Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope your morning was blessed with grace and peace. Esther from Nigeria prayed to receive Jesus yesterday but I was too sick with a stomachache when I got home to write about it. It lasted until bed. But I woke mostly without pain this morning. Her story is below. I’ll be going out today and I’d be grateful for your prayers to guide me if you have a moment and for Esther to grow.

I decided to try crossing the street to a couple buildings I never venture into having found few people to speak with the last few days. The Homeland Security Training Center and classroom buildings, and the auto tech and welding buildings are on the other side of the main complex of 7 buildings where I usually talk to students. I rarely go there as there are rarely any students there. There was one student in the Homeland buildings and about 5 in the tech center. 2 did a survey. Esther received Christ (the other was a Christian). Esther was from Nigeria and had a nice sounding accent. Her face had no make-up and her afro was in some very thin braids no more than 5 inches long. She had a smaller nose and full lips, a perfect heart shaped mouth, nice smile. She was soft spoken and wore a black jacket with snaps that looked like big oversized Legos each in a different primary color. She had grey sweats on tucked into fleece boots. I asked her one thing she would like to do before she died. “Get to know God more,” she said. I asked her what she would say to God if she was hit by a bus and killed, “I would say, ‘This is my last chance to give my life to Christ.’” She replied. She thought she had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven. I began to go through the Gospel with her. Saying, God wanted to live inside her with His Holy Spirit and give her eternal life but He first had to cleanse her of sin, I asked her what Jesus had done to take away her sins. She thought for a moment and said she didn’t know. I explained to her that the blood of Jesus, on the cross, cleansed her and paid for her sins. I explained the righteousness of Christ like extra credit in a class. I said she had to believe Jesus was God, had died for her sins and rose from the dead and that if she trusted in that she could be saved. “Would you want to be forgiven for your sins?” “Yes,” She wanted to be forgiven she said. I explained the prayer to her and asked if it was the desire of her heart. “Yes,” she said again. I said she could pray it silently and she took the booklet and prayed to receive Christ. She did not have a Bible so I gave her a compact one showing her the Messianic passages in the back and the where to turn section, for answers and showed her the maps and messianic passages and the chronological life of Jesus (realizing it was a pretty good little Bible and I was sorry they were now out of print). I wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I also gave her Bible Promises for You I wrote “Eph. 1:13” on the page with eternal life saying the Holy Spirit entered her when she had faith, having explained the Christian life was living “Inside > out” where first we are transformed on the inside then by the power of God’s Spirit we do good things. I also gave her a Bible study on the deity of Christ and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I told her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day for the next day. She was grateful and I said that trusting in the righteousness of Christ the likelihood now she would go to Heaven was 100% because the Righteousness of Christ was of infinite worth. There was enough for an old man like me and for a young woman like her who hadn’t even done anything yet. She smiled and I headed off. I did not find anyone else to go through the Gospel with yesterday.

Thanks for your prayers.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope you had a blessed week and God gave you peace in the midst of the turmoil. Look for a good price on your favorite canned beans. Seems that food is escalating. I had a stomach ache for 3 days, I thought it had left me last night but it came back this morning. I’ve been trying to feel better instead of that today. I was just eating dandelion heads in the yard and that helped. Some old Irish gardener recommended it on YouTube. I think she soaked hers in vodka for a couple months first but I skipped that part. I had a great day on campus as Angely [anj a lee] prayed to receive Christ. She was the only person I found to go through the Gospel with Thursday. It seems like there are scarce few students about but I am on about the same pace as last year. So I hope God will continue to bless the next couple weeks. Her story is below if you have time please pray she is blessed.

