Battle Log

• Battle Log
• Page 162

We were blessed by today's outreach at Speakers Corner . Tim, Trevor and myself, by God's grace, each had an opportunity to preach.

Like last week, we weren't sure about the foot traffic, as the University students are on semester break. It seemed quiet at first as people were spread out and you had to walk to get to them. Then in mid sermon a whole crowd of approx 20 high school students going through a tour of the University walked past us, all listening to the preaching.

As they passed I was preaching on God's law. The point was made that we would be judged by a Holy God for every sin that we've committed. I expanded quickly on the 5th and commandment and how even those things that we've looked at on the internet, facebook, instagram we will have to give an account to God who is judge.

Then I preached Christ and Him crucified for sinners and as that happened some of the students asked and took our gospel tracts that brother Sam was handing out. 

May the Lord get glory from this work. 

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This afternoon the sky seemed to threaten rain as the team arrived but thankfully none came, except a couple of stray drops. The afternoon did come with a number of exciting conversations though.

An early conversation and a very sad one was with Roger. He declared that God did not exist. Then after the building, builder analogy he declared that God did exist, followed quickly by the statement, "He will let me into Heaven because I am a really good guy".

Roger, was so blinded by his sin and hatred of God that even when taken through the law he was unwilling to admit that God would find him guilty. Sadly at this he was left with a tract and encouraged to honestly read it.

Another conversation had soon after this was with Tristan. His mother was Jew by descent but non-practicing and at some point they had joined the Mormon church. They weren't overly religious but had gone to the Mormon church on and off during his childhood.

This was an interesting conversation as Tristan at first thought he would possibly go to Heaven but after hearing God's law and engaging with God's perfect standard he saw that no one in all of human history is good enough to get there. This then entered into a discussion about the Gospel and what God has done, so that the guilty and underserving can be forgiven.

Tristan later shared about some of his sins and he said he thought that he was too bad to be saved. It was explained that Jesus' sacrifice can save the most vile and wicked of sinners, because sin is primarily against God, and it was God's wrath satisfied at the cross.

He later went on to describe, that he probably wouldn't want a God that wouldn't let him live as he wanted. It was pointed out that this very thinking is the root of all sin. Sadly even though Tristan seemed to understand by the end of the conversation he wasn't (at this point) interested in God's offer of salvation. He rejected God's call to repent and believe.

Two other conversations were had with young men. One named Blake and the other Josh.

Blake said he liked the idea of reincarnation and explained his thoughts about the universe then with the simple building, builder analogy agreed that there must be a God. He heard the law, saw his sin, understood the desperate position humanity are in and heart the Gospel. 

It was a real struggle for him to understand that the Gospel called us not to be good and fix ourselves but to simply trust in God that He can pay for our sin and will fix us. It was explained four times but Blake seemed to understand it by the end! He also expressed and interest to trust in Christ, please be praying that He does and gets right with God, tonight!

Lastly a conversation was had with Josh. He had some Christian background and could declare that Jesus died on the cross for our sins but he didn't really understand what that meant. Through a lengthy discussion including an important one about how he was wrong regarding what God has said about salvation, Josh seemed to understand.

It was tough going through the conversation with many side tracks and misunderstandings but it seemed as if the Gospel was understood by the end. 

Please be praying for these four men that they would heed the call God has given them to turn in repentant faith and trust solely in Him and His accomplishments to save them. May they be humbled by God's Holiness and fall in love with Him!

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This afternoon at Woodridge was filled with some scattered showers and some Gospel conversations. As usual at Woodridge, there was the opportunity to converse with people we had chatted to before, as well as new people.

One repeat conversation was had with Afful. He had heard the Gospel a few weeks prior and had been challenged to make a decision. He was left to decide whether he would turn to Christ or continue in rebellion. Sadly Afful has still not turned to Christ. Again this afternoon the Gospel was reiterated and the importance of finding salvation in Christ was stressed.

He was left again, with an encouragement to read his Bible and to turn to Jesus. Please be praying that he does this!

Another conversation was had with a young man named Jake. He had a Christian background and had some Gospel understanding but his primary issue was that he just was non-commital. He sort of liked the idea but was more interested in living his own way and doing his own things.

This was another sad conversation as it shows the scary reality that you can grow up in the Church, understand the Gospel and yet be completely unchanged by it! May we never get so complacent that we forget the importance and seriousness of the Gospel.

