Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your week was blessed and you were given the power to do all the things the faith God has placed in you prompted. I had a good day on campus Thursday and 3 students prayed to receive Jesus; Lilly, Erick and Matt.  Their stories are below if you have the time. Please pray they grow in their faith. Another girl Anna was close who was dressed all in black with platform boots sporting big silver buckles, she looked like the girl in the musical grease, almond eyes, light brown hair shag haircut. She had not thought about asking God to forgive her based on what Jesus had done and went to a church that taught what she interpreted as universal salvation.

 Lilly was sitting on the edge of the foyer at the doors that overlook the bookstore up on the second floor. I had taken the elevator up to spare my leg and planned to talk to a guy I’d seen over there but she sat down right as I got to that spot so I asked her instead. She was a pretty girl with a slight gap tooth smile, light brown hair past her shoulders. She wore yoga pants and a black t-shirt. Her short pretty face looked tan. She smiled a closed lipped smile periodically as I explained the Gospel to her. Nice kid she said she’d had religious education through the 8^th grade. When I asked her what she would say to God if she died to get into Heaven she said, “I always tend to put others before myself.” She thought she had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven.  She listened closely and knew Jesus had died to take away her sins. I explained how she was cleansed by the blood of Christ. His blood was also a payment to God and His righteousness could be hers by faith. I asked her if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in what Jesus had done or thought something else explaining the other ideas and returning to Jesus on the throne and she quickly then said, “Yes.” I said there was a prayer she could pray if she wanted to be forgiven and talked her through it asking if it was the desire of her heart. “Yeah,” she said. I said she could pray it silently and know she was forgiven and she replied with “Ahh, yeah.” She took the booklet and I said, “Just pretend I’m not here.” She nodded and prayed to receive Jesus. I gave her a Bible Promise book and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. “Thank you,” she said as I handed it to her. I gave her a Bible study and explained it and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day through next spring and one year after. “Thank you,” she said again sweetly and I said If I saw her around I would just wave and she smiled and I headed off.

Erick was sitting on a bench on the west side of the lounge connecting the science buildings. He was a tall guy with curly light brown hair and angular features, square jaw. He said his family was from Poland but he had never been there and he’d like to go. I said I had a friend who married a polish girl and he’d just seen it for the first time. He went to a catholic church near him, he could not think of the name. “Our Lady of Mercy” popped in my head so I asked if that was it and he said, “Yeah that’s it!” I asked him what he would say to God if he died and was asked why should I let you into Heaven. “That’s a good question actually,” he said thinking. “I guess ‘cause I did my best.” He thought he had a 40% chance of going to Heaven. He knew Jesus had been crucified to take away the sins of the world. I went on to explain the Gospel, that he was cleansed by the blood of Jesus who paid his way to God. I explained the righteousness of God and believing by faith. I asked if he wanted to be forgiven for his sins or thought something else. “Yeah, be forgiven,” he said. So I once again said there was a prayer he could pray if he wanted to be forgiven and talked him through it. I said he could pray it silently. “Yeah, I’ll do it,” he replied and he took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I explained the Christian life to him reading the Bible. He did not have one so I gave him one and showed him all the study aids in it. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I explained living by the Spirit’s power to ask for His help in everything. I gave him a Bible Promise book and Strobel’s Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I gave him a Bible Study on the deity of Christ too and said I would pray for him until a year from Spring. I showed him the question again, what is the likelihood you will go to Heaven. Saying, “This is 100%, if you trust in the righteousness of Christ to be your righteousness.” I explained the righteousness of Christ and His blood was worth an infinite amount. There was enough for us both. He was grateful and I headed out.

In the face, Matt looked a bit like Archie from the comic books. His hair was reddish brown and he had freckles. He had a slight build and a silver cross around his neck. He wore a blue t-shirt and maroon shorts. He was a real nice guy and went to an evangelical multi-site church that has a campus in Wheaton. He said he wanted to travel. I asked him what he would say to God if he died and God asked why should I let you in. “I don’t think I would say I deserve to go to Heaven,” he began. “I heard before that it’s only by the blood of Jesus I would be let in nothing that I do. That would be my answer.” He thought he had an 80% chance of going to Heaven. I explained the Gospel in the usual way, and then also the righteousness of Christ and he said, “That’s awesome.” In the end I said that he would receive all God had done by faith. So I asked if he would want to be forgiven for his sins or thought something else. He wanted to be forgiven so I asked if he had ever had a chance to tell God he wanted to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done. “I haven’t done anything like that but I would want to,” he replied. So I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and I explained it to him and asked if it was the desire of his heart. “Yeah,” he replied I said he could pray it silently and I would not hear him but Jesus would hear and he’d know he was forgiven. I asked, “Wanna do it?” “Yeah,” came his response, so I handed him the booklet and he prayed to receive Christ. I gave him a copy of 20 Things God Can’t Do writing his name and the date and forgiven on the front saying everything the author was saying he needed to do he should “just ask” for God’s strength to do it. I turned to the 13^th one that said, “God can’t withhold his guidance when you trust Him” I said. “You might respond, ‘great but I’m having a hard time trusting in God’. So if that is true just ask for more trust. You just step it back to the point you are willing. Say you were trying to stop smoking but you loved cigarettes. So you knew God would help you stop but you did not want to give them up. So you could pray, ‘Lord make me the kind of person who would be willing to pray that I would have the strength to stop smoking.’” He nodded with a smirk, obviously not a smoker. He liked the book and took it with a, “Thank you.”  I gave him a Bible Study and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet telling him Strobel had other stuff he could find on line. I said I would pray a Bible verse for him each day until Spring of next year. “Thank you Bob, I really appreciate it,” he said shaking my hand. So I said that was cool and headed out.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism last week. 10 students prayed with me to receive Jesus. And 3 others (Issac, Jake, and Anna) were close.

