Battle Log

On saturday 7th November, about 7 of us met up in Plymouth city centre to do a short outreach and to give out tracts to passers by. Again we could not go out Friday night again due to the bad weather.

On saturday, Wayne had his p.a and microphone, and so we took it in turns to do open air preaching to the crowds that walked by.

After about 20 minutes, a PCSO approached us saying that she had received complaints from shops in the city centre about the level of our noise, and if we could turn the volume down. We acknowledged her but stated that the noise was way below the guidelines given by the council of 40 decibells, we were under 10 at a guess. We also stated that it was not so much the noise that offended people, but what we were speaking about.

After more preaching in that spot, we moved on up further into the city centre and started again. Opposite where we were speaking was a balloon seller who sometimes gives us grief as he has a Jehovas witness background and likes to heckle us, which can sometimes be good to draw onlookers. However this time when I was speaking, he was seemingly enraged and marched back across to me with his balloons, giving me abuse about what I was saying and pulling my rememberance day poppy from my jacket.

Just after this happened and my friend Wayne was speaking to him, the same PCSO who had approached us earlier came back, saying that we had turned the volume up, that about 12 shops had complained again, and that we could either turn the volume down again, stop using the p.a, or she would have to give us an anti social behaviour order, banning us from preaching in the city centre. We all spoke with her again, saying that people didnt complain about a group of Indians that sometimes play in the centre with panpipes selling cds, or about the guy who plays the bagpipes, or the fair or anything else that was much louder that went on.

She said she would be meeting with the council on Monday to discuss what we had said, and Wayne also said he would contact the Christian Institute about what our rights were more clearly. Quite a few people stopped to listen that day, and may tracts were handed out, so pray that people heard the gospel and were convicted of their sin and saw their need for a Saviour!

Romans 10v14- Faith comes through hearing, and hearing through the word of God.

Links to the videos that are on youtube of the day are below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBns0XlUWCE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8FU7RzctAM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhVCS8iqIH0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhoahkpmhS0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V35mr18WGRA

 

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 We didnt go out on Friday 30th due to bad weather, though 4 of us went to Truro for halloween from 11-3pm on 31st October.

My friend Phil volunteered to be a 'corpse' with a sheet drapped over him, and I preached for about 15 minutes outside the Cathedral against Halloween, death and people participating in demonic activities, and shared how Jesus came to give us life and save us from hell. Quite a few people stopped to listen, as I explained about death, causes of accidental death, and that no matter how rich or poor, happy or sad, tall or short, young or old that we would all one day give an account to God of our lives, and that the righteousness we need is in Jesus Christ alone.

We then managed to hand out a few tracts to people, before Shirley preached without a microphone to the apathetic locals who continued to walk past. We then stopped for lunch, and went to another part of Truro to preach. Again Phil volunteered to be a dead body, and I basically preached the same message, about the shortness of life, how if we believed in the Devil we must surely have to believe in a God as well, and explained how eternity is so much more important to think about and consider than the problems we have in this life.

Again the passers by and those seated eating their lunch were pretty quiet, although one lady spoke to me that her father had died quite recently and that death was not a nice thing to think about. A couple of young women had also stopped to listen, and I managed to give them some tracts and a new testament to read, after talking to them about death and the afterlife, which they received well.

Truro is always a hard place to go, with very little response normally, though they need to hear the gospel like everyone else does, and so were venturing to Exeter on saturday 15th which we always enjoy going to, and hopefully the Friday nights to the University, weather permitting, now we are leading up to Christmas, as we have more of a springboard to preach about.

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The numbers of the group are still low, people attend when they can and on the outreaches we do on weekends, but this Friday night there were just 3 of us again- Phillip, Rachelle my fiancee and me.

Again we met at the top Mcdonalds in Plymouth city centre to chat and then ventured across to the University.

Weather was not great but still lots of students around to chat to.

Rachelle stood handing out tracts near me, some from Nigel Williams freetractsource site, Phil went across the road again top the bars, while I approached people with my million pound notes which always seem to be a favourite.

