5/9/22

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed with all good things resting in the knowledge that He loves you. Hannah and Cam prayed with me to receive Jesus today and I had some good conversations. I spoke with a Muslim, Ahmed where I kept pressing that God was Just and Loving and the idea that God get’s paid and so His forgiveness is the foundation of our country’s laws, restitution and payment for damages. I also told him about a friend from Lebanon who had a vision of Jesus who told him to, “Pray to Me alone.” He’d been trying to press the point asking why would God want to become a man. We ended talking politics we agreed on. Please pray for Hannah and Cam to be blessed in their faith. Their stories are below if you have time you wish to spend on them.

 Hannah was sitting on the second floor as you walk out of the SRC building and come to the edge of the Student Services Center on the second floor. There are just the two chairs there, she described herself as an introvert and the spot fit. I sat on the table between them. She is a petite kid and had kind of a tom boy look going with a ball cap and stick straight brown hair pouring out to her shoulders. She wore a grey sweatshirt with some print across it and jeans, had red rimmed nearly round glasses, cute kid. She said she had been raised in a Lutheran Church. When I asked her what she would say to God to get into Heaven she said, “I try to treat everybody with kindness. I don’t know if that’s enough… I’m torn. Kindness is a basic thing; to actually go beyond and deserve it is actually different.” She had an insight most people lack, if Heaven was a reward and goodness is basically expected as a norm, you’d have to do something exceptional to earn it? I asked her how likely it was she would get into Heaven and she said, “There’s a pretty good chance, I wouldn’t be able to quantify it though.” She remembered Jesus had died to take away our sins when I asked her and followed the Gospel, the blood and righteousness of Christ to pay for her sins. I asked her if she would want to be forgiven for her sins or thought something else and she said she’d want to be forgiven. So I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I talked her through it and asked if it was the desire of her heart. She nodded and I said, “You could pray it silently now if you want. I wouldn‘t hear but God would hear and you’d know you were forgiven, wanna do it?” “Ah, yeah,” she replied and she took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I explained the Christian life, living “inside out” and telling her of the fruit of the Spirit which she had memorized and recited saying she’d learned it in a song as a child. She did not want a book. I gave her a Bible study she thought she’d be interested in. I told her now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus to be her righteousness the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100%. I told her I would keep her in my prayers for the next year. “I don’t know if I’ll see ya again but I’ll see you in Heaven. Thanks for talking with me.” “Thank you Bob.” She replied. And we each headed off in different directions.

Cam was sitting in the hallway on the first floor of the BIC near the tunnel to the MAC Arts building. He was 15 minutes early for class around the corner. He had a grey sweatshirt on that said “FOOTBALL” and was a pretty big guy, though not as tall as me when we stood. He wore grey sweat pants. His mustache had come in light and ended at his mouth but he had a thick beard and an oval face, looked like the proverbial Longshoreman. His ball cap was turned backwards. He said he had gone to church some as a kid. When I asked him what he would say to God to get into Heaven he said, “Because I asked for his forgiveness almost every night.” He knew Jesus had died to take away his sins saying he had gone to 12 years of Catholic School. I asked him the likelihood he would get into Heaven and he said, “It’s up to Him.” And then thinking about it he said, “80%”.  As I went through the Gospel he agreed with it affirming the work of Jesus. I explained that the real reason God forgiven him is He got paid, using the illustration of borrowing a friend’s car and denting it and having to pay to make it perfect again. “Everything belongs to God,” I explained so, “if you hurt somebody or hurt yourself or the world in some way you owe God something perfect back.” I went on to say that because we were not perfect we could not pay. But God loves us so He became a man and when He pours out His perfect blood it pays God back for all the imperfect things we have done that we owe God something perfect for. Basically what I had told Ahmed earlier in the day. “So the reason God forgives you is He got paid,” I said again. “He is just, but he had to pay Himself.” “I never thought about it that way before,” he replied. I went on to tell him about the righteousness of God that Christ earned by perfectly fulfilling the Law and that it was to our credit. I asked him if he would want to be forgiven for his sins. He said he would, expressing again that he was from a catholic background so it was in keeping with that. (I had talked to a Roman Catholic guy, Frank, earlier in the day that had said, “I believe Jesus died for us all and in His resurrection. As long as you believe and you are His servant you’ll have a place in Heaven.”) Some Catholics I talk to express a basic evangelical faith. As I had gone through the other verses he had said things like “For sure,’ and “Absolutely” so I was not sure if he would say he had been asking God for forgiveness trusting in what Christ had done. “Can I take this with me?” he asked. He had a class in a couple minutes. I said that if he had not had a chance to ay to God that he was trusting in what Jesus had done to forgive him there was a prayer he could pray and I talked him through it. He said he tried to think of what he had done that was against what God wanted then he asked for forgiveness for those things. “But are you asking for forgiveness trusting in what Jesus had done?” I asked. Saying that was what the prayer was for if he would want to pray it. He said he had actually prayed it as I went through it with him, suggesting he just did that when he read prayers, he prayed them. So I said, “OK.” I showed him the last line then explaining the Christian life living “Inside out” and said if he now trusted in the righteousness of Jesus to be his righteousness the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100%. He had to run to class and so I gave him Bible Promises for You quickly writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. He took it, it seemed with gratitude and headed off.

