Battle Log

• Battle Log
• Page 128

The cold weather has continued this last couple of weeks and while it means that some people stay away (mercifully it seems that we have warm weather opponents down here), there have been some great discussions and debates.

Time and again I am struck by the reality that appearances can be deceiving. I am often surprised by the people that respond to the outreach in Hobart CBD. Some that are very young will ably argue their case with grace and wisdom, whilst others who are twice their age and their so-called elders and betters cannot even manage rational discussion for 5 minutes. But likewise, there is zeal and passion to spare in some folks much older than I, when it is hard to get much more than a “meh” out of some 25-year-olds. People that look rough around the edges and very belligerent walk close by to murmur “keep preaching brother”, yet someone in a high-priced suit will spew foul language and threaten violence if the Gospel is preached any longer.

God is good and patient with me as always and continues to teach me to take people as they are and behave not based on how they appear. And likewise, He is teaching me to pray for people consistently, I have watched numerous blessed examples of people changed by the Gospel from violently opposed to loving and following the savior.

Some of the discussions we have had this last week:

Mr C. is a Buddhist and looking to go to Nepal to meditate, study and seek enlightenment for the next couple of months. He and I have discussed issues of faith and particularly the Bible many times before. It was good to see him again and have a chance to speak with him again. We both talked about the perspective of our respective faiths and there was a little debating back and forth. At the end I wished him a safe journey and hope that he is found by Christ on his journey of discovery.

Miss M. grew up in a theologically liberal Church and we talked for more than an hour about what the Bible has to say, what my Church teaches, what her family’s Church taught and what each represents. It was wonderful to be able to talk at length with someone who was obviously thinking deeply about these things. I encouraged her into the three most important Christian disciplines: Prayer, Bible study, and attending a faithful Church.

Mr Blue Coat came up whilst I was preaching and began to debate the Bible and science. There were many points back and forth; during the debate I attempted to show that atheists just like Christians believe the following: the universe was created from nothing (big bang), life’s beginnings are an inexplicable miracle (abiogenesis), that there is structure and purpose in the world, and that there is morality and dignity inherent in all people.  Having shown this (only in part I’m sure) I then pointed out that having no cause for any of these makes atheism a much less rational and more credulous option than Christianity that has a transcendent supernatural moral personal cause for all this. I urged him to consider these things and the almost shocking lack of support for atheism. I urged Mr Blue Coat and the others who had gathered to listen to put their trust in Jesus Christ who orders all of life and transforms our search for meaning, origin, and destiny.

Mr C. came after I had finished preaching and asked a perennial question, why do you do this? It is a question that I have answered before. It leads me to think of the thousands running headlong into hell, of the debauched dancing in the darkness as the demons gather, of the thoughtless sleeping as their spiritual house burns around them, of the rebels raging against the only one who truly loves, of sinners with soul cancer and no knowledge of the cure.

I think of these and the fact that many of them would never darken the door of a church. Then I ask, how can you not speak the gospel every chance you get?

Praise to Jesus Christ our Saviour who calls us out of darkness!

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South-East England (UK) Team

Operation 513 joined up with Sports Fan Outreach in Romford for outreach on the High Street from 10 AM to 5 PM. It was market day, so there were many people out and about.

It was a relaxed atmosphere that was great for preaching, conversations and tract handout. Bill Adams preached first for about an hour, followed Gerry Collins and then me. We did this twice by 3 PM.

A young man asked if he could touch my Gideon's Bible and I told him that he could have it. He was very chuffed and gave me a hug. I took a picture of him with Dorothy Boyett. I had long conversations with Terry, who became a Christian, having been born into a liberal Jewish family. Michael talked about the sudden death of his wife and his frustration with the glib answers he got from religious people. I spoke sincerely about the difficulty when one spouse dies, that older people may indeed be very lonely, but that Christ sustains us in old age. I pointed him to C. S. Lewis and his book on the bereavement of his wife, "A Grief Observed". Maybe it was enough to agree with Michael that bereavement is difficult and that C. S. Lewis came to the point where he could let go of his wife and love God even more for the experience of marriage late in life.