A group of about 7 skaters had been handed some tracts by Rachelle, and as they walked past I led them in some conversations as to what they were. We chatted for about 15-20 minutes, and although a few listened and didnt respond, 2 or 3 also responded back with some normal debates about proof of the existence of God andabout morality etc. They all shook hands and all took tracts, one of the guys seemed notablely moved and was good that maybe it had sunk in, when they all heard the gospel and some analogies about the shortness of life, my accident and the consequences of sin.

Another chat at the very end of the night went real well with 3 lads. @ had previously been in the forces, andthis came to my attention when going through the commandments and God seeing hatred as murder. They both looked at each other a bit sheepishly and so I explained to them that in the Bible killing and manslaughter/ murder were different and some accounts of this.

Again when I showed them my scars and accident story, this tied in with the importance of getting right with God and sharing the gospel with their friends and family etc. Again they took some tracts and shook hands with them and was a good evening.

 

Even though there was only 3 people again, the conversations were really positive and hopefully will bear fruit with their friends at University

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Last Friday night we had 3 extra people come out on the outreach with Rachelle and me. Richard, Yvette and Phil came with us, Rich and Yvette had come out before but Phil was new to the group, but understood Hells best kept secret and how we share the gospel with people so was great. After praying we spread out on both sides of the street at about 9.45pm. We managed to give out lots of million pound notes and cartoon good person tracts, and two conversations that I had went really well.

The first was with a 19 yr old guy waiting at a bus stop. I offered him a mpn and started talking with him, and he understood the consequences and results of sin, and I left the conversation with him challenged and noteable tears in his eyes. Later on my fiancée Rachelle handed a couple a tract, and as they walked past I explained it to them. When going through the commandments, particularlly the 9th and 7th, his face changed. I found out he was a student at the University, and had cheated on his girlfriend who lived away and had come down to visit him. He had disclosed to her that night he had cheated on her and lied and so was very applicable to him that if God judged him he would be very guilty and knew what the consequences of that would mean. He then had to leave but I gave his girlfriend some more tracts to read later which she appreciated.

I could see all the others having good conversations with groups of students planning their drinking sessions that night, but then noticed the guy from the bus stop waving at me. I went over and he started asking me if I believed in creation, miracles, etc and I explained that if we can believe God made everything in 6 days, then miracles are actually not that hard to explain and understand. While we were talking he missed his bus that didn't stop, and it took an hour wait for next one, so I offered to give him a lift home. Rachelle and I dropped him home and continued to chat about things, and he said he had been to Church in the past as a kid and that his mum still went to church, and asked if he were to read the bible where he should start so I mentioned the book of John and gave him some more tracts and my email. He seemed really interested and hope he contacts me again. God gave us a really good night and so hopefully some seeds were sown that God can use in conversations with other people in the future.

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On Friday 25th September I flew across to Belfast in Northern Ireland to a Pentecostal Church with Lee Brock and Wayne Arthur who I do evangelism with. We went across with an aim to evangelise Friday night, explore the second hand Christian book shop and me to do a youth talk on the Saturday night, and Wayne to preach Sunday morning and evening.

The Church is called Forestside and is an amazing Christ centred bible believing Pentecostal evangelical Church. The Pastor and us 3 went out Friday evening to bellfast town centre to give out Christian evangelical newspapers from the Church and gospel tracts and to witness to people. We all had lots of conversations- I spoke with a group of teenagers in KFC which went well and they received a few gospel tracts each well. Another guy who was a Russel Brand lookalike, hair and all, had a really good chat, and although didnt claim to be religious at all, did enjoy discussing things of eternity and took a few tracts. I also showed him the scars on my leg and explained my reason for talking with them, as life is very short, and I think this made him agree that what we discussed was worth thinking deeply about.

Another guy I apporoached in my usual manner near a cash point didnt quite go so well. When asking him if he had any change for one of my million pound notes, and that my name was Matt and I was a youith worker, he abruptly and loudly replied ...'and Im in the I.R.A., now F"%# off! I politely smiled, and nervously walked away, wondering if he had misheard me, and fearing any more repercussions, but that was the only bad conversation of the night.

The saturday night talk went well, with about 60 young people present between the ages of 7- 15. I had not previously known that they wwere planning to show a short Way of the Master clip first. Of course when I heard they were planning to, I was over the moon as would tie in exactly with my testimony, how I became a Christian, and how we need to have a balance of Law and Grace to fully understand the immensity of what Jesus accomplished on the cross. It seemed to go well, with the vast majority of the kids getting a cartoon good person test tract at least, and a few millions.

