it empties into a hall. She had a pretty small face and wore pink plastic rimmed glasses. Her earrings were gold butterflies the size of a nickel and she had a press on gold star on her upper lip. She had a Latina skin tone and small features and a pointed chin. She wore black and white leather Nikes and jeans and had several chains around her neck and a button up black blouse. I asked her one thing she would like to do before she died. “Honestly get closer to God. I haven’t been doing that. I’ve been distracted lately.” She said she recently bought a Bible but hadn’t done anything with it yet. 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 says, ‘Why should I let you into Heaven?’ What would you say?” “I would say don’t let me into Heaven. I’m not worthy to be in His presence.” She thought she had a 40% chance of going to Heaven. I began to go through the Gospel with her and she knew Jesus had died to take away the sins of the world. So I went on to explain what that meant for us, explaining his blood and righteousness in the manner I always do. I explained that he had died and rose from the dead she said, “right.” I said then that God adopted her and all the work of Jesus was hers received by faith. I asked if she would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done, then he could live inside her with the Holy Spirit to give her strength and take her to Heaven when she died. I then gave her the CliffsNotes version of Islam and the Buddha. “So would you want to be forgiven for your sins or do you believe something else?” I want to be forgiven,” she said. So I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and walked her through it asking if it expressed the desire of her heart. She nodded. I said she could pray it silently; I wouldn’t hear her but God would hear and she’d know she was forgiven. “Wanna do that?” I asked. She nodded again and took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. When she finished she made the sign of the cross. I explained the Christian life to her praying and reading the Bible and said the Spirit would give her power to do what she needed to do. She could pray and ask God to remind her to read the Bible if she wanted. I handed her the booklet and she said, “Thank you sir.” I told her the likelihood she would now go to Heaven trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus was 100%. I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave her The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and a Bible study explaining that. I told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day from now until Spring and one year after asking God to bless her. She was happy and I got up to go saying, “I’ll see you in Heaven.” “Thank you sir,” she said again and I headed off.

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 week walking with the Lord in His will. I had a good day on campus Thursday and Maenota [Mah no ta] prayed with me to receive Jesus. Her story is below if you have time, Eva, Ashley, Chris & Andrew also prayed to receive Jesus and Kassim (this Christmas break). Please pray they all grow in their faith.

Maenota was sitting at the long table on the ground floor of the PE lounge at the base of the stairs. She had thick braids of her own hair starting at her scalp that went behind her head 6 or 8 inches. She had a sweet slightly wider maternal/pretty face and wore a multicolored workout jacket. She had a slight accent. Telling her my family was from Sweden I asked where hers was from and she said, “Ghana.” She said she wanted to travel, which always seems strange to hear when I am talking to someone from somewhere I have never been. She described herself as “God-fearing”. I asked her, “You’re walking down the road 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?” “I would say, ‘Yes, He should let me in. I’ve tried to be accountable for everything I’ve done. I’m not perfect but I’ve tried to be accountable’.” She thought she had an 85% chance of going to Heaven. I began to go through the Gospel with her explaining that Jesus had said Knowing God was eternal life, because knowing God in the New Testament is that the Holy Spirit lives inside you. But God has to take away your sin, make you His type, so he can live inside you. Then since God is eternal and the source of life, if you are one with Him you would have eternal life. I asked what Jesus had done back in History to take away the sins of the world. She knew He died on the cross. I went through all I usually say and to explain the blood and righteousness of Christ, His payment for sin and resurrection. I asked if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in what Jesus had done, then He would live inside her with his Spirit. Or did she think something else? I then gave her the CliffsNotes version of Islam and the Buddha I asked, “When you are asking for forgiveness for your sins have you been thinking that you are a good person and will try harder?” she was nodding Yes in response. I then said, “Or have you been trusting in Jesus. “The former,” she replied. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray. I read through it and explained it and I asked if it expressed the desire of her heart. “Yes, I prayed it,” she replied. So I said, “Amen?” and she said, “Amen.” I went on to explain the Christian life to her she had a Bible. I explained living by the Spirit’s power, inside out, not outside in like other religions. I said the likelihood she would now go to Heaven was 100% trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus. I gave her Bible Promises for You I wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front and 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 from now until Spring and one year after, asking God to bless her. “Thank you,” she said as I got up to go. “If I have a chance I’ll come by,” she said about Bible Study. “You’d be welcome,” I replied and I headed off.

 So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and evangelism on campus this week. God blessed again drawing the peeps to Himself, though foot traffic appears to be way down at school.