It started raining after 11:30 and the crowds dwindled, but it was a great day for outreach.

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Christchurch (NZ) Team

As I walked into the city this morning, I was looking for some motivation and I thought of one other religious group that is often in Cathedral Square, day in, day out, handing out their material.  It encouraged me.  If they can do it, so can I.

Low and behold, as I get to The Square - there they are.  I smiled.  This must be worth it - they wouldn’t do it if it wasn’t.

But as I write this, I realise how wrong my attitude was.  All the motivation I need is:

18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” 

ESV (Mt 28:18–20)

And yet, today was a day of great encouragement.  In spite of the cold and often cloudy weather, and the lack of people about (the market stalls didn’t even bother coming out today!), I had an almost constant run of Gospel conversations - especially in the first outreach from 11am till 1pm.  I couldn’t believe it when I looked at the time and it was already 1:07pm and time for a lunch break.

I was having so many conversations, I pulled out my phone to start writing down names so I wouldn’t forget to write about those conversations in this log.  And even as I was doing that, an atheist walked up to my flip chart and wanted to talk!  He was at a crossroads in his life.  All praise to God, the fish were jumping into the boat!

I’m looking at that list, and in the two hours before lunch, I had eight Gospel interactions.

I’ll give two very special highlights that jump out at me.  Both were connected to previous Gospel conversations I had earlier in the year.

The first was with two young people, and I could see they had a lot of hurts, both physically and in other ways too.  I approached them as they looked like friends (by the way they dressed) of two other young people I spoke to earlier in the year.  It was a place to start the conversation with.  And, indeed, they were friends - so I asked them to let them know I was praying for them.  But I cared for them too and wanted to share the precious message of eternal life.  One had a Christian background.  As I was sharing the Gospel, I could see him tearing up a little.

The second was with another young man.  I was incredibly encouraged to learn that this guy had been watching me out on the streets.  I could tell he was really wrestling with the Gospel and also with the way I dealt with life.  He is struggling with sin, and other life issues that I don’t need to talk about.

Oh, how my heart cries out for these people as I’m writing about them now!  How desperately do I want them to know the change that can come through the amazing grace of Christ.  I’m praying that they would be saved from sin and hell.

Due to the wonderful outreach before lunch, I decided to stay right where I was after lunch - instead of moving to the hospital.  And, although not as busy, I had many wonderful Gospel opportunities.  I open air preached.  And I had a wonderful opportunity to share with a man (pictured, walking away) from Myanmar (I’ve been on two short term missions there, and will be going again in September)!

I praise God for the encouragement I received on these two outreaches today.

Yesterday (Tuesday) I was again in Riccarton for outreach, and had three solid Gospel conversations with people.  But beforehand I had been letterbox dropping closer to the University.

As I was doing this, I had two opportunities to share the Gospel with students as they were walking past.  One of those students was particularly open and seemed impacted by the logic of the message.

So two wonderful days of outreach.  A good reminder to not be discouraged and to trust God as we step out to reach people.  He is working.  He is seeking and saving the lost!

Thank you for praying for and supporting the Christchurch Operation 513 team - we so need and appreciate it.
 

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On Monday as usual the team of four spent the afternoon in Capalaba sharing the message of God's offer of forgiveness for sinners to anyone who had time and was willing to listen!

There was an encouraging conversation with Zach, a young man who usually is a bit silly. At first he was with his friend and they were being very silly but it wasn't long and his friend left and Nathan started to engage. He saw that we know God exists, he saw the desperate position of guilt that he is in and he was taking it very seriously.

It was encouraging to see that Zach went from being silly to concentrating. It took him a little while to understand the gospel and even at the end although he seemed to be able to repeat back the answer it is unsure if he had fully comprehended it. Please be praying for another opportunity to follow up with Zach in the future to once again talk about the gospel and to challenge him to give up sin for Christ.