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

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope you’ve had a good day walking with Jesus. I had a good day on campus and Liz and Raymond prayed with me to receive Jesus Thursday. Please pray they grow in their faith. Their stories are below if you have time today.

Liz was sitting with her back against an indent in the wall for benches on the 2^nd floor of the BIC. She has an oval (nearly round) sweet face, Latina in appearance. Her long brown hair was up in a bun. She had on a blue hooded sweatshirt and black leggings. She was a kind friendly young woman. She said her family had people from 2 faith traditions in it and she hadn’t gone either way. I think she may have meant Catholic and some other Christian tradition. When I asked her what she would say to God to get into Heaven she said, “I definitely believe in God.” So I asked if she would say that, “I definitely believed in you.” And she said “Yeah.” She thought she had a 90% chance of going to Heaven. I began to explain the Gospel to her and assumed she did not know anything as she said she had not been to Church at all. She took it all in and was engaged. I asked if she would want to be forgiven for her sins trusting in Jesus or if she thought something else and she said, “Be forgiven from God.” “Do you believe Jesus is God, died for your sins and rose from the dead? Do you think that is a true story?” “Yes,” she replied. I said if she’d like to be forgiven there is a prayer she could pray and I talked her through it and ask if it was the desire of her heart. “Yeah,” she replied. I said if she wanted she could pray it silently right then, I wouldn’t hear her but God would hear and she’d know she was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” She nodded and took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus as her Savior. I explained living “inside out” asking for the transforming power of the Spirit to change her and give her strength. She was majoring in Psych and said she did a lot of reading so I gave her the hard back copy of The Case for Christianity Answer Book. I gave her Bible Promises for You and put her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I also gave her a Bible study and told her that now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus to be her righteousness the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100%. I told her I would pray for her for the next year and she thanked me. “Thanks for taking time to talk with me,” I said getting up to leave. “Thank you.” She said with gratitude. And I headed out.

At the very end of the day I found Raymond sitting up against the outside glass wall of the lounge on the SE corner of the BIC building. It has vending machines and a glass wall on the hallway and another that runs parallel to the lockers making up the wall going in. There’s no way to walk through with nonchalance, you have to walk in and walk out which always feels awkward if no one will talk to me. More than 90% of the people I ask each day say no. But He said he’d do it. He had black rimmed glasses and a conservative mop of dark hair that looked recently windblown. There was a day or two growth of beard on him and his skin was darker, Latino, warm smile. He had kind of the everyman look, square features. He had on a light grey hoodie and dark sweats. When I asked him what he would say to God if asked why He should let him into Heaven he said, “Because even though I’ve made poor choices in life I’ve always had good intentions.” He thought he had a 65% chance of getting into heaven. Usually a C in community college. He said he had gone to Catholic Church 12 years and then had gone to a Community Church. He was an engaging friendly guy and tracked with everything and I got him to grin a few times. He knew Jesus had died for our sins when I asked him what He had done to take them away. I explained the Gospel to him, the sacrifice for his sins the blood that cleansed him and the Righteousness of God that surrounds those who believe by faith.  I asked him if he wanted to be forgiven for his sins or thought something else and he said nothing for a while that seemed like one of the longer pauses I’ve gotten in response then said solidly, “I would like to be forgiven for my sins.” I said, “Well if you’d like to be forgiven there’s a prayer you can pray.” I talked him through it reading the question after, “Is this prayer the desire of your heart?” He nodded and I said he could pray it silently. He took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I took it back and explained the fruit of the Spirit for the asking and living “inside out” and trusting in the righteousness of Jesus to be his righteousness the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100%. I told him I would pray for him for the next year until spring. I gave him Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave him The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet and a Bible study. “I’ll see you in Heaven,” I said getting up to go. “Alright,” he said shaking my hand gratefully and said “You too.”