Waynes preaching went fantastic in the morning, and even better in the evening, and the Pastors son who heads up the youth ministry there was encouraged by the talk I had given and said the young people were as well, especially seeing my 'shark bite' scar.

Next time we visit we hope to bring our wives/ fiancee's as well so should be even better! God gave us a fantastic weekend with amazing hospiotable Christians so cant wait to go back again.

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 Tonight there were just 3 of us, my friend April came with Rachelle and me. We went to the McDonalds again for a bite to eat and a hot chocolate, and discuassed plan for the night. WE then went to the usual spot, prayed and committed the night to the invisible God who knows the minds and hearts of all who we were going to speak with, praying he would send the right people along. And boy he sure did!

The first group I spoke with were very civil and talkative, and at the end of the conversation a student called Ali thanked us for the conversation. However, one of the girls in the groups face had screwed up, and so I asked her why. She said she was a Christian and attended church when she was not working, but she seemed offended at what I was saying. When probing with her, she said that it was peoples choice whether people believed or not, and she didnt feel she should speak to people about the subject as they would believe if they wanted to.

I agreed with her that if people chose not to believe then they would have to face the consequences of hell, but that was not Gods will for their life, but he still uses us to continue to witness to people and for him to save them. When she left, another lad in the group approached me, and thanked me for speaking to the group. He also said he was a Christian and attended another Church, and that all that I had made sense, and was intregued as to uas being out. So I explained to him some of the teaching and basic training I had received to go out and do this, and so hopefully he will get in contact.

Later on that evening, we had a few chats with a few other students who said they were also Christaisn, but who were going out drinking thatnight, and said they struggled with being a Christian and living a life as a student. So I witnessed to them about the need for them to be born again, and about repentance, the law of God and regeneration. They seemed to understand and took a few tracts each.

Throughout the night my fiancee Rachelle and April seemed to have many good conversations with girls and some other groups, while I handed out tracts and spoke with atheists, agnostics and those interested in chatting. At the very end of the evening we had a very good conversation with a student called Paddy and some others, and they really seemd to understand the bneed to get right with God, and the amazing work that jesus had done on the cross for them, about repentance and putting their trust in him. Their faces lit up when they heard the good news, and were very ameniable to talking, taking trcats and reading the bible.

All 3 of us were full of joy at the end of the evening, that just 3 of us could be used to make a small difference and hopefully those students would come back and also talk to their friends about their conversations. Hopefully more will come out with us this Friday to the University and experience the joy of explaining the good news of the gospel to a lost world!

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 Fri 4th September. After the Summer Holidays and lots of kids running around every day, I have finally mustered the energy to start the Friday night ministry again. I am also now in a better position to be able to try advertise it in other Churches as am now a member of my Church.

Well, the first evening back was just myself and my new fiancee Rachelle who is very keen. We went out just after 9pm, and our first chat was with a student at Plymouth University. He was intregued with the million pound note gospel tract, and his face lit up when I said I was a youth worker as he had done some in the past before as well, so that commenality enabled us to have a good chat. We went through the good person test with him, and after a couple he announced that he was a Christian. After my own false conversion in the past, I am always keen to dig a little deeper with people as to what they think that means. So, I asked him when he had become a Christian, and why he thought that God should let him into heaven?

He said that he had a Church of England background, had been a Christian since birth, and that God should let him into heaven if at the end of his life God weighed up all his good and bad deeds etc and if he had been good enough. Gulp! I was really glad I asked him, I suppose with Rowan Williams as the head of the CofE Church then this may be the response of many within the Church of England today.

So, I then had great pleasure in explaining to him the meaning of John 3 v 3, where Jesus said that 'unless a man is born again, he can'ot enter the kingdom of heaven'. He had not heard this before, and with explaining the court room scene to him, he understood that a good judge cant just let the guilty criminal go no matter how sorry he was or asked the judge's forgiveness, no matter how much 'good works' he had professed he had done, nor even if it had been in the past. The only escape the criminal may have is if someone came to his mercy and paid his fine, then a Just Judge could uphold the law and be merciful at the same time.