Nathan spoke to the team as well. His friend also was sitting with him when the conversation started but wasn't interested and walked away. Nathan on the other hand was keen and came to understand the simple and beautiful gospel to the point that he was moved and wanted to know more. When the gospel and the response was presented it took him three attempts to understand the simplicity of faith alone. When he finally understood he said that he would trust in Christ today.

He was warned of the cost and was challenged to consider if he really meant what he said about trusting in Christ. He was encouraged to read a Bible and to start attending a local Church. Please be praying that Nathan would be serious, that he would trust in Christ today and that he would start reading his Bible!

There was a man soon after named Kennedy who had spoken to the team around Easter time. He could still remember the gospel but said that he had not yet trusted in Christ. He was still living in and loving his sin. He was challenged this very day to trust Christ knowing that tomorrow isn't guaranteed!

Similarly a conversation with Monique took place. She too had spoken to the team before but had a little bit of trouble remembering how someone receives the gift of forgiveness. She was once again reminded and she too was challenged to trust in Christ. Sadly the conversation wasn't overly long as her bus arrived very quickly.

This was then followed by a chat with Erica. Erica started the chat by saying, "I spoke to you about three months ago", she said she couldn't remember much of the conversation but when asked about the way to Heaven could remember it. She then added, "Since our chat I've been going to Church every week". It seemed as though she had trusted in Christ alone for her forgiveness and was slowly growing in her love for and understanding of God!

Next up was Devin who said that all people who believe God exists will get to Heaven. He was then taken straight into the gospel and understood it without much effort. It seemed that he comprehended it and said that he would consider it. This was very different from Vladim who attends a local Baptist Church.

Vladim said that his goodness would gain him a place in Heaven and was show by God's law that his righteousness would not be enough rather that the only thing we earn by our lives is Hell. He didn't get to hear of Christ though because he was blind to his own sin and didn't want to talk anymore.

To add to the joy of the afternoon Fynn heard and understood the gospel as well. As the conversation took place a man nearby interrupted and started trying to butt in but quietened down quickly when he was ignored. Fynn on the other hand, despite having a Christian background came to understand that sinners are forgiven simply based on their faith in Christ and it has nothing to do with good works. Fynn understood and even asked some questions himself to clarify. He said he was excited to have a read of his Bible when he got home and was thankful for the chat saying that he would consider trusting in Christ today!

The man who had interrupted was approached and asked a question or two but showed that it wasn't really a problem with the conversation that he had, it was a problem with God. He didn't really have any answers to simple questions or any real arguments him simply said, "The Bible was written by men". God in His providence knew what was best and bought along his bus so that the conversation couldn't continue.

Over all it was an exciting afternoon where God glorified Himself through the simple proclamation of the gospel. Please be praying for those today who were reminded of or heard for the first time how a sinner can be forgiven!

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As Sunday nights have become a regular event more and more team members have been coming out. It has been exciting to see that there has been around ten members each Sunday night so far. What better time to come on out to preach Christ and Him crucified then after you've just had a ninety minute worship service, as a body praising God for who He is and what He's done. This week's outreach was exciting as again some newer team members came out with the intention of telling others what Christ has done!

An early conversation took place with Alva a tourist who was bold in her declaration that she does not want to believe in God. She was shown the law and her guilt but kept trying to defend that the things she had done aren't that bad. She saw the building builder analogy and said that it made sense but she doesn't want to believe in God. It was sad to see that she was so against God and was warned that it is exceedingly unwise.

The following conversation was with a young couple who at first were hesitant to stop because they didn't want to think about it but they ended up pausing and at first the shared that they don't think there is a God or an afterlife. Then they were shown how we know God exists, why this is a serious problem for us as God is good and must punish all evil, leaving us, if being judged based on how we've lived, deserving of and heading toward Hell. But then they heard the good news, that God in His kindness has offered a solution. He has come, paid the penalty sin deserves and all those who trust in Him will be forgiven of their sin because Jesus has paid for it!

What an joy to share. Keva and Claire heard this, were asked some clarifications questions and came to understand the gospel. They were then challenged with the cost of trusting in Christ and were encouraged this very day to consider it because they're not guaranteed tomorrow!