David, Jonah, Skylar, Rosslyn, Phil, John, Erick, Lilly, Erick, Matt

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed with God’s peace today as you walked with Him. I had a good day on campus. 3 guys Phil, John and Erick each prayed to receive Jesus. I’d be grateful if you had a moment that you would ask they be blessed in their life in the Lord. Their stories are below if you have a chance. Sheily (shah lee) was close and thought she might pray later. She was a short Latina looking girl with jeans on and a white Gibson guitar t-shirt. She had a cute sort of round-cheeked face and long thin brown hair. She went to Church several times a week but had not seemed to know that Jesus died to pay for her sins.

Phil was sitting at the counter in the cafeteria looking outside. He had bright blue eyes but his hair was light brown and he wore a black t-shirt and black nylon shorts with some kind of print at the hips. He said he was Presbyterian. I asked him what he would say to God to get into Heaven. He said something about your opinion of yourself might not be very accurate. He thought for a while more and said, “I guess ’cause I care for everyone, not just humans, not just family, but everyone, even people I don’t agree with.” I said a lot of people would not say that, things are pretty messed up. He thought he had a 90% chance of going to Heaven. He smiled at some of the things I said, “God wants to live inside you but he can’t because of sin, you know the stuff that ticks off your mom.” And he smirked a smile in other places too. He knew Jesus had died to take away the sins of the world but he had not been trusting in that to be forgiven. So I explained it was Christ’s righteousness not our goodness that saved us. His blood cleansed us and it’s how God got paid. That way of putting it got another smile.  I said that your good things would not fix your bad things saying, “Say you had a girl friend for about 3 weeks. You thought she was pretty cool but then it turned out she was cheating on you and stealing your stuff. So you cut her loose. She comes around 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 3 boyfriend.’ You’d be like, ‘Yeah that’s not gonna help me at all.’ Because the good stuff you do over there can’t fix the bad things you did here.” He got that so I said all that God had done for him he could have by faith and finally asked him if he would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done for him to be saved or if he thought something else. He said he’d want to be forgiven. I said if he would like to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and I talked him through it saying, “It says here does this prayer express the desire of you heart, so do you think it does. “Yeah,” he said. I said if he wanted to he could pray it silently, I wouldn’t hear him but God would hear and he’d know he was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” “Sure,” he replied. “Ok, just pretend I’m not here. “Ok,” he said and prayed to receive Christ. I wrote something down and when I looked up he had finished. I told him he could keep the booklet and that now if he trusted in the Righteousness of Christ to be his righteousness the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100%. I explained that the Christian life was “By the Spirit’s Power” and gave him a Bible Study and wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front of Bible Promises for You. I gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and told him I would pray a Bible verse for him through next spring and one year after. “Thank you,” he replied. And I headed out.

John was sitting in the MAC arts building lounge on the edge of display pictures of giant heads of Olmec from Mesoamerica. Why they are on display in wall size posters in the MAC art building was not worth my time to discover. John looked a bit like the actor Bradley Cooper when he was in the show “Alias”. He had a mop of curly blondish brown hair, very short beard and white blonde mustache. He had the most wrinkled tan t-shirt I remember seeing at school. He was upbeat and when I asked him if he’d do a survey he said, “I can do that,” in a tone suggesting he was willing to do me a favor. He said he was religious though he had not been to church in a while and thought he’d like to have a religious experience. By way of an example I mentioned I had recently heard again that people who have an experience where they believe themselves to be abducted by aliens (from space), have claimed the name of Christ and the abduction stops. I asked what he would say to God to get into Heaven and he said, “I think I would say… you know… I have good intentions in my heart.” He thought he had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven. I went through the Gospel and he knew Jesus had died. I felt like he had limited time so I was sticking to the things I always say about the blood and righteousness of Christ and he believed. I asked if he would want to trust in what Jesus has done and be forgiven for his sins where Christ would live inside him and he said, “I would hope so.” So I said there was a prayer he could pray and after talking him through it I asked if it expressed the desire of his heart. “I would say so,“ he replied. I said if he wanted he could pray it silently and I wouldn’t hear but God would and he’d know he was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” I asked. He nodded and took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I told him then that the likelihood he would not go to Heaven trusting in the righteousness of Christ and his blood was 100%. I explained the Christian life was living by the Spirit’s power. I also gave him a Bible Study and wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front of Bible Promises for You. I gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and told him I would pray a Bible verse for him through next spring and one year after. “Thank you,” he replied. “Have a good semester, :I said getting up to go. “You too, thank you,” he said and I was off.

I looked around a bit more and had been there for several hours. I had to sit a bit so my leg would stop aching (sciatica) and had a little time before an appointment I set up for treatments on it. I headed down the 2^nd floor south patio of the BIC from the PE building. Seeing a brown head of hair at the west end I thought I would ask him and then head to the truck. Erick was sitting there at a rubber coated wire mesh picnic table with attached benches. He had a dark mustache that stopped at a gap under his nose (like Charles Bronson) and a slight chin beard, looked Latino. He had skin like mine in college and wore a grey t-shirt with gothic lettering and blue jeans. He seemed very reserved. I asked if he wanted to do a student survey. “Is this for CRU?” he asked. They had a table all week set up at the doors getting names with info surveys. “It’s a little different it’s really the answer to the 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 asks, ‘Why should I let you into Heaven?’ What would you say?” He started to say, “I don’t…” and hesitated. “Do bad things?” I tried. It’s really asking what gets you into Heaven. “Just being a good person,” he replied. Well would you like to hear some Bible verses that give the answer. “Yeah,” he replied and making sure he was not interested in a survey I began to go through the Gospel. He tuned right in listening carefully without much expression or response. I was pretty tired so I just prayed God would work and went on explaining the sacrifice of Jesus, the blood to cleanse him and the righteousness of God to his credit received by faith. He knew Jesus had died for the sins of the world. He took it all in saying “OK,” here and there. I then asked if he would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done showing him the two circles.  I explained that Islam had a god who was on the outside of your life, “He does not come inside people, he’s not a father as he didn’t have a son and there’s no sacrifice for sin, so they have a different god.” I’m definitely on this side,” he said pointing to the circle with Christ in you on the throne of your life. So I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and read it through with explanation and asked, “It says here, ‘Does this prayer express the desire of your heart?’ would you say it does?” “UmHum” he replied. So I said he could pray it silently and I wouldn’t hear but God would hear and he’d know he was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” I asked. “Yeah,” he said. And he prayed then to receive Christ. I said I had some stuff to give him and asked if he had a Bible, he didn’t so I gave him one showing him some of the study helps and writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I gave Bible Promises for You and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I would pray a Bible verse for him “through next spring and one year after,” I said. I showed him the survey and told him that had he done the survey one question was “How likely is it you’ll go to Heaven?”. So now the answer for him was 100% trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus. “I’m old so I have sinned way more than you as each year it adds up, God forgives me but all told you’ve sinned less than me but if we both died today we’d both go to Heaven. His blood is worth an infinite amount and his righteousness is worth an infinite amount so there is enough for us both. And since I’m old I’d die and be there first so you can look me up and I’d show you where all the cool places are.” He smiled at that and said he’d look for me 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 life and peace. I had a good day on campus talking to students and Rosslyn prayed to receive Christ after I explained the Gospel to her. Two guys were close. Jake, a Latino looking guy with a round face and a thin mustache and slight goatee, his hair pulled back and tied behind his head. He had a full sleeve of ink on his left arm and some random tattoos on the right. We talked out on the south patio of the BIC building and he wanted to talk to his friend who was devoted to God about it. Issac was a good-looking black guy his afro topped in points. He was sitting in the cafeteria in a brown hoodie and wanted to check out a Bible study, he was right on the brink so I hope he’ll contact me.