His eyes lit up when he undertsood this and we applied it to our lives as sinners, and that Christ paid our fine in full, and through repentance towards God and faith in Jesus Christ, he could be born again and have assurance of heaven and eternal life. He seemed to greatly appreciate the chat, and after reasoning with him, he acknowledged that if he had died that day, he would have ended up in hell, and so understandably knew he must get right with God that night, and took a few tracts to read. He said he had a Bible at home and encouraged him to read the gosopel of John again.

I was blown away when he left, as the gospel had really made sense to him, and so prayed he would be saved.

We later went up to the top Macdonalds where a group of teenagers had just gotten in trouble with the police. I had chatted to a few of them before as some go to the local secondary school opposite the YMCA where I work. We got into a chat with them, a group of about 10 14-15yr old lads and girls. They loved the optical illsuion tracts, and we then tried to reason with them about hell. One of the leaders of the group said he would go to hell because of all the bad things he had done and gotten into trouble with the Police before, and so I explained what hell was actually like. Someone had a lighter, and so they gathered around as one lad held out his finger for about 5 seconds with the lighter underneath. We then reasoned that Hell would be so hot for people because of how serious sin was to God, and with a couple of analogies from wretched tv about not how bad the crime necessarily was, but whom the crime was against, they understood why hell made sense because all our sins were primarily against God. 

Most of them took a few million pound gospel tracts and optical illusion tracts each, and generally the conversations went well.

On Saturday the 5th September, 5 of us went to Exeter to do some open air preaching and the good person test was filmed and put on facebook, with good discussions with several groups of teenagers and passers by.

Sometimes its hard 'just' having conversations with people without seeing any results of fruit in peoples lives at first, though we all must take comfort that it is God who gives the increase, with Jesus getting all the glory, thanking him he would even use us, as weak and helpless as we are, to spread the good news with the lost!

 

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Hi, my name is Matt Rolfe and I am a 27yr old youth worker and care worker from Plymouth, UK. This is my first blog update since joining the ministry of operation513, and a bit longer than will normally be just to explain how I have gotten involved with operation513..

I am very privileged to have been asked to come under the umbrella of this ministry team. Conversations started in January when Josh Williamson and Peter Webber came for the evangelism outreach to the UK, and both stayed at my house during their time in Plymouth after making contact through Facebook.

I am a born again believer, would say im on middle ground in relation to being a Calvinist or an Arminian, having been a Church goer all my life, and a professing Christian since secondary school, though realising in October 2007 after a difficult divorce when I found my X-wife had committed adultery, that I was not actually saved, and unfortunately neither is she.

I came across the book 'The way of the Master', purely by chance (or what I thought at the time). When I was confronted with the true extent of my sin in the mirror of the 10 commandments, I saw my lust as adultery of the heart, and cried out to God in my car, sobbing over my sin against him, but then seeing the depth and kindness of his love and mercy in sending Jesus to die in my place, while I was yet a sinner, and put my trust and faith in him.

Everything in my Christian walk has changed since then, including regularly going out onto the streets of Plymouth in Devon witnessing to teenagers, adults and even with some Sunday morning church goers who do not understand the gospel fully due to the lack of true Biblical preaching here in Plymouth. I have also since found a great Bible believing Baptist Church which I attend, and have met others there who understand the law before grace principles, which so very few here in the UK do. I have used tracts from Ray Comfort and other ministries to approach people, especially the mdb's my favourite, and asking people if they had any change, then to converse with them in many different places. I have also helped lead a WOTM training course which has been great, and now help co-lead a group of about 6-8 Christians on and off with witnessing and open air preaching.

The vast majority of Churches in Plymouth are apathetic to evangelism and the need for the gospel to be preached, but seem to do everything else BUT preach the gospel to people. We have soup runs, healing on the streets, street pastors and all sorts of mission groups, but so many are offended at the thought of preaching at people. I have been told by a Christian that we shouldnt go out telling people that they are a sinner, a leader of street pastors said they dont go out there shoving Jesus down peoples throats, that God is Love and so we shouldnt be speaking to them about his wrath, and there are even ministers in Plymouth who believe a loving God would not create such a place called hell, or that Jesus is the way to God, but that there may be other ways to heaven?"*^!!! This is what our group is up against, just from inside the Church!