The following conversation was surprisingly even simpler! Dirasch and Miral an Indian couple said they sort of believed in reincarnation. They were shown how we know God exists and they agreed without argument. Then they were shown that God is good and they agreed, which then by implication left them guilty. They took a look at God's law and were humble enough without argument to acknowledge that they are in very serious trouble because they have lived lives of rebellion against God. They understood that the punishment can't be merely limited to this world but that there is a Hell punishment for sin.

This moment was taken to emphasise the problem with reincarnation, each life is filled with wrong actions. More and more sins. Which means, life after life one will just compile more and more sins that need punishment. In an attempt to avoid Hell the reality is they are just making it worse for themselves. They agreed with this and saw that extending the amount of lives one has will never atone for sin.

Then they heard the glorious good news, better than a self-hope that over 80,000 lives one may be able to perfect themselves rather that God in His love has done it all so that those who by faith in Christ accept the gift of forgiveness are made right before God because He has paid the penalty for their sin and provided the perfection required to stand in the presence of God!

Dirasch and Miral got the simple response to the gospel, that all one must do is trust in Christ to receive forgiveness and then they were shown what it will cost them. That although the gift is free trust in Christ may cost them many things. They understood and said that today they are going to trust in Christ! They mentioned they'd been given a Bible in Byron Bay a little while back that they would read and they were encouraged to attend a local Church!

Praise God for His mercy and kindness toward all those tonight heard the gospel! Please be praying that those who heard the truth, read the truth or were even asked simple questions would not be able to rest until they are right with God! May this exposure to the gospel be a pebble in their shoe that they must deal with as soon as possible!

Why not consider coming out one Sunday night, you'll be glad you did!

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On Saturday the rain came as the day went on and by the time for outreach came Brisbane had been thoroughly soaked. This meant there were fewer people around than usual. There were also showers coming on by which meant most people were dashing off somewhere between showers, whilst it was dry. So the evening was a little harder going than usual but this didn't stop the conversations. There were still plenty to go around, it was just more work to start them.

An early conversation took place with Ray. He walked up near the table and was asked what he thought happens after we die. He shared that he though he'd go to Heaven because he is a good guy. He was taken through a simple gospel presentation and came to understand that his goodness is not enough and in fact that his life means he deserves Hell. Ray was quite surprised and yet was not trying to deny this reality he took it seriously.

Then he came to understand how a sinner can be made right before God. He took a couple of different explanations to fully comprehend the simplicity but when he understood it was exciting to see the joy on his face! He asked if there is a local Church he could head along to and was encouraged to read the gospel of John. He took one and said that he would! Please be keeping Ray in your prayer so that he may trust in Christ, turning to live for Him and start attending a local Church!

Due to the rain coming the team were mostly limited to under cover areas which had a decent amount of foot traffic but a young couple stopped and started chatting. Ben and Sophie were their names. Ben wasn't sure what happens after death and came to agree that he likes sin. He was shown the judgement sin deserves and therefore his current eternal destiny if he does not trust in Christ and then was able to understand the comprehend the simple gospel. He sadly was taken away before some serious cost counting and challenges could be raised but Ben was reminded that his eternal destiny is based upon his response to what Christ has done.

Sophie his friend said she had a great hatred for God because of her family who had treated her very poorly when she came out as homosexual. She was shown that we cannot blame God for the actions of other people but should hear what God himself has said. She saw the kindness of the team that we weren't out to get her, to single her out and to proclaim how much worse she is. But she also wasn't just ignored and it wasn't pretended that her sin isn't sin. Like everyone else she saw through the law that she was a sinner deserving of Hell and came to understand that even if she wasn't a homosexual she was still heading to Hell.

It wasn't her specific expression of sin that caused her to deserve Hell but the reality that she is a sinner. She settled down and seemed to be understanding and was being shown the gospel until she got a phone call and had to leave. At the end they both had received some news. Ben heard the good news of forgiveness in light of the bad news of judgement and Sophie saw the actual news of God's judgement but didn't get a chance to understand the good news.