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism Thursday if you had a chance. God truly blessed. 149 people have prayed to receive Jesus this year doing evangelism. I hope next week to find a few more as the semester ends.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed being filled with the fruit of the Spirit. I had a good day on campus and Arturo prayed with me to receive Jesus sitting in the Lounge connected to Starbucks. Please pray God draws him closer to Himself. His story is below if you have time.

 Arturo was sitting against the half glass wall in the lounge beside Starbucks. He was not busy with anything so I asked him if he’d do a student survey as I cut through the lounge. He said OK. He looked Latino, an oval, near round, face with shortish hair cut parted on the left swept to the right. He wore a grey sweatshirt and jeans. We sat in couch-like chairs with a small coffee table between us. He said he wanted to have a family when I asked him one thing he would like to do before he died. That statement, in my experience on campus, is a tell that a guy is a Christian already or will pray to receive Jesus. I asked him what he would say to God to get into Heaven. “Hmm. Alight…” he began thinking. “I’m not a perfect person but I always try to be good. I think getting into Heaven is not about being perfect but trying to be.” I asked him what Jesus had done to take away his sins and he said, “Sacrifice.” “Right, He died for you.” I replied. He said he went to Church every Sunday. I began to explain the Blood of Christ and the Righteousness He alone could earn that could be ours by faith. He listened carefully to the Gospel as I explained that he would not go to Heaven because he was good but because Jesus was good and he was connected to him by faith. I told him God adopted us and made us his children and gave us the blessings of His family, “The sacrifice for our sins, the blood that cleanses us and the righteousness of God that surrounds us. So it’s like you got someplace to go, Heaven, and something to wear when you get there, the Righteousness of God.” I asked if he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in Jesus of if he thought something else. He said he would want to be forgiven.  I said if he had never told God he wanted to be forgiven trusting in Jesus there was a prayer he could pray and I talked through it asking if it was the desire of his heart to which he replied something like, “Yeah basically.” I said he could pray it right then silently and I wouldn’t hear him but God would hear and he’d know he was forgiven. I asked if he wanna to it and he gave like barely audible “Yeah,” and began to pray as I held the booklet out towards him. When he finished he said “OK.” I explained living “inside out” by the Spirit’s power and handed him the booklet. “Thank you,” he said taking it. I gave him Bible Promises for You and wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I gave him a Bible study and The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet and He thanked me again. I got up to go saying, “Thanks for talking with me.” “No problem thanks for talking with me actually,” he replied. “No problem,” I said and headed out.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism today if you had the time today. God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope you have had a good weekend so far walking with the Lord. I had an inactive day on campus. I chatted with a few students I knew who had come to Christ but yesterday was like a Saturday. There didn’t seem to be 20 students in the entire school building complex, which is quite large. It took a bit of time to discover what was evident by how few cars were in the parking lot. But just as I was about to head home I took one last tour through the cafeteria and found David who prayed to receive Jesus. I’d be grateful for your prayers for him his story is below if you have time.

