Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Well, I hope you had a blessed day hanging in the Spirit and it brought you some joy. I had an excellent day being led around by the Spirit on campus and two Black students, JT and Kirk, prayed to receive Christ in the P.E. building.
The first guy I talked to David (white guy with a scruffy 2-week growth of beard, kind of happy go lucky looking dude) did not come to Christ. He was raised a Lutheran but his parents left everything open ended for him, so he was not sure what to believe. But I gave a copy of The Case for Easter and he was excited to get it, saying, “I’ll definitely read this!” So that was great. I had most of the stuff I carry emptied out of the satchel I walk around with, since I am not supposed to lift anything yet after my Hernia surgery a week ago. The Case for Easter is a small book.
Then I talked with JT who goes to Life Changers Church a couple towns north of here. It used to be on the radio as an’ ask the pastor show’. I heard it a few years back and the pastor seemed like a kind person. JT is a pretty big guy, plays defense for the football team, shaggy beard, shorter hair under a ball cap, good looking face. He had heard the Gospel in some form and believed God had a plan for his life. When I asked him why he should go to Heaven he said, “Because I believe in God’s plan and I always have.” So after I had gone through some bible verses and explained things I asked him, “When you pray for God to forgive you, are you thinking you are basically a good person and haven’t done anything horribly wrong? You go to church and God is a good God so he would forgive you, or are you trusting in what Jesus has done for you on the Cross and knowing that is why you would be forgiven?” He replied, “Now that you mention it, it’s the first one you said, I have thought about it before but…” and he basically went on to say he’d figured he was good enough. I explained he hadn’t received Christ then. So I read through a prayer with him and asked him if he would like to pray to be forgiven based on what Jesus had done for him and he said he would. We were sitting a bit away from everyone else and the lounge is pretty big so he prayed audibly to receive Christ so that was great. I explained to him the Holy Spirit’s work in living the Christian life. He was really thankful, shaking my hand. He was really into the NBA and so I gave him a copy of Playing with Purpose with the testimonies of some NBA players in it. It was the heaviest book I brought, too, so I was glad to give it away right away. He took a Bible study and gave me his e-mail and thanked me again and I told him I would be praying for him.
I was still in the same lounge and I looped around the staircase and saw Kirk. He was sitting on a bench under it (it’s a big staircase). JT was out of earshot with his back to us so I asked him if he’d answer some questions about God and he was up for it. Kirk was a bit smaller than JT, bit of a chin beard and mustache, shorter hair, good looking kid, athletic. He said he went to church way down on 103rd in Chicago. He was trusting in his moral goodness to save him as well, saying he would get into Heaven because, “I’ve done everything right my whole life, never done everything too bad.” But after I had gone through the Gospel with him I asked him if he was trusting in his goodness or the work of Christ for him in similar words to what I had spoke to JT. He replied something like, “When you put it that way I’ve been thinking I was good.” I reminded him of what he had said earlier, saying that matched and then said if he wanted to he could pray to be forgiven, walking him through the prayer. He was really interested to do so and did. I got his e-mail to send him stuff too and gave him The Case for Easter to read. He was appreciative too and I headed out.
I spent most of the rest of the time talking to peeps I had already gone through the Gospel with before and with a girl Lucia who had come to Christ last year. I often see her, and try to encourage her. telling her I am still praying for her. She wants to be a math teacher.
So I had a good day back. Thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism today if you had a chance. God blessed in my weakened post-surgical state..
In Him,
Bob Bollow
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