Rosslyn was sitting in the ground floor hallway that runs down along the bookstore. She had a narrow pretty face with long dark stick straight hair almost to her elbows. She had full lips and had put inverted comma points on the end of her eyes that make your eyes look more almond shaped, I guess. She had on a cream-colored sweatshirt and a pale blue jean skirt. She seemed like a kind person. She said she had grown up in an evangelical church but was thinking about finding a Catholic church. (Another Catholic guy, Diego, told me today he would say to God, “I don’t deserve to be here but it’s because of your sacrifice that I’m here.” The official positions of denominations notwithstanding students often simply believe.) I asked Rosslyn what she would say to God if she died and He asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “I feel like I can’t answer that, I feel like he sees what I’m doing,” she replied. I then asked what she thought it was that got you into Heaven. Her response was, “The way you live, your life, being kind to others, not being selfish.” I began to explain the Gospel to her and when I told her that God had to take away our sin so He could live inside us I then asked what Jesus had done to take away our sins. “He died,” she replied. I said that was right and went on to explain the blood of Jesus to cleanse her and be a payment for all we owed God. I explained the righteousness of Christ as the gift. “So you don’t go to Heaven because you do good things but because Jesus is good and you are connected to Him.” I explained everything God provided for her, His sacrifice, blood and righteousness were hers by faith. When I finished explaining the Gospel I asked if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in what Jesus had done on the cross and not good things she had done, then He would live inside her and give her strength. “I agree with that, yeah,” she replied. So I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I read it through with her. “It says here does this prayer express the desire of your heart? So if you wanted to you could pray it silently and I wouldn’t hear you but God would hear and you’d know you were forgiven. Wanna do it?”  “Yeah,” she replied. She took the booklet and then said, “I have to read it,” and then she read it silently to receive Jesus. “Thank you so much,” she said then. I explained living the Christian life by the Spirit’s power. I gave her a copy of Bible Promises for You and I wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave her a Bible study and Strobel’s Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I said I would pray a Bible verse for her each day from now until Spring and one year after. I said that the likelihood she would go to Heaven if she is trusting in the righteousness of Jesus to be her righteousness was 100%. “Thank you so much I really appreciate it,” she replied. “God bless you. I’ll see you in Heaven,” I said getting up to go. “God bless you too have a good day,” she said 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 good day walking with Jesus. I had a good day on campus and 3 students prayed with me to receive Jesus; David, Jonah and Skylar.  Please pray for them to grow in faith and the Knowledge of God. Their stories are below if you want to spend the time. Thanks for your help in prayer.

David was sitting in the hallway alongside the bookstore. He was dressed all in black and had a silver cross around his neck. He sported a thin mustache, a bit of a goatee and a mop of dark hair in curly waves. He said he was a mix of Latino and French Canadian and felt he had the skin of the Canadian side and the hair of the Latino side. He was shorter than me by a few clicks. I asked him what he would say to God if asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “You shouldn’t,“ he replied. “I’d probably ask Him for forgiveness. When I was alive I loved Him with my lips but not my heart.” He paused and continued. “As I go older I did not disbelieve but I mocked Him. I have a brother who is religious, whose best friend was stabbed to death going to Cornerstone,” I think he meant the Christian Music festival. He did not seem to have witnessed it but he was with his brother that day afterwards and said they were both crying in the car. He asked his brother why God would allow something like that and his brother just said that he did not know and could not always understand God’s ways. “I told him I would not believe in a God like that,” he then said.  I said “Not to make light of this, but your brother’s friend is better off. He’s in Heaven.” He seemed to agree. I said he got to go home early. David thought the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 10%. I began to go through the Gospel with him and he knew Jesus had died to take away our sins. I went on to explain the righteousness of God Christ earned that could be to his credit and that if he believed he would have the rights of a child of God. I explained he was saved by faith and I asked if he would want to be forgiven, trusting in Jesus. I said if he believed, there was a prayer he could pray that he would know he was forgiven. I read through it and he said, “Yes sir.” I said if he wanted to pray it right now he could pray it silently and I wouldn’t hear him but God would hear and he’d be forgiven. “Wanna do it?” I asked. That took him aback a second but he then said, “OK” and prayed then to receive Jesus. When he finished, he looked up and I reached out and shook his hand and said, “Your sins are forgiven.” I explained the Christian life to him; living “By the Spirit’s Power.” He had a Bible already so I gave him Bible Promises for You and wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside and I gave him a Bible study on the Deity of Christ and The Cases for Christ Answer Booklet. I gave him my card and said we’d be starting a Bible study and to text me if he wanted to come. He was grateful. I told him I would be praying for him until a year from Spring.

