Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed still reveling in the good things now ours in the resurrection of Christ. I had a good day on campus and Brandon and Nico trusted in Christ praying to receive Him and Nathan (who looked Latino with a chin beard and student glasses, professional conservative business like hair) cut took The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet and said he wanted to think it through for himself. He hadn’t been to church as much since his parent divorced. So it was a good day, thanks for your prayers, I taught the Bible study with Ellen and a couple girls came too. The guy’s stories are below if you want to spend the time, I’d be grateful if you could say a prayer for them to grow.

Brandon was sitting against the counter in the cafeteria and quickly put on a mask. But he looked Filipino. He had a receding hairline that made a sharp V to one side as his stick straight dark hair that fell forward into bangs. He wore the student glasses, dark plastic across the top. He had on black and white large square print pajama pants and a gray sweatshirt. He said he went to a Christian Church “with the big TV screens in front” but could not remember the name. When I asked him what he would say to God if asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” he said, “ ’Cause my father’s there, my family is there.” He thought he had an 80% chance of going to Heaven. He did not seem to have a clear picture of the Gospel at all but as I went through it he was engaged and took it all in when I asked him if he would want to be forgiven for his sins or thought something else he simply said, “I would want to be forgiven.” So I said if he would want to be forgiven there is a prayer he could pray and I walked him through it asking him if it was the desire of his heart. “Yeah,” he replied so I told him he could pray it silently and God would hear and he said “OK.” So I said, “Just pretend I’m not here.” I was standing at the counter where he was sitting in the Cafeteria facing outside so I just stepped sideways a stride and wrote down what he was wearing as he prayed trying to give him some space. When he finished I said there was more about faith in the booklet he could read later and explained to him the Christian life living “Inside Out” asking for the transformation of the Holy Spirit. He didn’t have a Bible so I gave him one showing him the “Where to Turn” section in the back and the “Messianic Passages “ section. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I also gave him The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet because he said he liked to read and a Bible study on the Deity of Christ. “I appreciate it Bob,” He said. I explained that now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus to be his righteousness the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100%. I told him I would be praying for him for the next year. I made to go and Brandon said, “Nice seeing you, it was nice to meet you.“  “Nice to meet you too,” I replied and I headed off. I looped around the halls a bit not finding anyone and then waited for the Bibles study to begin back in the Cafeteria.

After the Bible study I came across Nico sitting in one of the sofa chairs against the wall in the big lounge on campus where we’d had Bible study in past years. He was wearing a mostly off-white flannel plaid shirt with a grey hood he had pulled up over a winter cap with a “Carhartt” label on the front and jeans with white trainers. He had a good-looking boyish face and braces on his teeth. He looked a bit like Eminem’s. He was not very large in stature. He went to a Catholic Church on the holidays. “Like Christmas.” When I asked him what he would say to God if asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” he said, “I don’t know I tried to do all the right things, go to college and stuff, get good grades.” He thought the likelihood he would get into Heaven was 50/50. I began to go through the Gospel with him and he did not have a sure idea of how Jesus had taken away his sins. So I explained the blood of Christ and how he earned the Righteousness of God and that we did not have anything perfect we could offer God to pay him for the things we had done. I asked him if he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in Jesus or thought something else. “Be forgiven,” he replied. So I said there was a prayer he could pray to be forgiven and I walked him through it and asked if it was the desire of his heart and he said “Yeah.” So I said he could pray it right now, “I wouldn’t hear you but God would hear you and then you’d know you were forgiven.” “Right now?” he asked and I said, “Yeah now, just pretend I’m not even here.” “OK,” he replied. He took the booklet then and prayed to receive Jesus. When he finished I explained living the Christian life inside out and that the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100% trusting in the righteousness of Jesus. He asked was the difference was between what I had explained and Catholicism and I explained at its base, all Christian Churches believe Jesus dies for your sins and that is the mass. ‘The wine,” I began. “Is the blood,” he finished. I agreed and said the bread was Christ’s body broken for him on the cross. It commemorates Jesus has died for your sins and so you can be forgiven, though the way the symbolism works differs. The Catholic church says only God can forgive your sin but the priest stands in place of God and at times they suggest that you have to contribute to being forgiven. You do have to do what you can to demonstrate you actually believe by asking God for His power to help you live the Christen life. The problem is you do not have anything perfect to offer to God. “Because He is perfect,” he put in. I agreed. And the problem with acting like you contribute to your salvation is that you could fall to pride, thinking you were better than someone else. The Bible says it is by faith God forgives you. I gave him the book Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside and he said, “Sweet.” I also gave him a Bible study on the deity of Christ.  I asked if he had any more questions. “No,” he said and then, “really cool.” I told him I would pray one of the lines from the prayers of Paul for him each day for the next year asking God to bless him as I was not sure if I’d see him again. “See ya in Heaven,” I said getting up to go. “For real,” he replied enthusiastically 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