A final and very exciting conversation was had with Aaron. Three years ago, on this day, a conversation was had with Aaron. It was on similar topics and had similar themes. Today, the Gospel was clearly shared with Aaron and he listened and understood. The importance of it being a gift to the underserving was stressed a number of times and Aaron said he understood.

Then some simple explanations and answers were given to a range of questions that he had. Some regarding events in the Bible, or things that he had misunderstood from the Bible. Others regarding why evolution is faulty and cannot explain life and a range of other things. It was an exciting conversation as Aaron understood and was left to ponder the challenged, "When will I turn and trust in Jesus?"

He is in contact with the team and will interact via email with any more questions. The first email was sent this afternoon to touch base and send some preliminary Creation resources.

Please be praying for Jake that he will heed the Gospel's call that he would turn and repent of his sin, finding salvation in Christ. Please praise God for the work he has done in Aaron's life up until this point and please be praying that this conversation will be a turning point where he decides to seek to understand God's Word and what God has said, rather than trying to work out this world by his own rationalisation.

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After the Re-Engage Conference many people were exhausted and there was a smaller team out than usual. That didn't stop the conversations though. After a day full of equipping the team were emboldened in their faith and ready to declare the glorious truth!

Hear Lee-Anne share about a conversation she had with a Muslim man who liked the idea of reincarnation.

And hear Natalie and Bekky recount how they shared the Gospel with a man named Amin.

Please be praying for those the team were able to speak to!

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This afternoon there was some cloud cover at Capalaba which kept the afternoon fairly cool. It seemed to keep the bus stop quieter than usual but thankfully there were still enough people around to speak with. 

One conversation was had with a lady named Elise. She had spoken to the team before and had been left to consider the Gospel. Sadly she hadn't surrender to Christ and therefore had chosen to reject it (by her passivity). She was once again reminded of the Gospel's summons, calling her to turn in surrender and faith to Christ. The wrath and love of God was re-iterated and she was one again encouraged to heed God's call on her life.

Another conversation was had with Emily. She was a few years out of school but said that she stopped believing in God after school. This information was referred to a number of times to help her realise that her disbelief in God wasn't intellectual but theological. 

She acknowledged that if God was to judge her by the Ten Commandments she would be guilty and deserve Hell. She even noted that no one would deserve Heaven. When asked how a sinner could be forgiven, she wasn't really sure. The Gospel was explained a number of times until she understood that it was a gift, that God gave to the undeserving not the worthy.

When asked when she would trust in Jesus she said she didn't really want to and reiterated that she didn't believe in Him. She was asked, "Which came first, you living your own way or you rejecting God's existence?" She responded, "I have lived my own way my whole life and I didn't reject God's existence until after I left school."

It was pointed out that this therefore is the order in which the events occurred, it wasn't that she disbelieved in God and then decided she could live her own way, rather, her desire to live sinfully came long before she tried to justify her rebellion through rejecting God's existence. She seemed to agree with this and was left with a final reminder and challenge that our only hope for forgiveness, salvation and right-relationship with God, is to turn in repentance and faith to Jesus.

A final conversation was had with three high school boys, Toby, Andy and Cain. Toby was distracted and quite uninterested, preferring to play on his phone rather than listening. Andy, was trying to argue about any and everything to try and defend his rejection of God and Toby was quietly but attentively listening.

The conversation was a simple and straight forward Gospel conversation, God created us, we rebelled against Him and His law (with specific examples), God hates sinners and cannot let the guilty go unpunished. Yet, God in history has stepped in so humanity can be forgiven. He came, lived perfectly, died sacrificially and rose victoriously so that all who surrender to Him may have life.

Toby was keen to live in sin and wasn't even the slightest bit interested in turning to Christ. Cain, thought only really bad people went to Hell and only really good go to Heaven, the rest just die. Andy thought anything that he could to try and disagree with the Gospel, even if it didn't make sense. The three took tracts and were strongly encouraged to turn from their sinful self-reliance and to find forgiveness in Christ.

Please be praying for Elise, that she would not put off trusting Christ any longer. Please pray for Emily, that she would heed the warnings and find her greatest satisfaction in Christ, rather than the pursuit of the things in this world. Finally, please be praying for Andy that God would humble him, Toby that he would be given a hatred of sin and Cain that he would turn to Christ for salvation.

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With Chris & Gloria coming from Adelaide for the occasion, the Lord had 9 on this team today. We operated a large flip chart on the eastern and another on the western side of the Point, plus the roving evangelists.