Jonah was wearing brown cargo shorts and a black shirt and also had a silver cross around his neck. Wore black shoes, thin mustache and goatee also, good looking guy with a dark mop of hair. Looked about my height. He was sitting just outside the cafeteria on a ring of couches there, just in earshot of the interns at a table for Cru, next to the one for Intervarsity. He said he’d do a survey. I asked him what he would say to God as to why he should get into Heaven. “Hmm… ‘Cause I tried” he replied. I said a lot of people could not say that much. I asked what he thought the likelihood was he was going to Heaven and he said, “At the moment I have no idea. I’ve been working the last couple months repairing my relationship with Him. I don’t know.” I began to go through the Gospel with him. I asked what Jesus had done to take away his sins. He thought for a moment and said, “Crucified,” touching both his hands to his shoulders like a ref signally “Illegal Touch” in a football game, except his elbows were in more. He said some word of assent to several of the points as I went through the Gospel with him. When I finished I asked if he would want Christ to live inside him, having forgiven his sins. He said he would, so I asked if he had ever told God he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in Jesus. He said he hadn’t but he had felt it. So I said if he would want to be forgiven, telling God that, there was a prayer he could pray.  I talked him through it asking if it expressed the desire of his heart. “It does,” he replied. I said then he could pray it quietly. “I wouldn’t hear you but God would hear and you’d know you were forgiven. Wanna do it?” Yeah,” he replied and he prayed then to receive Jesus. I explained the Christian life to him living by the Spirit’s power. I also gave him Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave him a Bible study and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. He was happy and I told him to contact me with my email if there was anything he needed.

I first bumped into Skylar walking through the doors at the far end of the BIC on the north side second floor. She was opening a door for her and her girlfriend. I thought it was for me and slipped in, “Oh OK,” she said with a grin so I opened the next door for them both saying, “Beauty before age,” and they laughed and went in. Skylar was wearing camo-print high-waist pants, tight at the ankles and white shoes. She had tan and black long braids coming down from under a black watch cap, an over shirt with a black shrink top beneath with skeleton hands on it. She was a little bit plump, cute round face with classic African American lips and nose. I passed her a bit later sitting (waiting for her friend it seemed) by the account windows on a couch. I asked her if she’d want do a student survey for a Bible Study group on campus and she agreed. I asked her what she would say to God if asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “Oo… Oh, hmm…  that’s hard,” she said thinking.  “Well maybe because even after everything good and bad I tried my best. Even if I don’t get in I tried my absolute best.” She thought she had a 50/50 chance of getting into Heaven. As I went through the Gospel she was not sure what God had done to forgive her sins. But when I explained that her sin had to be cleansed so He could live inside her she said, “Wow.” I continued and she put in, “So that’s why He wants to forgive you?” I agreed it was. We owe God to return what we use in the world back to him perfect—how we got it. I explained then that God became a perfect man and poured out His blood to pay God back for all the imperfect things we had done that we owed God something perfect for. “The real reason God forgives you is He got paid. But He had to pay Himself,” I said and she smiled an amused smile at the way I put it. I explained the rest of the Gospel and asked her if she would want to be forgiven, trusting in what Jesus had done. Or was God on the outside of her life (showing her the circle with God on the outside of her life and self on the throne there). “I feel like I am this,” she said pointing to the circle with God on the outside of her life. “But I want to be this,” she said pointing to the circle with Jesus on the throne of her life inside her. So I said if she would want to be forgiven with God inside, there was a prayer she could pray. I talked her through it, asking if it was the desire of her heart. She nodded it was. So I said she could pray it silently. I would not hear her but God would hear and she’d know she was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” She said she did and asked, “Can I say it in my head?” “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” I said affirmingly. And she prayed to receive Jesus. When she finished, I said she was forgiven and said the likelihood now she would go to Heaven was 100%. I began to explain the Christian life to her “By the Spirit’s Power.” She and the girl I had opened the door for had just found a church they were checking out. She did not have a Bible, so I gave her one and showed her all the study helps. She loved it and I wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave her a promise book also, Strobel’s book and a Bible Study. We talked some more about life and stuff and I headed out.

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

In Him,

Bob

Third Watch Ministries, NFP                                                         Bob & Ellen Bollow

P. O. Box 1283                                                                                         May 21, 2024

Wheaton, IL 60187  

“I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth.”  1 Corinthians 3:6

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your summer has been blessed so far with good things from above. We had a good year on campus. Both semesters we had bible studies with different students and Ellen got to participate a bit. Everyone who came was a guy, so it mattered less that our most essential volunteer missed some studies. Ellen does all the behind-the-scenes things we have to do to be a NFP in the state of IL. Without her I might still have a ministry—you know out of a trailer park in Florida walking the beaches. I could possibly hope to be kind of a sunburned John the Baptist. The locust diet seems unappealing however, so I’m grateful. We had 145 students pray to receive Christ after hearing the Gospel from me on campus this year. Many more are a question mark for me, though I tell them the Gospel. They often seem to agree with it but are unresponsive in the moment. I had about 20 conversations like that this year. So to end the year, here’s a conversation with John that I had recently through social media. It encouraged me that God was at work in people I prayed for but did not know much more of, in terms of their life in Christ. I have known John over 10 years through his attendance at the college, but had not seen him in a few years.

John:  Dear Bob, I don’t want to force myself into making this a long-winded thing, but I recently saw a bunch of testimonials about people who had communication with God and give themselves to Christ. Many had near death experiences and saw some of the afterlife. Some visit heaven, some visit hell, some see demons, etc. This prompted me to make a ton of changes over the last month or so. I’m more aware now than I ever have been that it’s my duty to establish a fellowship with Christ. I just wanted to mention that some of the conversations we had a few years back at COD had stuck with me throughout the years. I don’t know how big or small it was to you, but your friendship always had a gentle impact on my life that I believe is at least partially responsible in orienting me towards this. You are a true friend and your kindness was a huge gift. God bless you and El.