I came across Angely sitting on one of a set of oversized chairs around the corner of the SSC lounge on the second floor. She is 5 feet, a very pretty Asian girl. She had a diamond shaped face and high cheek bones. Her shoulder length hair was parted down the middle and she had pretty eyelashes that did not seem likely to be given by the gene-pool. She was wearing white spaghetti strap shirt, under a flannel of black and grey and had leggings on, very petite. She wanted to travel, to be a stewardess we talked about a relative of mine that flies all over the world and other tales I tell of flight she liked. (Ellen told me when I got home that being 5’ she would probably have a tough time reaching the overhead compartments on a plane, so she should try to be a pilot.) When we finally got to the survey again I asked what she would say to God if she died and He asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” She replied “’Cause I’m a believer.” I asked her what the likelihood was she was going to Heaven and she said, “I actually don’t know. Maybe 50%.” I began to go through the Gospel with her and she seemed familiar with some of what I said. After I had gone through everything. I asked her if she would want to be forgiven or thought something else. She said, “I’d want to be forgiven.” She expressed that she had tried to live the Christian life and didn’t think she had.  So we talked about the Christian life living Inside>out, where the Spirit would change you on the inside and you would do good things on the outside. I told her she needed to stop trying to do good things but needed to ask God to change her on the inside by His Spirit and she would do them because she was changed. I gave her Bible Promises for You and said she could turn the verses into prayers. I went back to the prayer and explained it and asked if she thought she had told God she was trusting in what Jesus had done to be forgiven. “I feel like I’m waiting,” she replied. We’d talked a long time so I just said, “Stop waiting,” I said she could pray and I would not hear her but God would hear did she want to do that and she nodded and took the booklet and prayed to receive Christ. So that was great. I took back Bible Promises for You and wrote the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave her a Bible study and explained it and gave her The Case for Christ answer Booklet. We also talked about motorcycles when she said she liked by rings. They tell the story of the Gospel and she thought they were cool (which of course they are). She wanted to learn to ride. I told her I thought that learning to ride a motorcycle was a good skill if she traveled as well as knowing how to drive stick shift. She had a plan for the later I think.  I told her there was a class offered to teach her to ride a motorcycle at school in the summer which she was excited to hear. I also told her she should know how to fire a gun. She’d never fired one, but her father had them and was kind of an Asian version of a “good old boy” they were from the south. He liked to drive around in his truck. I said I was sure he would teach her. She said they did not get along but being a lot alike they fought, so she did not think he would. I spent a while then encouraging her to ask God to change her heart toward her father. I said I was sure he loved her and she agreed. I said in my own life God did not always answer my prayer to change others but He was always willing to change me when I asked. I told her she should ask the Lord to do that and I explained this was a useful skill in the professional world to be able to do the steps around people and bite her tongue. She was moved and agreed she would ask for God to change her heart towards her dad. I talked about my own relationship with my dad that we had butted heads when I was young but by the time he died he was one of my best friends. I explained now trusting in Jesus’ righteousness to be her righteousness the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100%. His righteousness was worth an infinite amount because He is God and so there would be enough righteousness for an old biker like me and a young woman like her that hadn’t hardly done anything yet but if we died today God would forgive us both. “Amen,” she replied cheerfully. Thanks for talking with me you made my day,” I said getting up to go. “You made my day too,” she replied. I said, “Thanks,” and headed off.

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed and you were filled with the presence of the Lord. I had a good day on campus and got through the Gospel with 3 students, one took a booklet, I left the booklet with a foreign student, David, who could not understand English well but said he could read. Finally at the end of my time today I came across Clay. He said he would pray later. So I’d be grateful if you would pray he would. Thanks for your prayers, some of his responses are below if you have the time.

I came across Clay, wearing light grey sweats, and a grey t-shirt with a ghost on it of some kind. He had short brown curly hair and an oval face, tall and thin. Good-looking guy. He was sitting in some chairs outside the cafeteria. Beside him was a black guy on his right. Next to her was a pretty girl with long blonde hair. I never got their names.  She had what must have been penciled in eye lashes that were under her eyes and above them. She had a nose piercing in her septum. I asked Clay if he wanted to do a survey about God. “I’m Buddhist,” she informed me, interrupting. “Ok,“ I said and asked Clay again and he said, “Sure I’m into God.” They all looked to be high school students checking out the college. The black guy, who was on his phone, but had been talking to the girl as I walked up had traditional features and a beard and lose curls. He later said he was mixed race and he was not very dark in skin tone. I asked Clay what he would say to God to get into Heaven. “I always tried to be the best version of myself throughout life. I tried to do the best I could, whether I did or didn’t [succeed]. I don’t know how to end it,” he said thinking about what his words so far. I asked him what the likelihood he would get into Heaven. “Depending on how I lived,” he said thinking. 65%,” Then he changed to 75% saying the last 25% is yet to be seen. He had “fallen out” of going to Church. “I tried my best to do the right thing,” he said adding to his first answer. Then later he said still thinking about what he would say, “I think of doing things in God’s eyes. Before I do this thing I think what he would think of it.” I went through the Gospel with him. He could not think of what God had done to take away his sins. Though I told the associates to his right not to help him. But then after Clay struggled a minute both said, “He died on the cross,” nearly together. Clay remembered that then. I got though most of the things I say saying of the righteousness of Christ he would not go to Heaven because he was good but because Jesus was good and he was connected to Him.. He liked one story and laughed and said, “How many times have you told that story?” I said hundreds of times in the last year. It suddenly occurred to him he had a time he had to be somewhere. I finished up, explained forgiveness and offered him the prayer saying if he wanted to have God live inside him he could pray it later. He agreed and thought he would. We got up I said so long to the black guy who liked some of what I’d said and knew enough to be a Christian. “See ya Eyes, “ I said to the girl. “You have a really bright aura,” she replied. “Well, you know how it goes,” I said. And headed off catching up to Clay somehow I gave him a promise book and we split at the hallway.