Many seemed so intent on celebrating the (commercial) 'fathers' day'. However, the Lord gave us some interesting  chats.

     - John, a young Dad and his lad were taken through the good news message but Dad could not grasp the Way. Later, another one of us was able to share the good news which he still did not get. When told that his answer to "Why should God let you into His heaven?" was incorrect, he wanted to know the right answer. He departed with the correct understanding and we ask the Lord to do His work of grace in him. His son returned at least twice because he had thought of some of his friends who needed to hear God's gospel.

     - Chris, a young woman, agreed with her sinfulness, guilt before God and that she deserved to be sent to hell. She also believed that Christ had suffered the wrath of God for her. However later she stated that she believed that God loved everybody. When she was challenged on the fact that only the Christian enjoys the inseparable love of God, Rom. 8:38,39, she could not define what sort of 'love' He had for those who died in their sins. It seemed to be a result of her R.C. upbringing. May she come to know what faith in Christ alone means.

     - Hayden needs prayer as he counts the cost of committing to Christ.

The list goes on. Let us pray until the last of His elect are brought into the one flock and then our praises will be 'out of this world' on the new creation. To Him alone we give the glory!

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On Friday night as the team headed to the Gold Coast there were some extra team members that joined us. They had flown in from other places (New Zealand and Adelaide).

Hear Glen share about a conversation he and Andy had with some young guys.

Hear Chris share about the blessing the night was and hear Gloria praising God for a conversation she had with a young man, she took through the flip chart!

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This afternoon in Sunnybank the team was out again. Over the past few weeks some new members have joined the team and it has been encouraging to see them grow in their boldness and understanding. Before each outreach the team commits to praying together, presenting our requests before God and asking Him to draw people to us. This afternoon there were a number of conversations that we very exciting!

A few shorter conversations were had with Frank, Zoe, Shaun and Ryan. They each had small issues or reasons that they disbelieved in God but after hearing the simple apologetic that buildings need a builder and therefore the universe needs a Creator they all were happy to engage with the Gospel and took tracts.

One longer conversation was had with Carol. She said she believed there was a God and said as long as she did the right thing God would be okay with that. The rest of the conversation was hard work. Due to the language barrier and many of the words (sin, repentance, faith, grace) being ones that she had never heard before, things had to be explained numerous times in different ways.

This conversation was a test of patience and endurance. It took six different explanations and almost five minutes to explain what sin is. But upon this understanding everything seemed to flow a little easier. Carol, in the end, understood the basics of Christianity and as the Gospel was being explained her bus arrived. Hopefully she understood it and will take the time to read the tract she was given.

Another team member was able to speak with a JW. This man has spoken to the team before and was interested to hear more. As usual this man said that there are only 144,000 in Heaven (misquoting Revelation 7). This opportunity was taken to bring out a Bible and to begin looking at the text of scripture. In the passage, it is clear that the "great multitude" are in the same location as the 144,000.

Continuing on from this some other important points were touched on. Most importantly that Jesus Christ is the Saviour, God in human form and the only hope for humanity.

Finally there was a Chinese lady named Goh. Goh was first asked about what she thought would happen to after she died but said she couldn't stop to talk and had something to do but promised to come back. A little while later she returned and continued to speak with Ann.

She explained that she had only been in the country for three months and had come over to be the bride of an older man. Through this conversation she explained the tough circumstances she is in regarding the situation with her husband.

Through this conversation and the sad circumstances, Ann was able to explain the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ. This lady had never heard it but understood it as it was gently and carefully explained. Over a lengthy conversation lasting over an hour Goh came to understand the Gospel and expressed a desire to have Jesus as her Lord and Saviour that very afternoon.

Praise God for the work He is doing in the hearts of those whom He calls! It was a joyful moment as Ann was jumping up and down with excitement and Goh was overjoyed. It was with much rejoicing the that team finished in prayer and headed off to their homes, praising God for His work in Goh!

Who would have thought that God would bring someone halfway across the world, so that they could hear the Gospel and be saved?

 

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These past two weeks have been fruitful in Warwick. Many people continue to approach the Bible table with questions and interest. It keeps showing us God is doing a mighty work. There has been many people, God knows each one. Here a a few to pray for. (We have decided as Warwick is a small town to only refer to people by initials so as to not embarass or dishonour them in anyway). 

I was asked to look after a dog while his owner went into the shop where I'm set up, then got to share the Gospel with his owner C afterwards. It was so nice to help him and then get the opportunity to share Jesus with him Praise God. I asked Permission if I could post a Photo of his doggy on our blog at the table. C said his dog H is well known in Warwick.

