Friday Night Notes

getting back to the routine...

Pastor Tim had just gotten home from his vacation when I showed up to his house to pick up a Gospel sign and some Bible tracts for tonight's evangelistic effort; I thank God that He brought our shepherd back safely from a whole lot of traveling!

After a brief conversation with my pastor, in which we recounted the main events that took place during our 10-day 'separation', I picked up what I needed and let the weary traveler get some rest. Brother Rod and Marcio caught up with me as I was making my way out of the house, so I had a couple of partners to help me with the task of soul-winning. I again thank God for these men's zeal and compassion (they braved cold Canadian weather to serve the Lord and support a brother-in-the Lord).

The market was quieter than usual tonight; colder autumn weather no doubt played a role in this. The outdoor patios in the market are slowly being closed for the winter... the number of souls in the market on Friday night will drop significantly now (as opposed to the summer time). Christmas time will be when the crowds will return to the market. So we likely have a couple of months with at quieter marketplace to minister in.

I believe we all had one-on-one conversations with sinners tonight. Brother Rodrigo had an unprofitable conversation with a harsh, rude and foolish man. I saw Brother Marcio talking to a woman from a distance (I have no idea how it all went), and me, well, I had an interesting conversation with a female panhandler. She told me that Jesus was a panhandler and he often "had to take the bread thrown to the birds" for sustenance (I really couldn't make this stuff up!). When I explained that the Bible didn't record any such thing, the woman claimed to have learned this from 'other sources' (she wasn't forthcoming as to the identity of these sources). When the woman perceived I was at all swayed by her views/positions, she told me that:

1- I needed to put serious thought into what she was professing... that it would help me "reach my point of maturity".

2- I needed to "get in touch with my inner-self".

3- I needed to talk with my friends about all that she was revealing to me. She claimed my friends would undoubtedly agree with her sentiments and would help 'straighten me out'.

So there you go, dear friends. Feel free to 'straighten me out'! Again, I assure you, I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried...

I then had a typical conversation with a couple a Pentecostals. They didn't come out and say that they thought my evangelistic method was stupid, but everything they said insinuated it. I didn't deal with any of that because I didn't feel a long conversation on the doctrinal differences between Baptist Fundamentalism and Pentecostalism was a wise use of my time of evangelism. They insinuated, and replied with the appropriate biblical truth and left it at that. The Lord save them out of their errors, as He did with me.

Marcio (the young man in the picture above) handed out a large number of tracts tonight; truly amazing considering the more modest number of souls in the marketplace. I also handed a fair number, and I believe Brother Rod didn't do too badly either. The Lord use those Bible messages tonight, tomorrow and into the future, to save men and women from their sins!

With that, I close this edition of the Friday Night Notes, dear readers. I need to get some rest.

Please pray for me, dear saints, as I have been called upon to preach the evening service on the Lord's Day.

Have a blessed weekend, and a restful, glorious Lord's Day.


Rand

Labels: Friday evangelism