 David had a scruffy short, dark red beard along his jaw line and onto his neck where it gave out randomly. His mustache was close to blonde ending at his mouth. His hair matched his beard. Looked like a regular guy, friendly. When I asked him if he wanted to do a survey about what he thought about God and stuff and he hesitated so I said, “The main question is you’re walking down the road and you get hit by a bus, so you’re dead. You stand before God and He asks, ‘Why should I let you into Heaven?’ What would you say? So you got any interest in what the Bible says is the answer to that question?” He said, “Well I am religious… so.” So I sat down and got his name and go to the main question and he said, “”’Cause I believe in God. He gives us all a Chance to Believe.” He thought the likelihood he would get into heaven was 100%. I began to go through the gospel with him and he knew Jesus had been a sacrifice for sins. He enjoyed the explanation of the Blood and Righteousness of Christ and said something like “Oh, OK,” as I explained it. He wanted to be forgiven when I asked in finishing. I asked if he had asked God for forgiveness trusting in what Jesus had done. He said he had kept the Ten Commandments and believed in God. He did not think he had asked God for forgiveness based on what Christ had done and so decided he’d pray to ask God for forgiveness based on Jesus. When he’d finished I found out he did not have a Bible. He was grateful to have one and I showed him the “Where to Turn” section in the back putting the ribbon marker there and the place where Messianic passages were listed. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven” in the front. I explained living “Inside out” by the power of the Holy Spirit and the Fruit of the Spirit. I told him God would give him the power to do anything He was asking him to do and give him as much success as he needed to stay on the right track in life. “It says in James 4 you do not have ‘cause you do not ask so ‘Just ask’.” I told him, “The parents you have now want you to be able to get out on your own and maybe be able to help them when you are old but God wants you to depend on Him all through life. Even the oldest people in the Bible God calls His children.” I reminded him the symbolism of the Mass was the Blood and Body of Christ and said it could remind him Jesus had died for him and so he was forgiven so when he took it he could just say, “Thanks You.” I gave him The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet and told him Strobel was a good source for answers to any questions about Christianity. He reached out and shook my hand and said, “Thanks Bob.” I said, “Yeah cool,” and said I would keep him in my prayers for the next year. I bumped into him a bit later as he was leaving and gave him a Bible Study on the deity of Christ. He thanked me and headed out to his ride.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism Friday if you had a chance. I only had an opportunity to go through the Gospel with one student but they trusted Christ.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed today with all good things from our Savior and Lord. I had a good day on campus and Austin and Ebony prayed to receive Jesus as their Savior and God. Please pray these young women are blessed by the Lord in their Christian lives and led into fellowship. Their stories are below if you have time.

Austin was sitting on a line of chairs in the hallway of the 1^st floor of BIC building waiting for class to start. She was wearing the formless baggy cotton sweats we ran track in in the 1970’s and  pullover V-neck nylon jacket with some print on it I never looked at hard enough to make out. Her long brown hair was in a braid far down her back as thick as a climbing rope and she wore long powder blue nails. She face was shaped like Princess Belle from the Disney cartoon, but she had light freckles and no make-up. She would have passed for her at the theme park. She was friendly and we talked a lot through the survey. She’d gone to Church more as a kid but now her family had become Christmas and Easter attenders, saying she was a “Chr-ester”. I asked her what she would say to God if He asked her why He should let her into Heaven and she said, “I’m planning to go into environmental law politically or res. I helped the earth be a better place before I left and I helped the animals who do not have a voice have a better voice.” She thought she had about a 70% chance of going to Heaven. I began to explain the Gospel to her and she knew Jesus had died to take away our sins. I explained how the blood of Jesus cleansed us and His Righteousness was to our credit if we believed by faith. That God becoming a man was the payment for our sins so God was just but He had to pay Himself. She listened closely and I finished the Gospel and asked her if she would want to be forgiven for her sins or thought something else. “I” she said with emphasis like someone who says well I don’t know about you but, “would want to be forgiven for my sins.” I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and explaining it, I asked if it was the desire of her heart. She said it was and so I said she could pray it right now silently I wouldn’t hear her but God would hear her and she would know she was forgiven. I asked if she’d want do it.  “Yeah, I don’t see why not.” And she took the booklet and prayed to receive Christ. I explained living the Christian life offering her a Bible and she didn’t have one so I gave her one. “There’s more than one book in the Bible right?” she asked. I said there was, and there is the Old Testament and the New Testament and Jesus fulfills the promises in the Old Testament. I opened it and showed her the “Where to Turn section” and the section with “Messianic Prophecies” I wrote her name and the date and forgiven on the inside. She thanked me. I explained then living the Christian life “inside out” by the Spirit’s power. I also gave her The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet and said she might enjoy the writer because it covered his process in short chapters coming to Christ from being an atheist and he was a lawyer. I told her that now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100%. I gave her a Bible study on the ways Jesus demonstrates he is God. She was grateful and I told her I would pray for her to be blessed each day for the next year. “Thank you so much, have a great day.” She said enthusiastically. “You’re Welcome,” I said walking away and she hurried off to class.

