Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
How’s the summer treating you so far? I used to feel like it wasn’t quite summer until the 4th of July. In childhood that was only a couple weeks after we finished school, as we usually started the year closer to September in my memory. But now by the 4th summer will be half over. I usually try to paint a little bit in the summer, but the truth is, I need a break from contact evangelism. I’m pretty worn out still.
God blessed us this past school year and I went through the Gospel with over 400 students, many who claimed to be Christians. 15 Muslims were among them and 10 believed themselves to be atheists. I saw 139 students pray with me to receive Jesus on campus and 3 more elsewhere. Several more committed to Christ, most saying they would pray later. Nearly all of them were attending or had (this year) attended Church, but I gave many a card for a local church’s website so they could listen to sermons. Students come from such varied backgrounds. It is hard to know if they would feel like they were in church in the more modern worship services. But they can hear a sermon, set apart from the worship portion, without feeling the alienation of the worship band. Since the Holy Spirit has led them to God in praying to receive Jesus, I know God will continue in their lives by my prayers for them each night. As Paul writes to people he no longer has direct contact with in Philippians 1:6: “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” We feel prayers like yours, that led them to the contact I had with them, are very important for this reason. I am comforted too in the knowledge that many pray for them that day, having gotten an email “Results of the Work”.
Did you ever miss a chance to do someone a favor? I had that happen last week, giving someone a ride. It seemed like it was gonna take longer than I thought and then they said forget it. I had stuff to do, but later I wondered if I could have done something to help things fall into place. I feel this way, or in a similar vein, sometimes concerning our lives and the message of the Gospel. Beginning an evangelistic conversation isn’t always natural or easy, and I’ve had brief conversations where the context just wasn’t there or it was just too awkward. Sometimes in a group where I am not the central speaker there isn’t an opening. I often tell Ellen, after some strained moments on campus I am later describing, “If you can’t do awkward, you can’t do contact evangelism.” I tell myself this on campus as well when I have just walked by someone and feel a need to double back and ask them to talk or do a student survey, or just see if they are OK.
Some friends gave us flyer miles to take a trip already this year, so we headed out to Yosemite National Park. I always take some books to leave in the drawers in the rooms where we stay in the parks and even booklets with the Gospel that I use as an outline on campus. I left them beside or inside the cover of the Bible often found in the nightstand drawer and left a DVD of the life of Jesus with a question and answer section in a cabin that still had a DVD player. We took a drive up Glacier Point Trail but I’d neglected to put one of the tracts I often use in the pocket of my shorts. We went on a hike to Sentinel Dome and Ellen stopped at the edge of the snow pack to rest in the sun as I climbed to the top. There I met Conner, a 20 something guy from Philly, who was seeing the country between jobs. He had religious tattoos from his hand up his arm. I talked to him about his trip and then asked about his ink. He pulled his sleeve up to show more of it to me. The gates of Heaven was on his shoulder and Jesus with a halo on his upper arm, Mary below that, a cross over the top of his hand. I asked him, “Say you died and you stood before God and He asks you, ‘Why should I let you into Heaven?’ What would you say?” Conner said he was a Christian and I said “Yeah me too.” He said he thought about what God would want him to do before he did almost anything. “So you try to please God?” I asked and he agreed. So he was hoping that his good deeds were enough to enter Heaven and didn’t seem to ever have understood that Jesus had died to take away his sins. So I began to explain the Gospel. After I had finished I said, “So the answer to the question why should God let you into Heaven is what?” “That I trust in Jesus?” he replied. “That you trust in Jesus and that He died for your sins,” I reiterated. “That I trust in Jesus and that he died for my sins,” he replied back. “Alright.” I then explained trusting in the work of the Holy Spirit in him to give him strength to live the Christian life. This was new to him, to recognize that God’s power gave him strength and could guide him and now was in him by his profession faith. I explained that the righteousness of Christ was his. He thanked me and we shook hands and agreed to look each other up in Heaven. I was kicking myself for having no materials to leave with him. But he has the Holy Spirit by trusting in Jesus and will have my prayers for the coming year each night. I had a chance to do him a favor and believe it led to genuine faith in Christ. Later in the week I went through the Gospel with a young climber, Dustin, who professed trusting in Christ already and knew his good deeds did not give him eternal life, though he worked with at risk kids. He said that was why he had peace even were he to die climbing. I explained the Gospel to him to be sure it was clear. I gave him a booklet after going through it, hoping he would latch on to some analogies that might help him share his faith. Maybe God will give him an opportunity to tell someone about Jesus on a route up El Capitan. Maybe he can do them a favor.
These are the New Believers in the 2016-17 school year. An * means they did not pray but said they would pray later or committed to Christ.
Matt, Jose, Karrina, Gabriela, Alex, Taranice, Mirna, Berenice, Ada, Victoria, Khyla, Nirali*, Evelyn*, Dinah, Lashunna, Josh, Oscar, Heidi, Viviana, Jimmy, Daminesha, Peter, Vanessa, Javier, Xavier, Bee, Mandy, Grant, Malik, Aurelio, Jesse, James, Ydalmy, Crystal, Justin, Sarah, Trina, Yuanita*, Kristina*, Kamaria, Jeremiah, Jessie, Eli, Kevin, Christine, Aronique, Acarria, Mike, Alivia, Sarah, Paul, Jai, Michelle (paint Customer), Apollonia, Julio, Julio, Ashley, Nancy, Randy, Dejan, Alex, Julia, Gio, Katie, Sue, Adrian, Isak, Lilli, Gerardo, Frimpong, Bridget, Ryan, Dan, Jacob, Jacob, Kaitlyn*, Christina, Aliyah, David, Beahja, Akayna, Kenny, Sydney, John, Rafa, Nate, Tiana*, Michael, Nezlly, Demond, Jermain, Pete, Page, Brian, Trent, Dominque, Marcello, Kennedy, Danny, Kofi, Darian, Josh, Jenny*, Brenda, Isaiah, Shanice, Jamelle, Theresa, Ymari, Stephanie, Lexy, Blexendi, Luke, Julia, Nick, Kallie, Amber, Cydney, Brandon, Kayla, Josephine, Chad, LaTerrance, Branley, Geselle, Marylin*, Henri*, Yunik, Austin, Vanessa, Sal, Angelo, Taleshia, Andy, Josh, Damsith, Tearl, Joe, Shane, Taylor, Urbano, Jonathon, Joanne, Ivana, Marcela, Gaby, Emily, Jordan, David, Brandon, Alena*, Eddie, Conner*
Since 2002, over 1,000 students have prayed with me to receive Christ through contact evangelism. Thanks for your prayers and gifts for our ministry. I’ll be trying to use the summer to raise some more support for fall. We’re grateful for your financial help and need it to make ends meet in life. And we are especially grateful for your prayers. May God bless your summer.
In Him,
Bob bob.thirdwatch@sbcglobal.net www.thethirdwatch.org