Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed today with the comfort and love of the Lord. I had a good day on campus and Kayla & Kendall prayed to receive Jesus today. Their stories are below if you have some time you want to spend. Thanks so much for your help in prayer, please pray they are Blessed. I got a good seed planted with a girl named Ben, thin sitting on the edge of the SSC lounge, who wore her hair in a pixy cut and had pretty freckles in all the right places. Taking the booklet, she seemed to be saying she thought she would pray later. I also bumped into AJ again who had been on the fence about faith. He said he was now looking into it more and thanked me for giving him the books I’d given and explaining everything and getting him started. He had not prayed to receive Christ yet but was closer he said.

Kayla was a black girl sitting in the balcony that overlooks the stairways and main entrance to the SRC across the foyer, just upstairs from the bookstore. She had long braids to her elbows and a cute near circular face, wore black glasses. She had a black t-shirt on with what might have been a skull on it in white and pale greenish cargo pants. I asked her what she might say to God if asked why He should let her into Heaven. She said, “I never thought about that question.” Then thinking a bit she said, “I think everyone should have a chance, a chance for forgiveness.” At first she thought she had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven saying, “You never know what the future holds… change that to 75%.” She’d gone to a church in the city regularly but nothing had clicked with the style of church she was used to out here in the suburbs. I told her that God would have to take away her sin to live inside her. And I asked, “What’s the big thing that Jesus does to take away the sins of the world?” “Oh, I don’t know,” she replied. “It’s been a while since I had religious education.” As I went through the Gospel it seemed pretty novel to her but after I had explained the Blood of Christ cleansing her of her sins and being a payment and the righteousness of Christ I asked if she would want to be forgiven trusting in Jesus or thought something else. “Be forgiven for my sins,” she replied. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and talked her through it. I asked, “It says here: Is this prayer the desire of your heart? so do you think it is?” She nodded in reply. Then I said she could pray it silently in her heart and she would know she was forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done. “Wanna do it?” I asked.  “Yeah,” she said. Then taking the booklet asked “Out loud?” “No just between you and God,” I replied. And she prayed to receive Jesus. I explained the Christian life then and she had a Bible and I explained living Inside > Out by the Spirit’s power. She thanked me then and I gave her a Bible study explaining it and Bible Promises for You writing her name and the date and “forgiven! In the front and I gave her Strobel’s The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I told her I would pray for her each day through spring and one year after and I got up to go. She thanked me again. I said “Sure,” and headed off. She was really a nice person.

Kendall was sitting on the floor with her back against the glass wall of a classroom up against the PE lounge. It’s just filled with computers and screens. I’ve never actually seen a class in there but students go in there and use the computers. Kendall has a cute face, glasses and ringlets of light brown curls that were not to her chin. She wore a royal blue t-shirt and some blue sweats. I had passed her in the hall before. Her hands had what looked to be birth-defects at her wrists. These were permanently bent in sharp angles forcing her hands back toward her body. She did not seem to have complete function of her fingers but she could pinch things in her thumb and index finger. I asked her one thing she would like to do before she died and she said be an actor. She thought people in movies that acted out the parts of disabled people couldn’t really know what it felt like to be disabled and she could bring her experience to it. I asked what she would say to God if He asked why He should let her into Heaven and she said, “Ah… that you made all our time lines, I think it’s my time to come in.” She said she went to a nondenominational church in Bloomingdale. She said she did the kids clubs and helped with Children’s church. I asked her the likelihood she would go to Heaven and she said, “I think I got a good shot.  I’ve done bad things but I pray and stuff like that.” I began to go through the Gospel with her and she had John 3:16 memorized saying it was one of her favorite verses. I asked her what Jesus had done to take away her sins (so He could live inside her by the Spirit and give her eternal life). “He died,” she replied. I said that was right and then explained that the blood of Jesus cleansed her so God could live inside her quoting 1John 1:7. “Alright,” she said as if discovering something. I said, “This is what happens Theologically but practically speaking God gets paid.” I used the idea that if she borrowed her friend’s car and dented the fender then she would have to take it to the body shop pay the deductible and then give it back to her friend perfect again. And I went on to say that God owned everything, her & me and the world. If I hurt her or the world or myself in some way I would owe God something perfect to pay Him back for damaging His stuff. But I am not perfect and I can’t pay. But God loves me so He becomes a perfect man and when he pours out His blood it is worth an infinite amount. His blood pays God back for all the imperfect stuff we have done that we owe God something perfect for. “So, the real reason God forgives you is that he got paid. But he had to pay Himself.” “Alright,” she said again in the same tone. I told her of the Righteousness of God to her credit. I finished explaining all that God had done to save her. I asked if she would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done so He could live inside her or if she thought something else. “I would rather be forgiven,” she said. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I talked her through it. I asked if it was the desire of her heart. “Yeah,” she replied and asking if she’d want to pray silently she said, “Um hum.” And she took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I explained the Christian life to her living Inside  > Out saying God would give her as much help as she needed to be successful so that it would not hurt her. I suggested God might not have made her an actor, though she had the talent, because Hollywood was dangerous and something bad might have happened to her there. She thought that made sense. She had a Bible. I gave her Bible Promises for You writing her name and the date and “forgiven!” In the front and I showed her Strobel’s The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. She really liked it so I asked if she would like the bigger book with more topics, The Case for Christianity Answer Book she decided she’d like the longer one so I wrote her name it and gave it to her. Her phone said her mom was there to pick her up so I said I would pray for her each day until spring and one year after. “Alright,” she said brightly. “Thank you,” she said getting up to go. “Sure, nice to meet you,” I said. “Nice to meet you too,” she said and she headed for the doors.

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

In Him,

Bob