 In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day was filled with love and good works by the Spirit’s power. I had a good day on campus and Ashley, Chris and Andrew each prayed with me to receive Jesus. Please pray each of these students will grow in their faith and rest in Jesus. Their stories are below if you have time.  Timothy a student studying to be a fire fighter seemed close to receiving Christ but his Uber rolled up and he had to run.

Ashley was sitting halfway down the hallway that runs to the bookstore in one of the sofa chairs in front of a round ottoman. She had curly dark brown hair that fell down just past her jaw line. She had a pretty face with a pointed chin and was wearing a black dress to her calves with a satin back jacket and white crocks. She was just slightly heavyset and wearing dark red lipstick. She said she commuted from Indiana 2 days a week for school. She wanted to go into Architecture as a Major.  She’d been looking for a church having had a bad experience at her last one. I asked her “You’re walking down the road 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?” “That’s a good question,” she replied and thought a moment before saying, “I’m not perfect… I’ve never done blaspheme. I’ve chosen to forgive my rapist.” “Wow, that’s a lot,” I replied. She thought she had an 80% chance of going to Heaven. I began going through the Gospel with her. When I asked her what Jesus had done back in History to take away the sins of the world she started thinking and then pounded her hand in her palm a couple times looking for the word then saying, “He was crucified.” I said, “You were doing the nails in His hands?” she agreed. I began going through the Gospel with her as I always do, explaining the blood that cleansed her and paid God what we owed. His righteousness was to her credit. I said she could receive these things by faith. I asked if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in what Jesus had done, then He would live inside her with His Spirit and give her strength, take her to Heaven when she died. Or did she think something else? She reached out with a painted nail and touched under the circle with the cross on the throne or the driver’s seat of her life. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and talked her through it. I asked if it expressed the desire of her heart and she nodded so I said she could pray it silently and I wouldn’t hear her but God would hear and she’d know she was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” I asked. “Um hum,” she said as she nodded and she took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. As soon as she finished I said, “The likelihood you will now go to Heaven is 100%, trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus.” She smiled at that. I began to go through the Christian life with her. She had a Bible but I gave her Bible Promises for You writing her name and the date and “forgiven” in the front. She took on a warm smile when I gave that to her. I also gave her a Bible Study, explaining it a bit and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day from now until Spring and one year after asking God to bless her. I said if I saw her I would say hi. I got up to go and she said, “Thank you for your time.” “Thank you for yours,” I replied with a smile and I headed off. She walked by at the end of the day as I was talking to someone and I waved at her and her face lit up in a grin and she waved back.

 I came across Chris outside the cafeteria. He’s a friend of a guy I bumped into regularly last year, Jordan, and they are always talking about Christianity to I would occasionally give them my two cents. Chris has modest classic black features, he has perfect skin like milk chocolate and a mustache, bit of beard beneath his chin, good looking guy. He had on a black hoodie pull up over his head today. He asked how my day was going and I said a girl had prayed to receive Christ. He asked how I went about that. I explained I did a student survey and told him the questions. “Do I need to do something like that?” he asked, “I was baptized,” he replied. “Well baptism is either you are purified if you are sprinkled or you go under the water and that means you die with Christ and then you come out of the water you rise with Him so that is what it is symbolic of.” His face was blank and nothing I said seemed like it was familiar. “Well, you’re a Christian,” I went on, “So I don’t think… but hey tell me what’s that answer to the question. ‘So you’re walking down the road, 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?’” “Well I was baptized,” he repeated. “I think it is what comes from your heart, I have a good heart, good intentions.” “Well, that’s what you do but what did Jesus do?” he didn’t get the question. So I said, “You need to hear this then, you got a few minutes?” “Yeah,” he said. “Where can we sit down?” I asked. “Right here,” he said and we sat in a circle of connected benches and table-tops around a circular ottoman right outside the cafeteria. I began to go through the Gospel with him in the booklet and explaining that God wanted to live inside him with His Holy Spirit but first had to take away his sins (like a blood transfusion). I asked, “What’s the big thing Jesus does back in History to take away the sins of the world?” “He baptizes you?” he guessed. “No, that is how you identify with Christ,” I replied. “So I began to explain all I do with illustrations and stories explaining the blood and righteousness of Christ. “Wow,” he said at one point. I explained that he needed to receive Christ by faith believing He was God, had died for his sins and rose from the dead. “Not that you just know the story but that that’s what you put your trust in so if someone would say to you, ‘Why should God let you into Heaven?’ You’d say, ‘Because Jesus died for me.’ That would mean you had faith in Jesus. And you are saved by faith.” I explained how his good works were not perfect and could not pay God anything. I said that last question was, “Which person are you or would you want to be,” and told him the false message of Islam and the Buddha and then asked, “Or would you want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus has done? Then He lives inside you and gives you strength takes you to Heaven when you die.” “Yeah, be forgiven,” he said. So I talked him through the prayer asking does this prayer and said he could pray it silently. “I read it,” he said. “OK, Amen?” I asked. “Amen,” he replied with a grin. “OK. So do you believe Jesus is God died for your sins and rose from the dead? Do you think that’s true?” I asked. He nodded. “Say, ‘I do,’” I said. “I do,” he replied. So the Bible says if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, that He is God, and believe in your heart God raised Him from the dead, because He had to die for your sins, you will be saved.” I gave him Bible Promises for You and wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I also gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and I explained the Bible study to him one of the illustrations was Jesus walking on the water. I told him I would keep him in my prayers praying a Bible verse for him each day asking God to bless him. “That was beautiful man,” he replied. He said the illustrations were great and then said, “Thank you for sharing this good word.” He gave me a hug. “No problem you have a blessed day,” I replied and he hugged me again and said, “I will.”  As he walked away he said, “Wow.”

