Battle Log

Sunday, 16 July, 2023

Posted 16 July 2023, 2:53 PM by Glen Richards. Permalink

It was a public holiday on Friday, the weather was good, and the fish were swarming the central city.  Maybe a lot of fish that wouldn’t normally swim in this hole too.  I started out with prayer and then handing out a few tracts before going for a wander.

I made it to the square, it was good to see the OAC team busy there.  I noticed a couple of skaters and decided to approach them, to my surprise I recognised one of them!  I had talked to him before in a group setting.  He calls himself Sarah.  I said gidday, and we fell into a good long chat - about 1 hour.  We never talked about sexuality - except that I once mentioned sexual immorality.  He is sharp mentally, and so at the beginning of the chat we mainly discussed worldview with a focus on how we know God is real.  I was then able to explain the law and then the gospel, and then we moved into a phase of conversation where he was asking a lot of good questions.  He was clearly rejecting the gospel at this stage, and yet there was an openness of sorts.  He accepted a gospel of John and a gospel tract.  I suspect he will still read the book of John through his own worldview, and yet, God can change his mind.  I pray that he does, and that I will get to see him again.

I made it back to Cashel Mall, looking at all the fish swimming past.  All I had to do was reach out - it was so easy to get a conversation started.  I talked to two young men.  They were being a bit cheeky when one responded that we would enter a feast after life.  The other said ‘Valhalla’.  I knew they were both joking around with me, but I just rolled with it.  I was able to share the law and the gospel.  At one point, one of them flared up ever so slightly, so I knew the message was getting through in spite of the joking.  But he contained himself well.  We parted on good terms.

I then turned and reached out to one of the many other people going past.  It happened to be a tourist from Scotland.  He was intrigued by my question of ‘what happens after life’, and he settled in for a long chat.  He seemed to respond to what I was saying in a way, and yet there was a hesitancy.  It turns out that when he gets back to Scotland he is going to university to study astrophysics, and he grew up Bahá'í.  We ended up talking for about 45 minutes, and the law and gospel was shared.  I thought he might accept a gospel of John too, but as he was travelling light he wouldn't have accepted one (it turns out I had run out anyway).  But he did accept a tract.

So, that was about 2 hours of conversation, within about 2 and a quarter hours.  I was going to pay for that with a pretty bad headache the next day.  But it was worth it.  I was so sad other believers were not able to join me.  I may make this public holiday an official outreach for next year.

Before heading to the street, I had a great chat online with a couple of young ladies (live streamed here).  It went for 45 minutes.  They were in different places, and so I ended up focusing on the one who believed in God.  I had to really labour through all the check questions.  Not because she was stupid, but because the idea of heaven being a gift is not natural to our thinking.  But it was encouraging that by the end of the chat, she really seemed to be correctly articulating the gospel.  And the gospel is the power of God for salvation.  I was encouraged to learn that one of my fellow church members had listened to this chat and been encouraged by it (he told me at church today).

I had a number of other great chats online through the week, including with a swearing Muslim from Saudi Arabia, two young men who followed the ‘script’ of the gospel and made a profession of faith.  A great 30 minute chat with a young man from the UK who seemed genuinely stoked when he came to understand the gospel and exclaimed “I have to tell my parents about this”.  Among other chats.

On Saturday, I had a one hour training session online with a lady from the USA.  But it didn’t end up being a training session.  She really likes to talk, and so she spent about 50 minutes telling me all about how she is encouraging her church in evangelism, and the outreaches she leads.  I was so encouraged, I just let her talk!  It certainly wasn’t wasted time, and we got to know each other, and I was encouraged to learn how she has been processing the way Ryan shares the gospel.  We discussed the differences to the way she usually does it, and why.  We are all teed up for another training session next week, even though she is older, and aware what she is getting into, she is very keen to try online evangelism!

I then headed to the streets, Riccarton.  I had a fantastic chat with a guy called Danny.  It was fairly text booked, and he seemed impressed by the gospel.  He happily received a gospel of John (I had restocked my supply).

As pictured, the homeless lady is back.  Her bed was there, but she was away for the time I was there.  I left another tract, and hope to get into a conversation with her in the near future.

Sunday I had Susan with me in the city.  She was very keen to do walk up chats, and so that’s what we did!  We had many opportunities.  Including with an Italian guy on Cashel Mall, a group of teens at the intersection of Hereford and Colombo, Susan talked to Simon (a regular) in the Square, and then we had a chat with a young couple of tourists from Germany.  They were very friendly, and sadly very resistant to the idea of God being real - esp. her.  Susan did share the law and the gospel.

Well, that’s a wrap for another week!  Thank you to all those that support what we are doing on the street and online.  It is very much appreciated.  All glory to God alone.