Frightening Friday 8/28

On Fridays, I usually set out somewhere in the community to intentionally share the gospel with people I meet. I'm usually out there for about 45 minutes to an hour. This week I knew I had another time commitment from early afternoon into the evening, so I wasn't planning on going out with the intention of evangelism this Friday. My previous commitment fell through, so I quickly made other plans. My backup plans ended up having a later start than originally planned, as well. So, I found myself with an uncommitted chunk of time and many, many ways I could fill it. At this point, I wasn't even thinking of going out and witnessing to others about Christ because I already had my excuse securely placed in my mind.

My mind started moving toward the skate park near our home (just a couple miles away). I hadn't been there for awhile. I was home from work earlier than usual; a rarity on a Friday. I knew the crowd would be different in the afternoon than in the evening, and I would likely get a chance to talk to people I haven't seen before. Soon my mind moved from thinking about doing it to committing to doing it. And at that moment, I became terrified (even more terrified than usual), and I went to the Lord in prayer. After praying, I gathered my things together (gospel tracts, cooler full of soda, etc.) and headed out.

When I arrived at the skate park there were a lot of young men hanging out there, a few I had spoken to before, many I had never seen before. It was a warm afternoon. I offered everyone a soda and a gospel tract. There were many takers. I was able to have conversations with a lot of the young people there. I shared the gospel with several of them.

As my conversations with several of the young men were winding down, a guy named Dustin sat down next to me (he looked to be between the age of 17 and 20, quiet young man, serious). He said, "How do I know there is a God?" This opened up some very interesting conversation. He had several questions about the existence of God and I addressed them as best I could. I shared my own testimony with him and gave him a gospel tract that I had written myself. It was an extremely enjoyable conversation. Dustin is a thinker. He asked a lot of questions, and he was truly looking for answers. He was not seeking to be argumentative. He was seeking to know the truth, and I admire that.

I'm praying for Dustin and all of the young men I met at the skate park this evening. I'm grateful to God for the opportunity to speak with them.

If you are reading this blog for the first time because you received a gospel tract from me today, please check out the "My Testimony" post under the May archives and My Favorite Links at the side of this page for other resources (including a link to a Bible-preaching church in the area).