Bob:  Thanks a lot John. I prayed for you for several years when I was seeing you regularly off and on and asked God to bless you and lead you to Himself. I’m so glad our conversations and friendship was a good thing. I’m grateful you’re getting closer to the Lord. I believe the Bible teaches if you believe Jesus is God, died for your sins and rose from the dead, you are a child of the God. Then trusting in Jesus’ work, to earn God’s righteousness for you, and His blood to cleanse you; this means God enters you and seals you with His Holy Spirit [Ephesians 1:13]. You are saved by faith and this is God’s gift. [Ephesians 2:8&9]. So you do have an obligation to draw near to God because you owe Him for creating you. He’ll save you if you tell Him you trust in Jesus and His work on the Cross by faith. And forgive all your sins. But also He will give you all the strength you need to live to please Him by the Spirit that dwells in you. Thanks so much for touching base. I’ll be praying you continue to “bear fruit.” God bless you man. I am at [gave him my cell] if you ever need pray for anything or conversation. Peace be upon you Brother.

John:  Thanks again for the kind words. I’m working on changing how I pray to better communicate with God and get some things off my chest. In the past I feel like I mostly just prayed for protection (good health, happy family, healthy dogs, etc). I’m sure God hears me well enough, but I’m trying to reflect more on the how I can better serve God. It’s been an experience trying to restructure my thinking in that way. I’m trying to reflect on my sin to experience the significance of the sacrifice. I don’t want my prayers to sound like a list of requests anymore and I think that starts by working harder to reflect on things in the bigger picture. It’s been a journey but I’m reading my Bible and doing my best to understand how my life works into everything. Like I said, I’m thankful that you were there as a friend to help “water the seed” in the way that you did. I don’t know where I would be now if you hadn’t said something like: the only thing that gives me a shot at getting into heaven is Jesus’ sacrifice. If I hadn’t heard that I would have probably continued to think that my “good deeds” would have outweighed my laundry list of sins. At the very least, I’m happy to have eventually caught on and corrected that thinking. I don’t want to warp Gods gift into something that fits into my life. Anyway, I hope things are going well. I don’t know how often you hear this kind of thing from friends, but I appreciate everything. I’ll give you a call if I need it, and if not- I might just give you a call to catch up sometime. Thanks again Bob.

Bob:  Yeah call anytime. I still walk around school and talk to students about Jesus. Many trust in Jesus right as I am talking to them and I will pray for them for at least a year. I hear something once in a great while from someone I talked to at school a bit after but running into people is pretty random. I think God has to work in people or there would be no understanding. I truly appreciate your kindness to let me know that God used what I said. It’s a blessing to me. You’re welcome..

Here are the names of the students who are new believers during the 2023-24 school year. Please pray for God to bring growth in their lives. (*means they said they would pray later)

Alijah, Jordan, Ken, Kolton, Will, Alex, Kiya, Marshall, Ashlyn, Tony, Mitch, Toni, Maia, Nick, Gabby, Brandon, Jameson, Christ, Kate, Trevont, Ian, Kyra, Davon, Vincent, Ian, Andy, Ray, Shauna, Oscar, Chris, Ella, Ryssa, Tim, Kayla, Kendall, Janayah, Juan, Mia, Abrianna, Ayleen, Daniel, Braedon, Tessa, I’sis*, Marnita, Sno, Matt, Kathline, Brenda*, Brandon, Rebeca, Bao, Diego, James, Neeha, Justin, KB, Mariah, Ben, Simona, Joseph, Darion, Michael, Jimmy, Leo, Clare*, Cristina, Maritza, Pablo, Gabriel, Alissa, Christopher, Kadin, Emerson, Lexi, Caliah, Yami, Kailey, Alex, Jonathon, DiLo, Joseph, Rosa, Fernanda, Oliver, Joe, Atiba, Christian, Zach, Isaiah, Thania, Israel, Mariana, LeDonte, Lucas, Rulan, Pearla, Griffin, Irlanda, Jarely, C.J., Gabe* Alex, Gia, Cristina, Janiyah, Myles, Fabian*, Simone, Calvin, Tilicia, Gabi, Zach, Sebastian, Lilly, Nicole, Matias, Quelle, Gabe, D’Riyah, Jomaine, Jack, V, Jacob, Anthony, Floyd, Jack, Quin, Jake, Samantha, Carlos, Anna, Olivia, Peter, Liam, Eva, Abby, Jason, Maggie, Angel, Mallory, Nick, Patrick, Sara, Haetham, Chris, Jalen, Jay, Derrick, Steph

We are grateful for another school year where God blessed the work, and your prayers & support provided the opportunity.

In Him,

Bob & Ellen

bob.thirdwatch@sbcglobal.net

www.thethirdwatch.org

I had a good day on campus and Stephanie prayed to receive Jesus.  Daria was a Russian Ukrainian who was only here for a couple years. A pretty girl with rounded features and long brown hair. She thought of herself as a Christian. I asked her if when she prayed for forgiveness if she thought she would be forgiven because Jesus died for her or just because God was merciful. She said she’d never really thought about it. So I hope she will pray later. Please pray these students are drawn closer to God by faith. Stephanie’s story is below if you have time. Thank you for your prayers.

I had talked to Stephanie earlier in the semester on February 29^th. She’s a cute round-headed little Latina girl with long naturally curly hair. She had hoped she would be good enough to go to Heaven when we first talked. Then, in February, she said she would pray later.  I had bumped into her one other time and she had said planned to pray. Today I asked if she had and she seemed to have forgotten, and she had not finished reading through the booklet. So I explained trusting in Christ again and I showed her the prayer asking if it seemed to be the desire of her hear. She said it was, we were in the cafeteria. So I said, “Well I could leave you alone and you could pray the prayer privately and I could come back and ask you how it went?” She was grateful and said she would so I left her. Another guy Michael, who had trusted Christ this year, talked to me a bit at the far end of the cafeteria and when I returned she had prayed. So I gave her Bible Promises for You writing her name (she said to write Steph) and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. “Oh thank you,” she said as I gave the book to her. I said I would pray for her each day a Bible verse and ask God to bless her. She thanked me again and I said, “God bless you.” “God bless you too,” she replied. And I headed off.

I found some other students I had spoken with who were glad to see me. Max from Last school year was doing well though he had had sudden pneumonia a while back that had put him in the hospital for a week. He said he was fine now. I gave him a copy of Bible Promises for You as last year I when I had talked to him I had not given him a book. He was grateful too. There were no many at school today. Tomorrow is the last day of classes so I’ll try casting the net out again then.