But in their final parting comments she shared that she wasn't really interested in "changing" anything about her life because she wants to keep living her way. Please raise Ben up before God that he would humble himself and come to God on his terms, trusting in Christ for his forgiveness. Please be praying for Sophie that she would stop trying to justify her sin but that she would comprehend the desperate wickedness of rebellion against God and turn to Him alone for forgiveness!

There were a few other scattered conversations over the course of the evening. One exciting one was with Jason who had spoken to the team before and was able to simply explain the way to Heaven! It was exciting to see that he still remembered the simplicity of justification by faith alone and that this will always be evidenced by a changed life. But when asked when he will trust in Jesus to pay for his sin he wasn't sure. He was then encouraged strongly to count the cost and consider it tonight because he may never receive another opportunity to think about it!

Jason said that he would. Please be praying that God would have worked in Jason's heart and brought him to believe, not just know about the gospel!

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Our Lord gave us a glorious winter's afternoon to serve Him. There seemed to be more than the usual number of people not wanting to engage with team members. However, our Lord gave us those He wanted to hear something of their desperate need for His salvation:

     - please pray for 2 young teen-aged girls whom Lee-Anne had a chat with. They parted with the declaration that they would respond today. 2 Tim. 2:19. 

     - pray also for a young 'scientist' type who stated that she did more good than Lee-Anne whom she had never met before. Yes she needs a new heart for even if her assertion was true (and it is impossible to please God without faith, Heb. 11:6) God does not mark on a curve, Mt. 5:48, and furthermore, God judges the Christian's works with respect to 'rewards', not salvation.

     - Ryan had a chat with a young guy and girl who had been educated in a Christian school but did not know the gospel. She was receptive but he was too busy judging God by his own standards to be concerned that God 's wrath is on him right now.

     - at the close of our time, Railee and I were special recipients of encouragement from Lamey and Christine. They arre Coptic Christians from Egypt and knew what God in His rich mercy had done to save them from their sins. They were warmed to see fellow Christians declaring the praiseworthy deeds of God. They related how the normal treatment of Christians in Egypt was to be treated as second grade citizens. Then they encouraged us not to stop doing what we were doing because persecution, in some form,  is normal for Christians.

As usual, we left that corner of the mission field rejoicing and praising God. Will you add your praises to ours for as the Scriptures boldly assert: "Worthy are You, our Lord and God... Worthy is the Lamb who was slain...,Rev. 4:11 + 5:12."

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South-East England (UK) Team

Operation 513 joined up with Sports Fan Outreach to hand out tracts, have conversations and preach to the crowds going to the International Cricket match between India and Australia this morning at The Oval in London. A young man from Portugal named Ruben was a bit inebriated, but he kept asking us questions for quite a while. I took a picture with Ruben talking with Bill Shank. Bill was with me  for SFOI and he began by singing "The Old Rugged Cross" and preaching to the crowds going to the game. One fellow pointed to the Oval and said, "That is my church". I took over the preaching chores as the crowds peaked leading to game time. I used Mark 10:45 again to summarize the Gospel. I asked "How do you define greatness?" Jesus defines greatness as being the servant of all.  Not only that, he came in to this world to give his life as a ransom for many.  Since Karma means debt, I said that Jesus came to pay the debt, your Karma, so that you don't have to pay it. (That turned a few heads, Bill told me.) I saw very few Australia fans, but many Indian fans. I was handing out a tract by Voddie Baucham about "Life's Ultimate Questions", since so many Indians are practicing atheists.  Kuldeep took such a tract and promised to read it at home.  I handed out two NT's.  I gave one to Ian, but the first fellow's name escapes me.  

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Christchurch (NZ) Team

A fascinating weekend.

It was a cold and dreary Saturday morning.  I wasn’t expecting many people to be about - and I was right.  But the team of two set up in Cathedral Square any way.  We cast out our nets and prayed for fish.

We had to be patient, but to my joy, the fish came!  The outreach was even slightly extended in time, as I finished up the final conversation at the end.