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,

Hope you had a good day walking with the Lord. I had a good day on campus in as much as I got through the Gospel with a couple people before the power outage shut things down at 1PM or so. A Muslim named Q, (he looked like a thin Cat Stevens with glasses) and Janoah a confessing Christian, black small girl with a white doily on her head and long braids. She was without knowledge of the atonement (until after I talked to her about it) but claimed she had prayed before. Hopefully one day I will see them both in Heaven.

Thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism today if you had the time. God was faithful to give me some kids to talk to.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters and Christ,

I hope things were blessed today in your life, trusting in God through His Spirit, He holds our future in His hands though the world may change. Lymarie and Ephe each prayed to receive Jesus today. Please pray they grow in their faith. I’m grateful for your prayers. Their stories are in the notes below if you’re interested.

Lymarie was sitting at a table that had one chair on it. She sat on the hall, back to the wall, that runs to the bookstore from the student activities lounge she faced. She’s a cute kid, brown hair in kind of a shaggy haircut framing a face with petite features. There were praying hands holding a Rosary and cross tattooed on her left arm. I asked her to do a survey and she said she was religious and waved the rosary gold cross in her had at me which looked like the tattoo. She had on headphones she slid down to talk, her hoop earrings now resting on them. She wore a truck driver’s cap. She had a tan shirt on that, when she later stood, stopped a few inches short of the waist of black washed-out baggy pants. She was about 5’5”. She thought we had talked before but I asked her the question to think about for the day. “You’re walking down the road and you get hit by a bus, so you’re dead and you stand before God and He asks, ‘Why should I let you into Heaven, what would you say?’” She was unsure. “So would you like to know the answer to the question from the Bible?” I asked “I think I answered it before but I don’t remember what I said,” she replied. So she listened as I went through the Gospel in the booklet. It had been more than a year since—if we’d ever talked. I’m pretty sure I was just talking to someone else and she was there. She did not seem to have any solid recollection of the Gospel. She said she went to Church and Bible studies but would stop and do something she wished she hadn’t to feel better.  When I asked her what the big thing was Jesus had done to take away her sins she said, “He forgives you?” I said, “Yeah this is how it works,” and got through the atonement in fits and starts as a couple boys interrupted (bees to a flower). Her friends from the fashion department also walked by as we talked headed to the cafeteria. 2 girls and a guy tanned for Spring break. I said what she lacked was God’s power inside her changing her so that she could ask for his help and transformation to be a better person by the Spirit. Then more and more she would not do the things she did not want to do. She said she did something she knew was wrong to feel better and I said she could ask for God’s peace in those moments if He lived inside her by faith. “You can ask Him to change you and when you fail ask for forgiveness because Jesus died for you,” I explained. The attractive fashion kids came back, there was a display of some kind they wanted her to see. I asked them for 2 minutes and the spokesperson (a cute girl) for the 3 agreed politely, and they gathered just past us. As I had just explained praying to receive Christ so I encouraged her to do so and she did. I gave her Bible Promises for You and wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I told her I would be praying a Bible verse for her each day for the next year. “Really?” she asked. “Yeah I promise I’ll do it.” She was grateful and headed off.