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

In Him,

Bob

I had a good day on campus and Stephanie prayed to receive Jesus.  Daria was a Russian Ukrainian who was only here for a couple years. A pretty girl with rounded features and long brown hair. She thought of herself as a Christian. I asked her if when she prayed for forgiveness if she thought she would be forgiven because Jesus died for her or just because God was merciful. She said she’d never really thought about it. So I hope she will pray later. Please pray these students are drawn closer to God by faith. Stephanie’s story is below if you have time. Thank you for your prayers.

I had talked to Stephanie earlier in the semester on February 29^th. She’s a cute round-headed little Latina girl with long naturally curly hair. She had hoped she would be good enough to go to Heaven when we first talked. Then, in February, she said she would pray later.  I had bumped into her one other time and she had said planned to pray. Today I asked if she had and she seemed to have forgotten, and she had not finished reading through the booklet. So I explained trusting in Christ again and I showed her the prayer asking if it seemed to be the desire of her hear. She said it was, we were in the cafeteria. So I said, “Well I could leave you alone and you could pray the prayer privately and I could come back and ask you how it went?” She was grateful and said she would so I left her. Another guy Michael, who had trusted Christ this year, talked to me a bit at the far end of the cafeteria and when I returned she had prayed. So I gave her Bible Promises for You writing her name (she said to write Steph) and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. “Oh thank you,” she said as I gave the book to her. I said I would pray for her each day a Bible verse and ask God to bless her. She thanked me again and I said, “God bless you.” “God bless you too,” she replied. And I headed off.

I found some other students I had spoken with who were glad to see me. Max from Last school year was doing well though he had had sudden pneumonia a while back that had put him in the hospital for a week. He said he was fine now. I gave him a copy of Bible Promises for You as last year I when I had talked to him I had not given him a book. He was grateful too. There were no many at school today. Tomorrow is the last day of classes so I’ll try casting the net out again then.

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 ya had a great day walking in His light and truth. I had a good day on campus and Jalen and Jay each prayed with me to receive Christ. I also bumped into Derrick who had told me on April 3^rd he would pray later. It turned out he had prayed to receive Christ. Their stories are below if you have some time. Please pray they grow in their faith.

I parked in a spot that was almost straight across a circle seating area with pavers and walls next to the waterfall they have not turned on yet sadly. It’s in front of the doors near the cafeteria. So instead of going inside the nearest door I decided to walk through the warm sunshine to the cafeteria foyer doors. An African American guy, Jalen was on my way sitting on the half wall facing the half circle drive for buses. He was slightly built and had a brown stretch cap tight around his head made out of vinyl or leather, I couldn’t tell. He had on a grey pull over hoodie with frayed sleeve ends and the grey sweats he had on matched it and had pockets. He said he’d been named for Jalen Rose the basketball player out of Michigan. He had kind of a pointed chin and oval face, from my angle sitting beside him and a smaller nose, perfect skin, slight mustache, good looking guy. I asked him what he would say to God if he died and was asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “I shouldn’t be let into Heaven right now,” he replied. I would usually ask if there was a “but” in there, after. But he was frank and said, “I might as well be honest.” I agreed. He said that he came from a “religious household” and his Grand Father who had just recently died was a pastor. This, as if to tell me his bona fides and the validity of his personal assessment. I asked him what the likelihood was he would go to Heaven if God might be merciful. “50% chance,” he replied. I said the rest of the survey was about what he thought about Christianity and I thought he would like it. I began to explain that God loved him and wanted to be one and live inside him but to do that He had to take away his sins and make him “His type” like a blood transfusion. I asked what Jesus had done to take away his sins. “He died on the cross,” he replied. I agreed and began to explain what that would mean, that he was cleansed from sin by the blood of Christ and so God could then live inside him. This was how God got paid, by the perfect blood of Christ—worth an infinite amount—so it was fair to forgive him. Then Jesus earned the righteousness of God to his credit. So he would not go to Heaven because he was good but because Jesus was good and he was connected to Him. God wanted to adopt him and make him his child and give him the blessings of His family, (giving him) the sacrifice for his sins, the blood that cleansed him and the righteousness of God that surrounded him. “So you got some place to go, Heaven and something to wear when ya get there, the righteousness of God,” I said. I told him that he needed to receive Christ by faith. So I asked if he would want to be forgiven for his sins or thought something else. “I’d want to be forgiven,” he replied. So I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and I talked him through it, and he took it in reading it as I did. I asked if it expressed the desire of his heart. He said, “Yeah.” I said he could pray it silently right now. I wouldn’t hear him but God would hear and he’d know he was forgiven. “OK I’ll do it.” He replied. He took the booklet and said, “Say this out loud?” he asked. “No just inside.” “In my heart” he said as I said, “God hears your heart.” He prayed then to receive Christ. I said now trusting in the righteousness of God to be his righteousness the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100%. I said again how Jesus’ blood and righteousness was worth an infinite amount and would be enough for us both. I have him Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I also gave him a Bible Study and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. “Thank you,” he said and shook my hand. I told him Ephesians 1:13 says as soon as you believe God seals you with the Holy Spirit. And there is nothing you can do that is greater than the blood of Christ to forgive you. “Thank you,” he said looking me in the eye. “Thank you, appreciate you,” he said again. I said “thanks” and he was welcome and I headed inside grateful I had met him.

I found Derrick on the 3^rd floor, I actually went there hoping to find him again before the semester ended and he was sitting at the same table. He said he’d prayed and the prayer in the booklet and had read The Case for Easter, which I gave him. He is a black guy with a beard and rough top afro, today he was wearing a ball cap. He’s a really friendly guy who had hoped he go to Heaven for being a “pretty good person”. I gave him a copy of Bible Promises for You and wrote his name and the year and “forgiven!” in the front, which he liked. I gave him a Bible study and since he was a reader I gave him a copy of The Student Edition of The Case for Christ. He was happy to get a book. So I fist bumped him and was on my way saying that I had been praying for him but I would put him on a list and pray a Bible verse for him each day for the next year.