The other team member is fairly new to regular outreach (although we have known him for a while).  He has now bought his own tracts and is stepping out to share them with people.  It is so wonderful and encouraging to see him so politely reaching out to people as he can.  Be encouraged reader - you can do this too. :)

The funniest thing happened as I was doing some letterbox dropping afterwards.  It was cold with a nasty wind, so I was rugged up with sneakers, jeans, a jacket, scarf, gloves and a beanie (all dark in colour).  But the sun was out also, so I had sunnies on too.  I walked into a drive to drop tracts into a few boxes, and I noticed a car backing away from me.  I moved on, but I heard the car stop, rev it’s engine, and come down to the end of the drive.  I turned back, and the man in the car was staring at me.  I thought that was odd - I wondered if he wanted a Gospel tract, so I held one up.  He just stared at me.  So I walked over to him.  He wound down his window and asked what it was.  As I was explaining, he took one.  Then he said, “oh, I thought you were a burglar”.  :D  Inwardly I was laughing!  I’ve taken a mental note to be careful how I dress through this winter of outreach! ;)

Sunday morning saw our regular church meeting where we had some special encouragement.  We had two seperate sets of Christian’s turn up who had heard about what we had been up to on the streets.

One man I’ve never seen before came to give us encouragement and advice in how to outreach to a particular cultural/religious group.  He gave us some resources in relation to that.  He couldn’t stay, I assume he had to get to his own local church gathering.  But I was so encouraged that people are noticing what we are doing - as small and insignificant as we are.  I, afresh, feel a responsibility to continue to represent Christ well.

Another couple joined us for our meeting, and it turns out they have been heavily involved with Gospel + abortion outreach in Christchurch for many years.  They had heard about us through a friend.  Word is getting out.  Our efforts are reaching people.  All glory to God.  We pray that God will continue to use us to see souls & lives saved in the fight against abortion in our city.

After church, a team of four headed to Cashel Mall.  And it was a busy time of outreach, with many people about in the crisp, but sunny weather.

I set up my flip chart, looked up, and a guy came up wanting to know what it was about.  It turns out he was a Christian handing out million dollar tracts!  He seemed so encouraged to see other Christians out sharing the Gospel.  We had a good talk, and exchanged contact details.  He stayed with the team for the rest of the outreach.

To end the outreach, we headed to Speaker’s corner in Cathedral Square.  Andy & I decided to open air preach as a tag team.  I covered the bad news, and Andy did the good news.

And the Lord blessed us with a hecker.  A really good heckler.  As we interacted, a few people started to gather to listen.  It was incredibly encouraging for a novice like me.

As Andy preached the good news, a guy mockingly (yet light heartedly) circled him on his scooter (pictured), while his mates videoed it on their phones.  No problem with us, as they are hearing the vital message of the Gospel!

After Andy had finished, Greg was so encouraged, he decided to get up and preach as well, and had some wonderful opportunities to interact with people (pictured).

So, a very very encouraging weekend of outreach.  If we are patient, and faithful - God will use us for His glory.  Do something!
 

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This Friday in Cavill Mall on the Gold Coast the temperature was up ten degrees from last week and there were a lot more people out. It was busier evening at times but the showers of rain emptied the area on and off over the night.

Thankfully there were still many conversations that took place and the eight team members out were able to lead a range of people to a place where they now know how a sinner can be forgiven.

There were two Indian ladies, both named Acsheena who heard the gospel and came to understand how they can be forgiven. They said they'd never heard it before and were grateful for the information but sadly that was all that it seemed to be to them. They didn't seem moved by their sin and they didn't have a hatred for it. They just seemed happy to keep living their own way. They were warned and took tracts but were encouraged to think on this more as eternity could be right around the corner.

In this video you can hear Ben sharing about how the night went generally and Grace sharing about an exciting conversation that took place with a Muslim man named Abs. He was mostly unwilling to hear as he quite consistently wouldn't respond with an answer but would just try and say something else when asked questions.

In the end he too understood the gospel and took a gospel of John to have a read of but whilst firmly believing that Islam is true he showed many times his failure to keep the laws even by his words and actions through the conversation.

Why not take the opportunity this coming week to join the team?

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