Ephe was sitting down the hall a bit from where I had talked to Lymarie, not quite to the Bookstore. His parents were both Ethiopian in background. He was born here and had no accent. He had black nylon sweats on that had white silhouette of two women back-to-back with knees bent. From a distance they looked like letters running down the hem, an M or a W. Then I realized they were a mud flap design I’d seen on the highway. He had on maroon hoodie had a beard and a mustache, his afro was shaved on the side and topped like a mushroom. Good looking guy, nice features. He was pretty reserved had little to say though I got him to smile twice. He wanted to care for his family as a life goal. He said he had family in Ethiopia who did not wish to move here (aunt and Uncle). I told him I had read about Muslim terror there where they walked into Churches and killed 20 people. He agreed and said the Government there was trying to destroy the Eastern Orthodox Church he attended. I asked him what he would say to God if asked “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “My best answer I would give… I would say… I believed and [put] full trust in Jesus Christ and followed and tried to lead an honest and peaceful life through the path He created,” he said. I asked what the likelihood he would go to Heaven. “I don’t think I’ve done enough to have God believe I truly [should be] walking on the Heavens,” he replied. I said the last part of the survey was what he thought of Christianity and I thought he would like it. I began to go through the Gospel with him and asked him what the big thing Jesus had done to take away his sins was, “He forgives you?” he guessed. I said, “Yeah He forgives you and this is how he does it.” I explained the Blood of Jesus to cleanse him and as a payment to God for the imperfect things we had done we owed God something perfect for. I explained the righteousness of God that was to his credit. That he would not go to Heaven because he was good but because Jesus was good and he was connected to him. I said that God adopted him and gave him the blessings of his family, the sacrifice for his sins, the blood that cleansed him and the righteousness of God that surrounds him. I said he could receive this by faith and that his good stuff did not fix his bad stuff. I asked if he would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done so he could live inside him and give him strength or thought something else. “Be forgiven by Jesus,” he replied. I said there was a prayer he could pray and talked him through it, asking if it was the desire of his heart. “Yeah he said. So I said he could pray it right then and I wouldn’t hear. But God would hear and he’d know he was forgiven. “Wanna do that?” “Yeah,” he said. He prayed then to receive Christ. “Your sins are forgiven,” I said as he finished shaking his hand. “Not ‘cause I say so but because Jesus does.” He smiled then.  I gave him Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!”. He had a family Bible. I also gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and a Bible study on the Deity of Christ. We talked then about Ethiopia a bit. He reached out to shake my hand as I got up to go. I shook it and said, “Thanks for talking with me man.” “No problem. Have a good day,” he replied. 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

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope you had a good day walking with the Lord and trusting in Him. I had a good day on campus. With so few students present in the halls I’m grateful to have some conversations with someone I have not spoken with before. Jose prayed to receive Jesus today. I had a long talk with a Muslim guy from Egypt Gabriel, I don’t think much of a seed was planted, but he heard the Gospel. I’m grateful for your help in prayer. Jose’s responses are below if you have some time.

 Jose was sitting alone in the far Northwest corner lounge on the second floor of the science buildings. He had a ball cap on turned backwards and a generic medical mask on with a gray t-shirt and gray sweats. 5 by 5 dude. He had a round face and his eyes squinted a bit when he smiled which gave me a clue he was tracking with me. He’d been a child in Mexico where he’d gone to Church, I assumed he’d been Catholic but his family was now all over the country and he didn’t go to Church at present. I asked him what he’d say if he died and God asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” “Because I try to be the best person that I can—in this lifetime,” he replied. He thought he had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven. He was a nice guy and there was a warmth about him.  I said that God would have to take away his sin so He could live inside him, “make you His type”. I asked “So what’s the big thing Jesus does that takes away your sin?” He shook his head as if it was a rhetorical question, so I asked if he knew what that was. “I don’t know,” he replied. “OK it’s like this,” I replied. I went on to explain the blood and righteousness of Christ where he is cleansed and God gets paid. I asked if he wanted to trust in what Jesus had done by faith. “Ya definitely,” he replied. I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and talked him through it asking if it was the desire of his heart. “Sure,” he said. I said he could pray it silently and would he want to. “Definitely,” he said taking the booklet and then checking, “Just silently?” I said yeah and he prayed to receive Christ. He seemed happy. He had his own Bible so I gave him Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!”  on the inside. And he said, “Thanks.” I gave him a copy of, The Case for Christ Answer Booklet saying Strobel had other stuff on YouTube he could check out. I said, “This is 100%,” holding up the survey and writing that on it. “If you trust in the righteousness of Jesus to be your righteousness.” I said I would pray a Bible verse for him each day for the next year. “Thank you,” he said reaching out to shake my hand. “Sure, thanks for your time,” I replied. “No problem. Thanks,” he said. And I headed out the door and down the hall and he ran to class.

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,

We are having nice warm weather in Chicago so I didn’t use the tunnels to go between buildings to take some in some sun. Abby and Daivion each prayed with me to receive Jesus so that was great. Please pray they each grow in their faith. Thanks for your prayers. Their stories are below if you have time to read a few things they said.

