Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ.

I hope your day was a blessed in walking with the Lord in His provision for you. I had a good day on campus and Kaleb & Gio each prayed with me to receive Jesus today. I also spent 40 minutes answering questions and talking through the Gospel with a pretty black girl Aliyah in the PE lounge wait for Basketball practice. She has a 2-year-old child (Eli) and was living with the father (Daniel) and unmarried. She had long curly hair pulled back a small nose and seemed mixed race in appearance. I gave her a Bible and The Case for Christianity Answer Book that has 60 questions Lee Strobel answers. So I’ll be praying she surrenders to Christ and turns from sin. I’d be grateful for your prayers for her and the guys today if you could pray they grow and in Aliyah’s case that she’d be saved. The guys’ stories are below if you have time and are interested.

Kaleb was sitting in one of the booths between the police desk and the patio with the waterfall (it’s off for some reason) on the second floor. He had his hood raised; the light brown hoodie had cream-colored paisley designs all over it. He had on nylon tan zip pocket cargo pants, over very long legs. He wore back-framed rectangle glasses. Had classic black features full lips and nose, a thin caterpillar mustache and a bit of under chin beard on a block chin, long square face. A couple thin strands of braided tight curls poked out of the hoodie beside his cheeks. He was a track athlete, in sprints and relays. He hoped to make a lot of money, “for myself and family, loved ones.” I asked him what he would say to God if he died and God asked “Why should I let you into Heaven.” “I know I have made bad choices and everything. I love you very much and you died on the cross for my sins. I’m not perfect. If I do die my family wants to see me go to Heaven.” He sounded like he had already trusted in Christ from this but he hadn’t. I asked him what the likelihood was he would go to Heaven and he said, 80%. I began to go through the Gospel with him reading John 17:3 that knowing God was eternal life and that this meant He lived inside you. The problem was our sin. God could not be in the same place as sin but wanted to live inside us so He just takes away our sin. “So how does Jesus take away your sin,” I asked adding, “What did he do?” “I don’t know,” he replied. I realized then that “Jesus died for my sins” was just something he had heard and hadn’t thought about. So I began to explain the Gospel to him. I was happy for the chance since I’d gone through the Gospel with two students that morning who did not answer the question right. Buy this I mean they did not say they would tell God, “Jesus died for me” as a means to get into Heaven. Yet when I finished the Gospel they were sure that was what they trusted in to be saved. Kaleb strangely was the reverse. So I explained the atoning sacrifice of Christ as a payment to God of the life in His blood and the righteousness Jesus earned that was to his credit. I explained salvation in receiving Jesus by faith. I asked finally, after a few word pictures and stories to explain, if he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in what Jesus had done. Then God would live inside him and give him strength. He nodded he did. I said, “Well, it seems like you had not put all this together before.” He nodded again. So I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray. I talked him through the prayer and read, “It says here; Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? He said, “Um hum.” 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?” He nodded. He prayed then to receive Jesus. I told him the likelihood he would now go to Heaven was 100% trusting in the blood and righteousness of Jesus. I explained the Christian life living “By the Spirit’s Power”, prayer and reading the Bible.  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 a Bible study. He thanked me and I told him I would keep him in my prayers until next Spring and one year after. He was grateful and I headed out to the patio.

I came across Gio in a north to south connecting hallway in the BIC. He was sitting on a bench and wearing black shorts and a white t-shirt. He was a good-looking Latino guy with hair like Elvis, a mustache and a chin beard. His face was a bit wider like a diamond in shape and flat, (a bit like Benjamin Bratt) he had a pointed nose.  I asked him one thing he wanted to do before he died and he said, “Provide for my kids, what I didn’t have.” “Don’t spoil them,” I quipped, “thanks for the Ferrari dad.” He laughed I wasn’t thinking of that.” “Maybe a swing set or something,” I replied. He had given another version of the “Have a family” response that seems to signal a guy will trust in Christ. I asked what he would say to God if he died and God asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “It’s up to His judgment,” he replied. “Some of the decisions I made in my life would be looked over as good and maybe appreciated.” He thought he had a 70-80% chance of going to Heaven when he died. He said he went to church with his family once every 2 or 3 weeks on Sunday. It turned out he had gone to a Catholic school for middle school. I began to go through the Gospel with him and when I asked him what Jesus had done to take away his sins he knew He had died on the cross. I began to explain the atonement to him and how “God got paid” by the blood of Christ and he said, “I see.” I explained the righteousness of God Christ earned and how he provided this like extra credit in a class you did not earn yourself. “Nice,” he said. I explained salvation by grace through faith. I showed him the 2 circles in the booklet asking if he would want to be forgiven trusting in the blood and righteousness of Christ to forgive him, then God would live inside him and give him strength. Or did he think something else? I then explained Islam and the Buddha in a couple sentences. I could tell he tracked with everything so I then added, asking if when he was praying for forgiveness for his sins if he was thinking that he was a pretty good person and so God would forgive him. Or was he was trusting in what Jesus had done and knew he’s be forgiven or hadn’t he every really put it together before? He said he hadn’t thought that way about it. So I asked well do you think you would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus has done. So I said there was a prayer he could pray and after I explained it he responded, “Exactly,” agreeing with the prayers content. “So would you want to pray it silently I wouldn’t hear you but God would and you’d know you were forgiven.” “Sure,” he replied. He then prayed to receive Jesus. He did not have a Bible but his grandmother had one. I asked if he wanted one and he did so I showed him the maps and study aids and how I had marked the book of John if he wanted to read. He seemed to really like it. I explained the Christina life living “By the Spirit’s Power” and prayer as well as reading the Bible. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven” in the front of the Bible and he thanked me. I gave him Bible Promises for You and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet.  I said I would pray a Bible verse for him each day asking God to bless him through Spring and one year after and got up to go. He was grateful and said, “Thanks I appreciate it.” I said, “You’re welcome,” and 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