Andrew was sitting at the counter looking out towards the parking lot in the cafeteria. He got off his chair and introduced himself when I asked his name shaking my hand after he agreed to do a survey with a “Nice to meet you.” He had light brown hair in a mop kind of here and there but short on the sides, blue eyes and a day’s growth of light beard. He was wearing a black puffy coat and blue jeans, smaller guy with a kind of an everyman face with full lips, nice guy. He wanted to become an airline pilot. I asked him, “You’re walking down the road 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?” “I don’t know what I would say,” he replied. I asked him what he thought it was that got someone into Heaven. He said he’d watched some videos and that he thought, “One key fundamental is accepting Jesus into your life.” I asked what he thought the likelihood was he would be let into Heaven when he died. “I’m not sure,” he replied. “I need to have more time with people in Church.” He’d said he’d been meaning to get into Church a bit. “Well the last part of this is what you think about Christianity,” I said and he jumped in and said, “I think it’s a great religion, nothing against it.” I began to explain the Gospel to him. He knew Jesus had died for the sins of the world. So went through all I usually say of the blood and righteousness of Christ and adoption and resurrection. I said he needed to be saved by faith. I asked if he would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done or thought something else giving him the CliffsNotes version of Islam and the Buddha. He said he would want to be forgiven. 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. “Yeah,” he replied. So I said he could pray it silently, I wouldn’t hear him but God would hear and he’d know he was forgiven, “Wanna do that?” “Sure,” he replied and he took the booklet and prayed to receive Christ finishing out loud with “Amen.” I told him then the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100% trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus. I began to explain the Christian life to him and he did not have a Bible so I offered him one. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven” on the inside after I showed him the cross-references and maps and a study help I place in the back. He was happy with the Bible. I also gave him Bible Promises for You showing him how he could turn one into a prayer or read them for comfort. I gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and explained a Bible study to him on the deity of Christ. 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. I got up to go. “Alright Bob, thanks for your time,” he said reaching out to shake my hand again. “Alright,” I replied, “I’ll see you in Heaven.” “Alright, see you there,” he said with a grin and I headed out.

 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 blessed resting in the power of His Resurrection. I had a good day on campus teaching a small group Bible study with a few guys. No one prayed with me today but Kassim told me he had prayed to receive Christ over the break. Please pray he continues to grow in faith. I first went through the Gospel with him August 25th but I touched base with him pretty regularly chatting him up. He often sat in the hall near the bookstore. He is African American and has fair skin, slight features and kind of a curly afro, a mustache and a beard under his chin, good looking guy. When I first asked him, “You’re walking down the road 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?” He said, “Um, I think I would say, “Of course I did a lot of sin in my life but I tried to find you the best way I could.” I asked him what the likelihood he would get into heaven and he said, “Not likely.” When I talked him up other times he was struggling with the lies he was told in his religious studies class so I talked him through some of them. Today he was cheerful and I gave him Bible Promises for You writing his name and “Forgiven” in the front and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet I also gave him a Bible Study on the deity of Christ. So it was great to see he had decided to believe in Jesus and had prayed to receive Christ as I had periodically been praying for him. I told him I’d be praying for him each day.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and evangelism today if you had the thought. God truly blessed though there were few people to talk to today.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed and mercy peace and love were multiplied to you. I had a good day on campus in as much as Eva prayed to receive Christ. Her story is below if you have time. Please pray she will grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I went through the gospel with a Muslim, Mustafa (curly hair and a mustache like Freddy Mercury, slight build), and 4 other students who claimed to believe the Gospel but I think I helped them understand it more clearly.