Abby was sitting in the MAC Arts building. There’s a short stairway dropping down to a table and chairs in front of the entrance to the drama theatre and she sat there. She looked Filipino had a pretty, wide face and thick hair in two braids running on either side of her head then down behind. She wore a red, white and blue V neck pull over, stripes and lettering and cargo pants that tied at the ankles. A creative art building kid. She hesitated to do a survey but went for it. When I asked her what she wanted to do before she died. “Really figure out what to do to get happy,” she replied. I thought, I know something that might help. When I asked her what she would say to God to get into Heaven if she died she thought for a moment with an Ummm but that didn’t seem to help. So I asked if she ever went to Church, she’d gone to a Catholic church when she was younger. “What would they say you do to get into Heaven?” I asked. “Be a servant of God,” she said after a moment. “Do you feel like you serve God?” I asked. “No,” she said. “I’d almost feel like, unworthy. I feel like saying what I should get is like praising myself, but I don’t hold myself that high.” “Well, you have humility, that’s something,” I replied. She thought she’d have a 65% chance of going to Heaven. I went through the Gospel with her and she took it all in, I asked her what Jesus had done to take away the sins of the world and she said, “He died.” I went on to explain the Bible said the blood of Christ cleansed her and paid God for all the imperfect things we had done that we owed God for. I told her the righteousness of God Christ earned was to her credit, by faith. I asked if she’d want to be forgiven for her sins. “Yeah,” she said. So I said if she did there was a prayer she could pray and talked her through ii. I asked if it was the desire of her heart. “Yeah,” she said again so I said she could pray it silently I wouldn’t hear her but God would hear and she’d know she was forgiven. “Wanna do it?” “Yeah,” she said again and I bowed my head as she prayed so I could only see her hands (from under my cap) holding the booklet. When she let it rest on the table I looked up and said, “Your sins are forgiven. Not because I say so but because of Jesus,” “Yeah,” she said with a big smile. She had a family Bible she wanted to use so I gave her Bible Promises for You writing her name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I told her now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus the likelihood she would go to Heaven was 100%. I gave her The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and a Bible study. Resting her elbow on the table she held up her fist and said, “Very cool, Bob.” I bumped her fist. “I’ll see you in Heaven,” I said telling her I would pray a Bible verse for her each day for the next year. “Nice to meet ya,” “Have a good one,” she replied. “Thank you,” I said and headed out the door.

Daivion [day v on] was sitting alone at the long table they have along the base of the stairs in the PE building lounge. He had a unkempt afro and was wearing black sweats and a black hoodie with a small pack across his chest. He was on a laptop. He had a mustache and a goatee, square jaw, dark complexion, good-looking guy. He ran track and thought he’d pick it up again next spring at another college. When I asked him what he would say to God to get into Heaven he said, “’Cause of the love I showed my family and friends.” He thought he had a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven. He went to Church he said and when I asked him what Jesus had done to take away his sins he said, “He died.” He made some matter of fact faces of acceptance as I went through the Gospel. After explaining the gospel and what Jesus had done to save him I asked him if he thought something else or would want to be forgiven for his sins. He shook that he did want to be forgiven.  So I said if he did there was a prayer he could pray and read it through. Only one other big dude had sat at the table a few seats from us on the other side. So we were alone at our end. I asked if it was the desire of his heart, reading that line in the booklet. He smiled and said, “Yeah.” I said he could pray it silently and I wouldn’t hear but God would and he nodded, took the booklet and prayed to receive Jesus. He had a Bible so I also gave him, Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I gave him a Bible study and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet saying he might have time this summer to look at it and Strobel also had YouTube videos. I told him also I would pray a Bible verse for him each day for the next year. We fist bumped and he said he appreciated it and I headed off.

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

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope your day was blessed and you were filled with, grace, mercy and peace. I had a good day on campus and Laokratis and Ben each prayed to receive Jesus today. Please pray they each grow in faith. Thanks for your prayers. Their stories are below if you wish to spend the time.

Laokratis was sitting in the science building lounge on the ground floor against the south windows on a couch waiting to go to class. He is Greek Orthodox. He was wearing a watch cap looking hat had blue eyes and what looked like very dark red or brown hair. Looked a better looking version of like Archie of comic book fame, absent the freckles. He had blue nylon sweats on and a red t-shirt. I asked him what he would say to God if he died and was asked, “Why should I let you into Heaven?” He took a moment “I’m trying to think, that’s a good question,” he began and then said, “’Cause I’ve done everything I can to try to work toward my goals.” (That might sound odd. But since some people believe God wants you most of all to fulfill your purpose you can see what they might mistake that for getting them into Heaven.) He was 100% sure he would be let in to Heaven. I went through the Gospel with him and when I asked him what Jesus had done to take away the sins of the world he said, “He was hung on a cross.” I stated the rest of the Gospel to him and he agreed with each point as if it was familiar saying he was purified by the blood of Christ where God got paid. I explained then it was the righteousness of God Jesus earned. He would not go to Heaven because of what he had done but because of what Jesus had done. Faith was the way he could receive Christ and be forgiven. In the end I asked if he would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done or thought something else he said. “I have a sense in my heart I would want to be forgiven.” I said then there was a prayer he could pray and going thought it asked if he’d like to pray it silently. “Right now? Sure.” He read it through than said, “I have to get to class.” I quickly said he could keep the booklet and gave him Bible Promises for You writing his name and the date and forgiven in the front and gave him The Case for Christ Answer Booklet and a Bible study. He got up and reached out and shook my hand with a smile and said, “Thank you sir.”  I said, “I don’t know if I’ll see again but I’ll see ya in Heaven.” And he headed off.