Ebony had her feet up over the armrest tray in the stuffed chairs in the hallway by the student activities office. African American in features she had long flowing hair and a pretty, full face, she wore the longest eyelashes I have seen all year. She had on a royal blue sweatshirt top and black leggings. She was just a bit hesitant but I assured her she could stop me anytime if it bugged her at all, so she agreed. When I asked her what she would say to God to get into Heaven she said, “Hmmm… I’m dead…: Then she seemed stuck so I said what do you think gets you into Heaven. “Believing in God,” she replied. “So would you say that then?” I asked. “I believed in you so why can’t I go into Heaven since that is that,” she said saying what she’d say. She thought she had a 75-80% chance of going to Heaven and she said she went to church. When I asked her what Jesus had done to take away her sin as I went through the Gospel she couldn’t think of anything saying it had in fact been a while since she had gone to Church. As I went through the Gospel and made each point with some verses she’d agree saying, “OK,” as if hearing it for the first time. When I finished explaining all Jesus had done to pay for her sins and she could believe by faith I asked her if she would want to be forgiven or thought something else. “I would want to be forgiven,” she said. So I told her there was a prayer she could pray and I read it through for her explaining it all and asked if it was the desire of her heart. She looked at it again reading it and said, “Yeah, I’ll say it. Thank you.” and took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. When she finished she said, “I can pray this every day.” I said she could and that it was important to continue to ask for forgiveness but the forgiveness that she received when she just prayed believing on Jesus also saved her for good and I wrote Eph. 1:13 next to the prayer. I said that when she believed the Holy Spirit entered her and sealed her and He would never leave. I explained the Christian life living “inside out” by the Spirit’s power. She had a Bible at home and said, “I also have the app,” pointing to her phone. I gave her the book Bible Promises for You and write her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave her a Bible Study too and I explained to her that now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100%. I told her I would pray for her each day for a year. She was grateful and thanked me and I headed out.

So Thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism today on campus. God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope you had a blessed day walking with our Lord and Savior by the Spirit. I had a good day on campus. Elizabeth and Mike (after a brief confrontation) prayed with me to receive Jesus today. Thanks for your prayers. Please pray they are blessed and grow in the faith. Their stories are below if you have the time.

Elizabeth was sitting in a lounge that is on the atrium, on the southeast side of the BIC 1^st floor. It’s getting difficult to find people I haven’t talked to before. I knew I hadn’t asked her before but had felt kind of nudged to go toward the PE lounge when I first got there, walking past her. Sometimes that nudge is just a direction I’m supposed to walk not a destination. Still I passed her sitting on the hall side of the lounge, then 10 steps later I felt convicted to go ask her to do a survey so I did and she said OK. She was wearing a blue sweatshirt the color of her blue jeans, had nearly round gold rimmed glasses on and white tennis shoes. She looked like a Latina and had long brown hair past her shoulders, was petite, cute face. When I asked her what she would say to God if asked “Why should I let you into Heaven?” she said, “I guess ‘cause I’m a strong believer in Him.” She thought she had a 65% chance of going to Heaven. When I asked her how God took away her sins so He could live insider her she said, “Confession,” kind of like she was guessing. I said, “The Catholic Church teaches only God can forgive your sins and so the Priest is saying God forgives you. The reason God forgives you is because He got paid.” I went on to explain the blood sacrifice of Christ and she was nodding that it sounded familiar. I said this perfect blood was the perfect payment to God for all the imperfect things we had done that we owed God something perfect for, but being imperfect we could not pay. I told her about the Righteousness of God Jesus earned that was to her credit and that this was true by faith. As I finished everything I say in explaining the Gospel I asked if she would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done for her or thought something else. “Be forgiven,” she said firmly. So I took that to mean she hadn’t thought that way before saying. “Well if you haven’t ever told God you would want to be forgiven trusting in Jesus but has just been going to Church…” she nodded that was true. “Then there’s a prayer you can pray to be forgiven trusting in Jesus.” I talked her through the prayer and asked if it was the desire of her heart and she nodded with an, “Umhum.” So I said she could pray it silently and only God would hear and she took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I mentioned the meaning of the mass as commutating Jesus had died and so she was forgiven and she nodded with sort of a knowing smile, and I said she could in taking it just say “Thank you.” She thanked me and I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave her a Bible study too and explained that now trusting in the Righteousness of Jesus to be her righteousness the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100%. I told her I would pray for her for the next year. “Thank you, Happy Easter,” she replied and I said, “You’re welcome,” and I headed out.