 Eva was sitting in the hallway that heads along the Student Services building and ends down by the bookstore. She had kind of a Little House on the Prairie way about her in appearance. She had an oval face with what we used to call “granny glasses”. Her hair was kind of thin, long and went to her elbows. It was stick straight, the front in strands of bangs fell in wisps over her glasses to the bridge of her nose. She had on a pink sweatshirt with a cheerful slogan on it I forgot to write down and wore dark grey slacks. She had a pleasant way about her said she was introverted. I asked her, “You’re walking down the road 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?” “I’d say because I’d help other people. I’m studying to be a nurse so…” she said. I asked the likelihood she would go to heaven. “90ish,” she replied. As I began to go through the Gospel with her I asked her what Jesus had done back in history to take away the sins of the world. She remembered Jesus had died thought it had been a while since she went to Church. I explained Jesus had become a perfect man and was a sacrifice for our sins. His blood cleansed us and was a payment to God. She gave a sound of ascent agreeing. I went on to say all I usually say. The credit of His life perfectly fulfilling the law was to our credit. God adopted us and gave us the blessings of His family, sacrifice and cleansing blood and righteousness. All this was hers by faith believing Jesus was God had died for her sins and rose from the dead. I asked if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in what Jesus had done or thought something else, briefly comparing Islam and the Buddha. “The first option,” she replied. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I talked her through it asking, “It says here Does this prayer express the desire of your heart. Would You say it did?” “Um hum,” she replied. “If you wanted you could pray it right now, I wouldn’t hear you but God would hear and you’d know you were forgiven. Wanna do that?” I asked. She nodded and took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I went through the Christian life with her. She didn’t have a Bible but had been thinking she would buy one. So I gave her one and showed her how cross references worked and the study helps and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven” in the front. I explained living the Christian life by the Spirit’s power, “Inside Out”. I told her I would pray a Bible Verse for her each day from now until Spring and on year after. I also gave her The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and Bible Promises for You. I quickly gave her a Bible Study as she had to leave. I got up to go saying if I saw her around I would say hi. “Thank you,” she said as I stepped away. “You’re welcome,” I 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 week was blessed and fill up with the fullness of God walking with Him in newness of life. I had a good week on campus and Ivan [e vahn] prayed to receive Jesus on Thursday. Through the week Connor, Amelia, Taylor, Zach, Colton, Tania each prayed to receive Christ and David* committed to Christ believing. Ivan’s story is below if you have some time. Please pray each of these are sanctified by the Spirit.

 Ivan was sitting in the small lounge just east at the doors from the SSC lounge where they have events. He was a short guy with short dark brown hair combed back and a mustache. He looked like a young, slightly better-looking version of Freddie Mercury the rock star of decades ago. His shirt was a plaid grey flannel and he had on black sweats, tight at the ankle. He had a slight accent but said he was born in America and had relatives all over the world many whom he’d visited. Some were in Mexico others in Guatemala and Romania. I asked him, “You’re walking down the road 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?” “Hmm, what would I say?” he said pondering and concluded, “Because I forgive everybody for what they’ve done, in a way.” I asked the likelihood he would get into Heaven when he died and he thought it was 70%. He hadn’t gone to Church since he was a kid. I explained that eternal life was knowing God because God could live in you with His Holy Spirit and asked what Jesus had done back in History to take away the sins of the world and he remembered Jesus had died. I began to go through the Gospel with him, thereafter, telling him all I usually say about the blood and righteousness of Christ, the payment of His life for what we owe God and salvation by faith.  He was attentive to it all the way through without comment. Finishing I said, “So what kind of person are you or would you want to be?” Then I asked if he would want to be forgiven with God living inside him or thought something else. I gave the CliffsNotes version of Islam and the Buddha. “Interesting,” he said and seemed to be thinking. I let him think it through and asked and then asked again if he would want to be forgiven for his sins or thought something else. “Be forgiven,” he replied. So I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and talked him through it asking if it expressed the desire of his heart. “Yeah,” he replied. I said he could pray it silently; I wouldn’t hear him but God would hear and he’d know he was forgiven, ‘Wanna do it?” “Why not,” he replied. He took the booklet and prayed then to receive Christ. He flipped through the booklet some after and I asked he’d prayed having looked down for a bit. He said he had. So I explained the Christian life to him living by the Spirit’s power, “Inside Out”. I gave him a Bible and wrote his name and the date and forgiven in the front. I gave him Bible Promises for You and a Bible study and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I told him I would keep him in my prayers each day praying a Bible verse for him until Spring and one year after. He seemed grateful and I headed out.

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

 In Him,

Bob