Pray for L and his carer A.

N is an elderly gentleman frustrated with the state of the world. He has been encouraged to trust Jesus and he took tracts.

Pray for M that his head knowledge of the Gospel will by God's grace give him new life by the power of the Holy Spirit's work in him. Pray for his brother S and nephews T & F as M helps them in their need. 

D wanted a Bible. She attends a local Church and goes to bible study. I had a short chat with her but she was in a hurry.

Pray for N who is a christian, pray for her daughter C who is a Jehovah Witness.

R who I have talked with before believes the Gospel and is having a operation soon.

Another R who says is starting to read his Bible every night! PRAISE GOD!

D a believer says he will help at the Bible table next week, answered prayer.

B and I talked with two men at the end of the day. They had beliefs that were not biblical. We planted seeds of God's truth.

Many tracts given out as well as Bibles as well conversations with locals and people traveling through. It has been such a blessing. It is a joy to share the Gospel and give tracts to remind them of the truth and to keep pointing them to Jesus and Eternal life and we pray each person be impacted and believe the Word of God to lead them to salvation. God knows each one.

Praise God for giving us the privilege to share in the ministry of reconciliation. All Glory be to God Alone!

Thank you so much for your prayers.

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This afternoon in Brisbane City a total of nine team members out! This enabled great coverage of the square and many people heard the Gospel as a result!

A stand out conversation was with Lachy and Maddi. The first thirty minutes were with Lachy. He was approached with the new tract and asked if he knew where he would go after he died. He went onto say that there are many options and ideas and many of them are probably right. This tied in perfectly with the new tract, so we looked at the first few questions on the front, clearly showing that there is only one right answer for each. 

Then turning inside the next question was considered, "Which religion is right?". Over the next thirty minutes many explanations and examples of why Christianity is the only true religion and why we as humanity desperately need Jesus as Saviour were given. A slow but careful theology was being built. All the while explaining why other ideas are each wrong and disagree with God. This was going well.

Soon afterwards Maddi came along. She had missed a lot of discussion but was slowly bought up to speed. She wasn't hostile but had a lot of ideas that disagreed with God. At one point, while Hell was being explained, the question was asked, "What would you do to avoid being alone?", to which Maddi said, "I would do absolutely anything! In fact most of our lives is based around us doing things so that people will like us and be with us". As Hell was explained as a place of isolation, separated from God and His good gifts, under His eternal punishment, Maddi said, "WOW! That is unfathomably awful, I definitely don't want to go there! When you talk with people you should start there and explain that!"

The conversation flowed over a range of other topics, mostly centered around why Jesus is required for salvation, how sin is as simple as living according to my ideas rather than God and a range of other details. The conversation drew to a close as Lachy and Maddi had to head off to grab some dinner but they remarked, "This has been a very worthwhile discussion! Usually no one ever wants to talk about the deep things of this life and wants to ignore them. Thank you for taking the time to talk with us!"

Please be praying that Lachy and Maddi will have understood the Gospel, will read the tracts they were given and will call out to God, in desperation, for salvation!

Another conversation which flowed on from that was with Ken. He declared to be an atheist/agnostic due to his study and had listened to almost 30 minutes of the prior conversation. Ken declared to have a basically comprehensive understanding of Christianity but sadly when asked three simple questions stated that Christianity was simply a set of rules, Jesus was just the role model and His death was to show us how we should live.

This was very worrying as it seemed that Ken must not really have been listening to the previous conversation as he had missed at least three clear explanations of why Jesus was not just a role model but was the only hope and Saviour for humanity. Ken admitted to having an Anglican background and was not willing to accept the idea that Christianity was salvation on the basis of Jesus' righteousness and sacrifice. He wanted to hold onto the idea that Christianity simply believed that Jesus is a role model and as long as we do good and follow him, we get to Heaven.

Please be praying that Ken's willful ignorance is overridden by God's love and that Ken will come to understand God's offer of salvation, not just intellectually but personally.

A final conversation was had with two young girls, they mostly just shared their own ideas, talked about what they believed and talked about how "science" had created this world and disproved God's existence.

The Gospel was present in the conversation and many attempts to explain it were made. One girl wasn't interested in it whilst the other seemed to understand but wasn't sure. 

Please be praying that these two will read the tracts they were given and seek to know God, rather than simply reject Him so they can live their own way.

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