In October 1998, I was involved in a hit and run, a pedestrian on the pavement hit by a stolen car along with 3 other friends. After different operations and stays in hospital, I now have 2 big 'shark bite' looking scars on my leg, and God has really used this to show people how short life is, as so many people just assume they will die peacefully in their sleep of old age. I told them I would have thought the same the day before my accident, and looked what happened to me, and so using fear in a positive way, like seat belt commercials, its been a great witnessing tool!

I was fortunate enough to meet Ray Comfort and his ministry in Los Angeles last year, and also managed to visit New York for an evangelism holiday. I am thoroughly looking forward to the mission trip in London next week, and the chance to do much studying of the scriptures, fellowship and encouragement with other like minded Christians.

Saturdays outreach- Shirley and me preaching

On Saturday 4th July, we had a group of about 8 of us, including a good mate Wayne who goes out with his family evangelising, and joins our group when he can. People in our group were giving out gospel tracts, and Wayne had his prayers answered for one good conversation that day, and he found it with a man who really wanted to know more and took some literature from Wayne.

I was first to preach on our new 3 tier step ladder, a bit scared of PCSO's walking past, but managed to speak about truth and where we get our morality from, explaining that Atheists have nothing to base their morality on apart from the Bible, that the moral law of the 10 commandments was written on our hearts by God, showing us what truth is, that there is a moral law giver outside of our society, and explaining how our good works cant pay our fine.

A few young people commented, but as usual most people walk past with their heads in the sand like ostriches.

Shirley then started to preach on Independence day and the gospel, while I approached some teenagers with a 'Drag me to Hell' tract that Shirley had made. Shirley has made lots of good 'Law before Grace' tracts with her laser jet printer that are relevant and yet scripturally clear, which also saves some money. The young person I spoke with seemed a bit concerned after I went through the law with him that his final destination deserved to be hell, but was hard at times explaining the good news to him with lots of other young people interrupting and causing havoc all around, as per usual in the city centre on weekends.

Later on after Shirley had spoken, we saw a man approach us who had been listening in to our preaching whilst sitting on a wall. He was 30 and called James, and had some background with spiritualism and the occult. He said he was spiritual, but would that be enough to get him into heaven. When I explained to him that there is only one true living God, the God of the Bible, and that the only way we may be forgiven and enter heaven is written in Ephesians 2 v 8-9, by grace, through faith, it seemed to make sense to him.

Afterward I asked if he wanted to pray and to get right with God then, which I don't usually do, which he did, and so he prayed silently after explaining some things, and then I prayed against the demonic activity he had in the past, and that he would put his trust in Jesus, the God of the Bible. He took lots of literature including a gospel of John and a contact card, so hope God has saved him and that his life will dramatically change.

Later on that afternoon I got out my Ray Comfort 'Good person test' sheets to see if anyone thought they were a good person with our microphone. I approached 3 young marines, and one was brave enough to have a go, with his friends watching on in the background. He listened intently and was very humble and sincere in the questions he asked, along with his friends.  A few people stopped to listen as well, and the 3 lads took tracts from me and a gospel of John, which was very encouraging. They knew they would be out there on the front lines, and would have to deal with death, and so the brevity of life hit home with them.

The Jehovah Witness selling balloon man was quite quiet today, as he sometimes phones the Police and makes false allegations against us to get us ruffled. I managed to have another conversation with 3 teenagers who attended a Catholic school, and who didn't think it was right we should be out there recruiting people by scaring them into believing because of the threat of Hell. I explained to them the reasons we speak about hell, and how it doesn't make sense without the use of the Law first, and so took them through the commandments to hope they would see why Hell would be reasonable. I gave them some tracts, and they have since added me on Facebook. One turns out to be gay, and so may be good to chat with him again, as this may be a stumbling block for him.

 

Were hoping to be out again in 3 weeks, and pray that we would remember as long as we are faithful in our gospel proclamation according to Gods word, we may sow, others may reap, but it will be God who gives the increase!

Romans 10 v 14-17... So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

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