Jay was sitting in the second-floor hallway of the BIC. She had a black mask on but it was pulled down under her chin. She had a cute, warm, friendly face, was a bit heavy set. Her hair was in ringlets to her shoulders and she had fair skin for a black girl. She had on black pants and black rectangular framed glasses and a black t-shirt with “Tupac” (a rapper dead in 1996 in a drive by shooting) written on it in colorful letters. I asked her what she would say to God to get into Heaven. “That’s a really… wow. I don’t know what I would say,” she replied. So I asked what do you think you have to do to get into Heaven. “I was always told if you do more good than bad you’ll get into Heaven,” she replied. She thought she had a 50% chance of getting into Heaven. I asked her if she ever went to church, “Like when you were a kid?” I added. She said, “I wear a cross for protection.” She had gone to church when she was little but her mom had given each of them a cross to wear (there was one around her neck and she showed me a beaded bracelet that had a cross as well). Her mom had said the cross would protect her though they were not going to church, or when they were not there. I began to go through the Gospel with her asking her what Jesus had done to take away her sins. “He died,” she replied. I explained the sacrifice of Christ then to cleanse her by his blood and pay God back for all the imperfect things we had done that we owed God something perfect for. I explained the righteousness of Christ, adoption and becoming a child of God by receiving Jesus by faith. I asked if she would like to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done on the cross then He could live inside her with His Holy Spirit by faith or did she “think something else?” “Be forgiven,” she replied. I talked through the prayer and asked if it was the “desire of your heart?” “Yeah…” she said with kind of a musical lilt in her voice. So I said she could pray it silently right now and know she was forgiven. “Sure,” she said shyly and she took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. She did not have a Bible so I gave her one and showed her all the study helps in it. It has many of the prophecies He fulfilled His miracles and parables and a 30-day reading schedule. I wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I told her the likelihood she would now go to Heaven was 100% trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus. I told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day from now until this time next year. I also gave her Bible Promises for You and a Bible study. “I’ll see you in Heaven,” I said, getting up to go. “Thank you,” she said. 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 you had a life filled with joy and peace today. I had a good day on campus and Haetham and Chris each prayed with me to receive Jesus. Please pray they grow in their faith. Their stories are below if you have time. Thanks for your prayers.

I felt a prompting to walk towards the PE building when I first arrived. Haetham was sitting alone in the same lounge that Patrick was in yesterday on the north side ground floor of the BIC. The lounge has some vending machines and some tables with folding dividers that have some history about the school on them. It turned out Haetham was from Iraq. He was wearing a Cubs hat and a down vest over a white short-sleeved t-shirt. He had hazel / green eyes and an oval face with a square chin. He described himself as a former Muslim who now was a Christian.  I had talked with another guy who described himself that way this year, Angel, who prayed with me to receive Christ. So I asked Haetham if I could just ask him a quick question. I wanted to make sure he understood the faith.  I asked if he died what he would say to God to get into Heaven. I didn’t have the chance to write his exact response in the moment but He said something like; “I had not always been living in a way where my life directed or flowed with God.  My life has been up and down in that way but I am moving in the right direction.” He had not mentioned Jesus died for him. This sounded to me like he might be believing in Christianity in general but more as a framework than saving faith. So I said, “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, to live inside you with the Holy Spirit. Then you would be one with God and He is eternal and the source of life so you would have eternal life.” He seemed to track with that so I quickly showed him some verses and I said, “The problem is that you have sin in your life. God can’t be one with sin but he wants to live inside you 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 is the big thing Jesus does that takes away your sin?” “He purifies you?” he ventured in what sounded like a guess and was really just repeating what I said. So I explained the atonement to Him, Christ’s blood cleansed him and was a payment to God and the righteousness of God Christ earned and was to our credit. He would not go to Heaven because he was good but because Jesus was good and he was connected to Him. I said that he was saved by faith and not by works. I asked if he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in what Jesus had done or thought something else. He wanted to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done. He decided to pray to receive Jesus trusting in Him alone. He was pressed for time working on a paper for a religion class. I explained the Christian life living Inside -> Out by the Spirit’s power. So I said I would pray for him the next year. I gave him Bible Promises for You and wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front and I gave him a Bible study on the deity of Christ. I also gave him The Case for Christianity Answer Book that has nearly 60 answers to apologetic questions in it. It seemed he had trusted in Christ for his salvation for the first time. I will pray for him and hope he grows in faith. He said when he was a boy he had met a friend of mine Hesham who is a local pastor and used to translate for a Bible study his parents went to (at a different Church than my friend pastors now) years ago. The conversation was faster than I would have liked.  I gave him a quick hug as I left him. “I appreciate you. Thank you for taking this time,” he said, as I left him. I thanked him for his time and headed off. I felt the Spirit moving as I spoke with him, which was great, he needed the Gospel clearly explained. He asked that I pray for him concerning the parable of the Sower in Luke. He felt like there were many seeds sown and he wanted to respond to those sown in him by God.