Ben is a Filipino guy. He’s about 5’6” and has a diamond shaped face and jagged bangs mustache. His eyes had a bit of an Asian appearance. He was wearing a tan hoodie and blue jeans. He was sitting in the hall just beyond the entrance to the bookstore. I asked him what he would say to God. He said, “The question is worded weird. I don’t think I should tell Him why I should be let into Heaven. I don’t think I have any right to convince Him. I feel like my choices in life should speak for themselves.” He thought he’d have a 50/50 chance of going to Heaven. He knew Jesus had died when I asked what He had done to take always the sins of the world.” I explained the Gospel and he seemed to track with it. When I finished I asked if he would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done or if he thought something else. I said Islam had a different God who did not live inside them of require a sacrifice for sin. “Don’t they have the same God as we do without Jesus?” “Well,” I replied. If you described me to someone but said I was Mexican or described a Mexican saying he was Swedish you would not be describing that person. If you remove something essential from a person’s description you change who you are describing. Jesus is part of God so if you remove Jesus you have a different God.” He seemed to accept that. It later turned out he car pooled with a guy who was a Muslim, so maybe that will be an interesting conversation.  “Well I’m Catholic so I’d want to be forgiven,” he replied. I offered the prayer to him saying he could pray it silently after I explained it and he said, “Ah sure.” He prayed then to receive Jesus. I gave him a Bible as he said they had a family Bible but he would take a small one. I gave him a compact Bible and showed him the “Where to Turn” section and the information sections in the back. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front. I told him the likelihood he would go to Heaven trusting in the righteousness of Jesus to be his righteousness was 100%. I explained living inside out. “By the Spirit’s Power.” He I gave him Bible Promises for You and The Case for Christ Answer Book. I gave him a bible study also and we got up together to go. “Thanks for this this was really interesting,” he said as we walked. He said what I’d said was different from what his mother read in the Bible but thought we all believed the same thing. “That Jesus was God died for your sins and rose from the dead?” I asked. “Right,” he agreed. “and that faith saves you.” I put in. “Yes,” he said. I am not sure what his mother believes in addition. It is very rare for me to come across a Roman Catholic who understands Catholic doctrine or read the Bible. I could count these encounters on one hand with a couple extra fingers at most. He had made his decision it seemed and had said God would see the decisions he’d made. We got to where he was going to go into the cafeteria and I was going up the stairs. So I will keep him in my prayers.

Thanks for your prayers for the ministry and for evangelism if you had some time. God truly blessed.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Blessings on you and yours this good Friday! May your hope be in the Lord Who gave Himself for you.  I had a good day on campus Thursday and Ugo and Lily each prayed with me to receive Jesus. Please pray they grow I their love and trust in Jesus. 8 People received Christ this past week

Ugo was sitting opposite the bookstore at the base of the stairs. He is a tall African National, (or I assumed by his accent) good looking guy, short afro with kind of a professional look about him. He wore a neat pull over fleece and blue slacks. He agreed to do a survey but just as I got his name he glanced at the time and said, “Oh I only have 5 minutes before I go to class.” I asked if he would want to answer one big question then and he said OK. I asked, “Say you get hit by a bus, so you’re dead and you stand before God and He says, ‘Why should I let you into Heaven?’ What would you say?” “Because I’ve been righteous and I’ve done… I’ve followed You,” he replied. I pointed out that was what he had done but what had God done to get him into Heaven. He didn’t follow me so I went through the gospel stating what the verses meant as I pointed to them in the booklet, only reading a couple but talking about the blood and righteousness of Christ He earned that we could not. I explained that faith in what Jesus had done saved him, not his own righteousness but the righteousness of God by faith. I asked if he would want to be forgiven trusting then in what Jesus had done and not his own works. “Yes,” he replied. I said then there was a prayer he could pray and reading it over quickly I asked if he would want to pray it silently before he went to class. He agreed and when he finished I said, “Your sins are forgiven!” and he smiled. I quickly gave him Bible Promises for You I wrote his name and the date and “Forgiven!” in the front. I gave him The Case for Christianity Answer Booklet and saying I would pray for him he was on his way up the stairs.