 Mike, a real simple hearted guy, was sitting in the cafeteria at a table towards the back. He had on Jeans and a zip up lined jacket. He looked a bit like “Wreck it Ralf”. There was a kindness about him. He might have just been the gentile giant type. He had a large oval face and shark teeth bangs. I was going through the survey with him when a guy with a big mop of curly hair shortish unimposing was standing off my shoulder and interrupted. “This isn’t about religion,” he began with me, lying, “but the people I am sitting at the table with find what you are saying offensive and ask if you can do it somewhere else.” “This is a public place,” I began. “I have permission from the administration to do this and this gentleman has been sitting here a while. If you don’t want to hear it, move to another table.” The cafeteria where we sat was 90% or more empty. He began going into his we are offended shtick again and I cut him off and said, “The short answer is no.” I turned away from him towards Mike again and he walked off when I had got up to leave they had moved to the other side of the big square post. Continuing on with Mike who seemed unfazed and who had just told me in answering God, “I would say I always try to do the right thing. I haven’t done anything horrible in life.” Then he added as a joke, “or you would have heard about me on the news.” “Unless you got away with it,” I replied smiling. He thought he had an 80-90% chance of going to Heaven he hadn’t been to church in a while. I went through the Gospel with him and he was very receptive. When I finished I asked if he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in Jesus or thought something else. “So would you want to be forgiven for your sins?” He replied something like, “I would want that yeah.” So I said there was a prayer he could pray and talked him through it and asked if that, “was the desire of your heart, is that what you think.” “Thant’s what I think,” he agreed and I said he could pray it silently and he prayed to receive Jesus. I explained to him that now trusting I the Righteousness of Jesus to be His righteousness the likelihood he would go to Heaven was 100%. I gave him Bible Promises for You and wrote his name in the front and the date and “forgiven!” I gave him a Bible study and told him I would pray for him each night for the next year. He brought up the guy who had interrupted us saying, “That was obviously about religion.” “Yeah,” I said. “He wasn’t telling the truth.” I told Mike I would see him in heaven and headed out.

As an aside the Bible says Christ teaches us to take up our cross and follow. In the context of that passage immediately before Jesus tells Peter in Mark 8:33 “Get behind Me, Satan; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” So we know that to take up our cross and follow is to set our mind on God’s interests. In the context of my conversation with Mike—the guy who never introduced himself was focused on man’s interests. I could not be sure Mike would move with me, or have the time to, nor was I interested in them pushing him around, because I knew it was in God’s interests that he hear the Gospel. I’m careful not to argue and try not to tick people off on campus. But many of the liberals there do not want me there and are looking for a way to silence God’s interests. It would be easier to always acquiesce, but sometimes we are not called to do the easier thing. Sometimes when it is clear we must say no to man’s interests because they are counter to God’s. This has many applications in life. Christianity is not the call to be a doormat but to take up your cross.

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

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed today with all good things from the Father’s hand. I had a good day on campus where Reid prayed with me to receive Christ and I got a few seeds planted yesterday. Please pray for him to grow in his faith. His story is below. Please pray for Kevin that I just had a brief word with that I might see him again to better explain more of the Gospel, he had curly hair just barley pushed out of a baseball cap, could have been Reid’s Brother, but had to run to class.

Reid was sitting in the PE lounge main table by the doors, working on a computer and was willing to do a student survey. He looked like Orlando Bloom in the first of the “Pirates” movies. He had a chin beard and a mustache that stopped at the end of his mouth, curly mop of hair. He was sleight and had on a print black and white parka coat and black sweats. When I asked him something he wanted to do before he died he said, “Go to outer space. Just to look around.” I asked if he died and God asked him why he should let him into Heaven he said, “I was cut short of my potential. I was able to do a little bit more but at the time I was alive I was trying to help others and help myself as well—be a better person.” He listened closely to the Gospel and had gone to church as a child and talked about Sunday school teaching them ways to be better people. I told Him God wanted to take away his sin to live inside him and asked what Jesus had done to take away his sin. “He was a sacrifice,” he replied. I explained the righteousness of God and Christ as a payment for what we owed God and he could receive Christ by faith. I asked if he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in what Christ had done so He could live inside him or if he thought something else. “I would want Christ inside me,” he replied. I asked then, “Do you believe Jesus is God died for your sins and rose from the dead? Do you believe that is a true story?” “I have no reason not to believe,” he said after thinking a moment. So I said if he wanted to place his faith in Christ to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and I walked him through it asking if it was the desire of his heart. He said it was so I said he could pray it silently that I wouldn’t hear but God would hear and he’d know he was forgiven. He said OK and so I put the booklet down in front of him said to go ahead and he prayed then to receive Jesus. When he finished he handed it back to me and said, “Thank you.” And he reached out and shook my hand. I explained living the Christian life “Inside out” and the fruit of the Spirit. I explained now trusting in the Righteousness of Jesus the likelihood he would get into Heaven was 100%.I gave him a copy of Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. Then I gave him The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet I wrote his name in that too and then quickly gave him a Bible study. He thanked me again and I said I would keep him in my prayers each day for the next year. I said I didn’t know if I would see him again but I would be praying. “Hopefully I’ll see you again,” he replied. “Thank you,” he said again shaking my hand again. “You’re welcome,” I replied. “I’ll see you in Heaven.” And I headed out.