I spent an hour with one of the guys from the Bible Study who was trying to figure out an application online. After that it was a bit late but I went into the cafeteria and saw a couple I had not remembered seeing before. They were sitting at the counter looking outside. Chris looked Latino but his girlfriend (though a Latina) had dyed her long stick straight hair blonde. He was wearing sweats with some branding on the front and patterning on the legs that looked like mock animal skin. He had a black t-shirt on and a pencil thick mustache above his lip. His beard was only a patch beneath his chin. He had a diamond shaped face. His hair was cut in a fade over his ears and the top of his head a mop of hair like a bowl and was slight. He was willing to do a survey but his girlfriend wasn’t and was on her phone. She was not listening. Finally saying something to him about where she was going she left towards the end of the conversation leaving us alone. I asked him what he would say to God if a bus killed him and he was asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” He thought for a second and said, “I was like, following the word of God, not doing crazy stuff,” he replied. He thought he had an 85% chance of going to Heaven. He said he had wanted to get a Bible and read it more. I began to go through the Gospel with him. After explaining God wanted to live inside him but had to take away his sins to do so I asked “What’s the big thing Jesus does to take away your sins?” “He died on the cross,” he replied. So I explained how the sacrifice of Christ cleansed him and was a payment to God. I told him Jesus had earned the righteousness of God and he would go to Heaven if He was connected to Him by faith and the Holy Spirit would live inside him. I asked if he would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done and God could live inside him or thought something else. “Be forgiven,” he replied. So I said there was a prayer he could pray if he wanted to be forgiven and talked him through it. I said he could pray it right now silently; I wouldn’t hear him but God would and he’d know he was forgiven. “Ok,” he said, “Can I keep this?” he asked. I said “Yeah,” then realizing what I’d asked he said, “Pray it right now? OK,” and he prayed to receive Jesus.  “What is the difference between the Old and the New Testament?” He asked when he finished. I said the Old Testament was the story of a people with prophets and kings that God held together, so that when Jesus the Messiah came he could fulfill the prophecies and you’d know it was him. The New Testament was the story of Jesus and His Kingdom. I began to explain the Christian life to Him living “Inside -> Out” by the Spirit’s Power to transform him. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in a Bible and showed him some things to help him study.  He asked where he should start reading. I put a marker in John and explained that there were reading programs on line at Bible Gateway and they would send him a notice each day reminding him to read and he could read through the New Testament in a Year. He thought he’d like to do that. I gave him Bible Promises for You and The Case for Christ Answer Book and he thought he had remembered the movie. I also gave him a Bible Study on the ways Jesus claims to be God for the Old Testament into the New, which actually fit his question on the difference well. He thanked me for the Bible saying, “I needed one.” And then said about the discussion “Thank you, thank you, thank you.” I said he was welcome and I would keep him in my prayers for the next year praying a Bible verse for him each day. He was a solid guy. I thanked him for talking with me and I headed off.

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

In him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your day has been bless so far with grace and power for the dark times we seem to be entering. But God is still at work in the world. Patrick and Sara each prayed to receive Jesus today after I told them Gospel. Please pray they grow in the faith. Thanks for your prayers. Their stories are below if you have time.

Patrick was sitting in a lounge on the ground floor of the south side of the BIC. It has some sky lights leading into it.  There’s vending machines and folding screens (with Photos and text about the history of the school) dividing the room from a few tables. Patrick had sandy straight hair parted down the middle and a square chin, narrow face. He was not a big guy and wore a white t-shirt and black shorts. He wasn’t interested in a Bible study group but said he’d do a survey. He said he wanted to travel to Bora Bora, (seems like a beautiful place to do beach ministry but hey). I asked him what he would say to God if he died and He asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “I have done some bad things but I feel like I helped a lot of people. I’ve helped friends and family and people on the side of the road, if I see someone in need I will help them to the best of my ability,” he replied. He thought he had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven. He listened closely to the Gospel and when I asked what Jesus had done to take away his sins he knew Jesus had died. He said he went to church pretty regularly. I explained that the blood of Jesus cleansed him. Because He was God is blood was worth an infinite amount and paid God back for all the imperfect things we’ve done we owe God something perfect for, since we have damaged His stuff. I told him of the righteousness of God earned by Christ that was to his credit when God adopted him and he was given the rights of a child of God, by faith. I asked if he wanted to be forgiven for his sins or thought something else he said, “The first option.” So I said there was a prayer he could pray and read it through for him asking if it expressed the desire of his heart. “Yeah,” he replied. I said he could pray it silently and he said, “Um, sure, why not.” And he took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I gave him the booklet then and explained living “Inside -> Out” by the Spirit’s power. He had his parents Bible and liked to read it because it was in Polish and helped him keep up on the language. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside of Bible Promises for You and told him I’d pray a Bible verse for him to be blessed until this time next year. I explained the Christian life living “Inside -> Out” by the Spirit’s power.  I told him that now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus and His blood the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100%. I got up and said, “God bless you.” “God bless you too. Have a good one,” he replied and I headed off.

Sara was sitting in the SE corner lounge of the second floor of the BIC. There are 2 long tables squeezed in there. She sat alone at a table. She is a pretty Latina and had large rectangle framed black glasses, long flowing brown hair parted down the middle. She wore a white lacy blouse and jeans. Her face looked tanned and she wore braces on her teeth. She was a nice kid. I asked her one thing she’d like to do before she died and she said, “Ask for forgiveness.” I asked what she would say to God if she died and was asked why He should let her into Heaven. “That’s a good question,” she replied. Sher then smiled when I wrote that as if it would be funny if the first thing she told God was that He had asked her a good question. “I feel like I’d say, I’ve already paid for my sins. And I’s ask for forgiveness so…” She thought she had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven and said she did not go to church any more. She listened carefully to the Gospel looking me in the eye and reading along with the verses as I sat beside her at the table. She knew when I asked her what Jesus had done to take away our sins that He had died. She listened to the gospel agreeing with it with assenting words or nodding. I explained the righteousness of God, Christ’s blood to cleanse her. She would not go to Heaven because she was good but because Jesus was and she was connected to Him. God wished to adopt her and give her all the blessings of His family. The sacrifice for her sins, the blood that cleansed her and the righteousness of God that surrounded her. “So you got some place to go, Heaven and something to wear when you get there the righteousness of God,” I said.  I asked if she would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done so the Holy Spirit could live inside her and give her strength or thought something else. Then repeated, “So would you like to be forgiven?” She said she would, nodding. 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. “Yes,” she replied and I said she could pray it silently, “Wanna do it?” “Sure,” she replied. And then she prayed aloud to receive Jesus. She had a Bible. I explained the Christian life living “Inside -> Out” by the Spirit’s power. And I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and forgiven in the front. I also gave her The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. She said she saw the movie and thought it was good.  I told her now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus and His blood the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100% and though I had sinned more than her being old there was enough righteousness of infinite value and as was His blood to cover us both. “Amen to that,” she replied. I said I would pray a Bible verse for her each day until this time next year. I gave her a Bible study to do on her own and explained it. She reached out and shook my hand and said “It was nice to meet you Bob. God bless you.” “God bless you too,” I said and I headed out.

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

In Him,

Bob