I came across Lily up on the third floor. She looked like a softball player in stature and had shoulder length straight naturally blonde hair. She wore no make-up and was wearing a grey sweat shirt with some printing on it of a university I did not recognize. She wore grey sweat pants of a different shade. She had pale blue eyes and it turned out she went to a Christian Reformed Church I had known of in High School and I said I went to Timothy Christian for High School. She said she did too and we hit it right off. I said I had blonde hair and blue eyes and though I was Swedish I fit in at Timothy and she laughed. I asked her what she would say to God to get into Heaven and she said, “Umm… I’m trying to think.” “I don’t know—I’m a good person, I feel pretty confident.” She thought she had a 70% chance of going to Heaven. I explained to her the Gospel and saying knowing God unto eternal life was Him living inside you with His Holy Spirit, “It’s like you’re the Energizer Bunny and God’s the batteries: You keep going and going and when you die it’s like you don’t die ‘cause God’s inside.” Saying Christianity was like a blood transfusion wherein for God to live inside you had to be made God’s type. I said he made you that way taking away your sin. Asking her how He did that she knew Jesus had died. I explained that then His blood cleansed her, paid God for what we owed Him and the righteousness of God Christ earned was to her credit. She need only believe and place her trust in that by faith. “So would you want to be forgiven for your sins trusting in what Jesus did or do you think something else?” I asked. “This one,” she said, pointing to the circle with God living in you. I said if she wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer she could pray and I talked her through it. I said if she wanted she could pray it silently and know she was forgiven, “I wouldn’t hear you but God would hear and you’d know you were forgiven. Wanna do that?” Yeah sure,” she replied. “Just pretend I’m not here,” I said. “Alright,” she replied and prayed to receive Jesus. When she finished I said, “Your sins are forgiven!” “Awesome!” she replied happily. I explained the Christian life to her living by the Spirit’s power, “Inside>out” and I wrote her name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside of Bible Promises for You. “Awesome,” she said again as I handed it to her. I’ve started writing Ephesians 1:13 on the page with Eternal Life promises and did that too. I gave her a Bible study and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I got up to go and said I would pray a Bible Verse for her every day for the next year.  “Awesome,” she said again. “Thank you so much.” I said sure (and I think I said happy Easter) and headed out.

So Happy Resurrection day weekend. And thanks for your prayers God truly blessed evangelism this week.

In Him,

Bob

Hey Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

I hope you had a great day knowing the kindness of the Lord. I had a good day on campus and John, Billy and Bobby each prayed with me to receive Jesus today. Please pray each of them grows in their faith. Thanks so much for your prayers. We’re grateful for your help in ministry, very grateful.

John was sitting at the counter in the cafeteria. It turned out on a field trip and said he was a senior in High School. “Well you’re a student. Would you still like to do a survey?” I asked. He was still willing to do it..  In the Spring there are young students that come in to check out the College of DuPage. He had curly tight hair, nearly an afro, black rectangle rimmed glasses. He had a mostly white sweater with green horizontal stripes black jeans and blue tennis shoes. He wore a gold cross around his neck that was on a chain that looked a bit like a rosary or prayer beads.  He had an oval face, fair skin and something of an accent, his syntax as sometimes disordered in English. I asked him where is parents were from and he said, “Egypt.” I asked him what was one thing he’d like to do before he died. “Got any big dreams?” I asked.  “I wanna go and teach about God. Jesus,” he replied I asked what he would say to God to get into Heaven and he said, “I’m your son, you should let me in,” he paused and then confirmed, “That’s what I would say.” I asked the likelihood he would go to Heaven and he said, “65%”. So I asked why it was not 100%. “I feel like I’m a believer, I know God, I speak with Him, pray. But I’m not a servant. There’s a few more points I need to get there.” I began to go through the Gospel with him reading the verses. And he took it all in listening. I asked him what Jesus had done to take away the sins of the world. He said, “I know He did that.” I went on to explain the Gospel and the blood and righteousness of Christ, salvation by faith and not by works and he tracked with these thoughts and I explained he needed to receive Jesus by faith “So if someone would say to you ‘Why should God let you into Heaven?’ you’d say Because Jesus died for me. Not that you just know the story from Church but that that’s what you place your trust in.”  I asked if he would want to be forgiven for his sins trusting in Jesus or thought something else. “I would be with Jesus,” he said. So I said if he would want to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and after reading through it with him asked if he would like to pray it silently. “Absolutely yes,” he said. And he prayed to receive Jesus. I noticed his classmates had left. They were once seated behind me. But he said not to worry he’d find them. I explained living inside out by the power of the Spirit and told him I would pray a Bible verse for him each day for the next year and he thanked me. He did not have his own Bible so I gave him a Study Bible showing him the 99 doctrines page and the cross-references and devotionals and maps in it saying there was probably one with Egypt. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front which he really liked. I gave him Bible Promises for You and The Case for Christ Answer Book and a Bible study. “Can I tell you something?” he asked. “Sure,” I replied. “Please keep doing what you do,” he said. “Thanks,” I said. “That’s a real encouragement.” “I want to give you something for all these,” he went on pulling out his wallet. “No that’s ok,” I replied. “I don’t pay for these people give me money to buy books to give away.” He handed me 2 $5 bills and put them on the counter in front of me. “I want to donate,” he replied. “How about if you just give me one of these.” “No,” he said smiling and thanked me and I thanked him and he walked away to find his classmates who had wandered out of the cafeteria.