So thanks for your prayers for the Ministry and for evangelism today if you had a chance. God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed with joy from the Lord. I had a good day on campus. Nancy Prayed with me to receive Jesus today and Zane a big curly haired, red headed dude with an engineering shirt on took a Case for Christianity book. He thanked me and said it was interesting but had not been to church and was not religious at all, so maybe a seed was planted. Please pray they are blessed. Nancy’s story is below.

 Nancy was sitting in the MAC arts building upstairs overlooking the lounge at a counter height table. She was pretty, had blonde hair and sharp features, kind of one of those classic faces. She wore a white cardigan and jeans. She said her mom was Italian and she’d had 3 trips to Italy cancelled, the most recent by the school to study there. When she told me her name I asked if she’d ever heard the old Beatles song with her name in it. “Her name was Magill, and she called herself Lil But everyone knew her as Nancy,” I quoted. She said she hadn’t heard the song. “Rocky Raccoon. It’s a great one,” I said. And that made her smile. When I asked her what she would say to God if He asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” she said, “I have a pretty good relationship with God. I went to Catholic school for 13 years. Every day I try to be a pretty good person and try to carry out His requirements toward other people. I try my best to be kind to others.” Then she added, “That’s an interesting question I never thought of that before.” I asked her what Jesus had done to take away everyone’s sins and she knew Jesus had died. So I explained His blood and righteousness and explained that we don’t go to Heaven because we do good, but because Jesus is Good and we are connected to Him. “Like if you marry a millionaire ya got a million bucks. Or if you get adopted into a billionaires family you get to live in the mansion and drive the cars. So God adopts us into His family and give us the blessings of His family. He gives us the sacrifice for our sins, the Blood that cleanses us and the righteousness of God that surrounds us. So it’s like ya got some place to go, Heaven, and something to wear when ya get there, the righteousness of God.” I explained she need to receive Jesus by faith and then that faith would save her. I asked her if she would want to be forgiven for her sins or if she thought something else she said, “Forgiven,” in the kind of emphatic way of saying wow of course, I’m surprised you had to ask. So I said there was a prayer she could pray if she had never said to God she was trusting in Jesus to be forgiven she wanted to be forgiven and I walked/talked her through it and asked if it was the desire of her heart and she said, “Yes.” So I said she could pray it silently so only God would hear and she’d know she was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” I asked. “Yeah,” she said and took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. I explained the Christian life living “inside out” asking God to transform and guide her. I told her that now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus to be her righteousness the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100%. I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside and she said, “Perfect.” I gave her The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet and a Bible study on the deity of Christ. She thanked me. I told her I would pray for her each day one of the lines from the prayers of Paul in the scripture. She was grateful and I said, “It was so nice to meet you. I’ll keep you in my prayers.” “Thanks you so much, have a great day!” She said enthusiastically and I headed out.

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

Blessings,

Bob

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

“But we preach Christ crucified…”  1 Corinthians 1:23

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope you have been doing well since we last mailed out a letter. Sorry it has been a while. Most of the people that support our ministry on campus get emails with a report each day that I go out to do evangelism. This week is Spring Break. Ellen is filing paperwork to keep us an NFP (something she does as a kindness, as Third Watch could never afford to pay her) and I decided to do an update.