Billy was sitting in one of the lounges that has doors to an atrium displaying a path and trees growing in the middle of the BIC building. I asked him if he wanted to do a student survey and he said, “Sure I don’t have anything to do.” He had a brown shaggy head of hair in a 70’s vintage haircut, spit randomly on top. He had a dark blue hoodie and grey sweats on and long oval face, good hearted guy. He wanted to climb the highest mountain in North America and I told him I’d known a guy who froze off his fingers and toes doing that and we talked a bit about climbing. I asked him what he would say to God if asked why He should let him into Heaven. “Hmm, well, um,” he said pondering and then, “I do go to church every Sunday,” then, “Because I have to,” he added with a smile. “I’m nice to everybody, my kindness is contagious,” he said with a grin. He thought he had a 75% chance of getting into Heaven and then changed it to 80%. I went through the Gospel with him and when I asked what Jesus had done to take away the sins of the world he said, “He died.” I then explained the blood and righteousness of Christ, explaining that he needed to receive all Jesus had done for him by faith. I asked if he wanted to be forgiven or thought something else. I’d be forgiven,” he said leaning back in the chair and at the table we sat at and raising his arms like he was stretching. I said if he wanted to be forgiven there was a prayer he could pray and talking through it I asked if it was the desire of his heart. “Yeah,” he replied.” I said he could pray it right then silently, “I wouldn’t hear you but God would hear and you’d know you were forgiven. Wanna do it?” “Yeah,” he said and took the booklet and prayed to receive Christ. I explained living the Christian life inside out, first transformed by the Power of the Holy Spirit then doing good things. I told him the likelihood he would go to Heaven trusting in Jesus was now 100%. I told him I’d pray a Bible verse for him each day for the next year. I gave him a copy of Bible Promises for You and wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” in the front and handing it to him I said, “Happy Easter.” He grinned at that. I gave him Strobel’s Case for Christ Answer Booklet and he thought he’d heard of him saying he’d tried to disprove Christianity and then believed. I agreed and said he had youtube videos he could watch. Getting ready to go I said, “God bless you man.” I appreciate it,” he replied and I headed out saying I’d see him in Heaven.

I found Bobby up on the third floor. He was tall and thin about my stature and wore a purple windbreaker and running shorts. He was chilling out in the SE corner lounge of the BIC. It looks out onto the outdoor terrace where they have concerts. He had a short fade haircut on the sides and straight blondish hair on top. He had a short very neatly trimmed beard and a thin mustache. I asked him what he’d say to God to get into Heaven. “I don’t know, I’d probably say I was raised Catholic, and I believed. I wouldn’t say I’m perfect. But who is?” He thought he had a 90% chance of going to Heaven. He was a really soft-spoken guy and listened closely to the Gospel. He knew, when I asked what He had done, that Jesus had died for our sins. As I finished I asked if he would want to be forgiven trusting in what Jesus had done. “Mumhm,” he replied. I walked him through the prayer and asked if it was the desire of his heart and he nodded. Saying he could pray it silently and offing that to him he replied with another “Mumhm.” And took the booklet as I said, “Just pretend I’m not here,” then prayed to receive Christ. When he’d finished I explained the Christian life living inside out by the power of the Spirit. I told him the likelihood he would go to Heaven was now 100% saying that trusting in the righteousness of God, He would forgive both of us.  I gave him a copy of Bible Promises for You writing Eph 1:13 on the page with promises concerning Eternal Life. I wrote his name and the date and “forgiven!” on the inside. I also gave him a Bible Study and The Case for Christ Answer Booklet. I told him I would pray a Bible verse for him each day for the next year and he thanked me. “Happy Easter,” I said to him. “Happy Easter. Nice to meet you,” he replied. “Nice to meet you too, I’ll see you in Heaven,” I said with a smile and he smiled back. I headed off then down the hall.

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

Bob