In the course of understanding the studies Pfizer has done (court documents now show, since they were forced to release them) I realized I am exposed to a lot of stuff on campus. Pfizer claims the vaccine sheds spike proteins to others. So I have been taking more supplements to help me stay on top of the fatigue I’m feeling this year. Though I have not felt 100% very often, 51 people have prayed to receive Jesus this semester along with 86 that did so last semester.  There are several others who committed to Christ saying they would pray later, so I pray for them not knowing God’s work after I left their company. Many consider themselves Christians before speaking with me, but are hoping they will be good enough to go to Heaven. It seems like a toss-up as to if they know Jesus died to take away their sins. The week before last on campus, the response of Emily (she prayed to receive Jesus) was a good example. When I ask her what she would say to God if asked “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “Because… I wanna say I tried my best,” she replied after thinking about it a while. But she did not seem to think that was a good answer saying, “That’s a hard question. I don’t think I’ve ever thought about that.” I asked Wayne, after explaining the Gospel to him, if he had been trusting in Jesus or his good works to save him. “I have been trusting in my works,” he replied. “But after hearing this, there’s something I’m gonna have to do.” He also prayed with me to receive Jesus.

I don’t know if it is a problem in the Churches of the US that the Gospel is not clearly proclaimed. (Though I have visited 4 large churches in my area that offered people salvation or a relationship with Christ without once mentioning the Cross or the resurrection of Christ.) But I don’t know enough about other churches. Campus is not a fair test. I am not doing a random sample of church-going people on campus at all, really. I am praying to be led to the people who need to hear the Gospel and think about it with regard to their own salvation. College can be a time when you first separate a bit, thinking on your own apart from your family. I believe God is directing me to people who are ready to hear, though most students politely decline to talk to me. It is the mystery of the inner workings of the minds of people and the movement of the Spirit when they will be willing to listen. I also give out The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet and less often the longer book by Lee Strobel, The Case for Christianity. So I am hopeful others will one day turn (I pray for over 30 I have met). Sadly, books are not the main source of new information anymore and most students’ News Feed is probably “Twitter.” God is able.

So thanks for your prayers for the ministry on campus. I have had a sense of God’s leading, often having a picture in my head of a place to go to or an inner nudge, finding a student there who then prayed with me.

These are the 137 students who have received Christ so far this school year.  And 6 (*) who said they would pray later.  Please keep them in your prayers. I am praying for each of them every night.

Brieana, Delyla, Jermaine, Tryvis, Dajon, Edwin, Solomon, Brandon, Joe, AJ, Rafael, Keyshawn, Edmund, Fiyin, Cedric, Marshawn, Derek, Micheal, Anecia, Adrian, Amarillus, Richard, Joe, Victor, Natalie, Katie, Abraham, Eddie, Beth, Devion, Karina, Arielle, Slone, Henry, Leo, Jake, Anthony, Laila, Cam, Fashawn, Aniya, Amaya, Garrett, Gabriel, Ryan, Travis, Jack, Juan, Armen, Nathan, Roman, Fabi, Noah, Ben, Eugenia, Alexis, Bobby, Jeremy, Alma,  JJ, Yaritza, Maritza, Karina, Vernon, Sam, Brooklyn, Keagan, D’Andre, Ash, Matt, Tyler, Nuvia, Dom, Kaliyah, Jenn, Romel, Kendall, Thea, Eduardo, Daniel, Marissa, Harry, Jimmy, Elena, Jordan, Nya, George*, Leon*, Adrian*, Lewis*, Matt, Hazel, Angelina*, Valentin, Demo, Kori, Victoria, Gabriel, Milda, Esther, Nikki, Lucas, Jaden, Cira, Jerry, Caleb, Elona, Corey, Aleksander, Solomon, Carlos, Jalen, Gloria, Brooke, Rafel, Sam, Vlad,  Klay, Kevin, Javier, Tireh, Wayne, Emily, Breyon, Denise, Nicholas, Kai, Eric, Nicholas, Manuella, Juan, Favian, Kevin, Aaliyah, Tony, Gary, Liz, Milly, Gingis, Jamal, Laney, Bianca, Mar*

Two students, Alma and Dejah, meet with Ellen and me for discipleship each week. So we have enjoyed that time together.

Your prayers & gifts keep our ministry going.  We are so blessed by your partnership with us.

In Him,

PS As I mentioned I have had some health issues through the semester and relative to that I recently have taken in some information from Karen Kingston, a medical writer and former employee of Pfizer. (These interviews with Greg Hunter (USAWatchdog.com) can be found on https://rumble.com which is a YouTube type site.)

email: bob.thirdwatch@sbcglobal.net                               website: www.thethirdwatch.org