Battle Log

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Riverfire is one of the busiest night of the year in Brisbane where thousands flock to the city to watch fireworks. Operation 513 kindly donated 16,000 gospel tracts for handing out during the event.

To God be the glory!

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Saturday, 12 October 2013

It has been a few weeks since I have been out on the street witnessing. The reason for this is quite simply fear. I have been afraid of hitting the streets again after two arrests. However, today, I headed over to Glasgow to meet up with a few guys for an afternoon of witnessing. 

When I arrived in Buchanan Street I was immediately struck with how noisy and busy it was. People were everywhere, and many of the best preaching spots were taken up with buskers. After walking the length of the street, Noman and I found a spot that would serve the preaching well.

Noman was the first preacher up. As he preached I handed out tracts and engaged a couple of people in discussion. During this time two police officers walked past, and my heart missed a beat. But, these officers clearly knew the law, as they allowed the preaching to continue. 

During this time a lady approached me to tell me her story. It turns out that four years ago she was on the streets, addicted to drugs and living rough. One day she heard an open-air preacher declare “Jesus gives freedom”. That is all she heard, and she actually scoffed at him. However, that was the seed which the Holy Spirit would use. The lady told me that she could not get those words out of her mind, and eventually it brought her to a place of repentance. She has now completed Bible College and is setting up a ministry to help homeless women. She thought she’d share this with us as an encouragement.

After this I was approached by a man that I had never met, but I knew who he was. His name is Tyler McNabb. Sadly, Tyler is now an apostate. He has forsaken the truth, and followed after Roman Catholicism (James White mentioned him here). 

Tyler wanted to know why we were preaching in a different location as he had been waiting for us elsewhere. I knew that Tyler was going to be out that day, but Noman and I decided that we would not fellowship with darkness. After speaking for a few moments, Tyler extended his hand to me. I replied that I would not be extending the right hand of fellowship to apostates. 

This set his wife off. She decided to come down and tell me that God is Love and I wasn’t very nice. I replied by pointing out what the Scripture says about apostasy, and how she needs to repent. Tyler interrupted at this point, and said, “I want to have a rational discussion.” My answer was, “I want to have a Biblical one.” With that they left. Please pray that the Lord converts them. 

After Noman finished preaching, I stood up to preach. I spoke about how Jesus needs to be lifted high as he alone is Saviour. I only spoke for about twenty-minutes, and then handed over to Craig to preach. 

Craig is from Glasgow, so he sounds like the people we are trying to reach. His accent actually drew the attention of the people. They stopped to listen, and some even began to heckle. Craig did a good job in answering their objections and pointing people to Jesus. 

Overall it was a good day in Glasgow. Quite a few conversations were had, and many heard the Gospel. Please pray the Lord softens hearts. 

Soli Deo Gloria! 

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South-East England (UK) Team

Romford was teeming with people today we I approached the high St.  We were blessed with good weather this Saturday and prayed it would continue as such.  Todays team consisted of Chuck, Jacob, Jacob's Pastor named Joe, Mario who was a newbie and Myself.  We set up and prayed for the day and I began to speak.  I preached from Romans 1 about how all men know God exists and suppress this truth.  Eventually I had a gentleman heckle me who was wearing a nice suit.  I soon recognized that he knew the Bible fairly well but accused me of not telling the truth about Sabbath worship.  Eventually he confessed to being a Seventh Day Adventist who had recently been at church.  

His major argument rested on this type of statement -

If (P) Jesus said the Sabbath has changed, then (Q) it would have changed.  (~P) Jesus never said the day changed,

Ergo  (~Q) the day of worship must be Saturday.  

This is the fallacy of denying the antecedent - If P, then Q.   Not P.  Therefore, not Q.  (I have also heard JWs and Muslims use this line of reasoning in denying the Deity of Christ).  

Needless to say when this error was pointed out to the gentlemen he didn't like it and rather than concede that his reasoning may be at fault he just continued to talk over me and not engage in dialog.  Instead I decided to move on swiftly and continue preaching the Gospel and by that time my crowd had tripled in size, Praise God!  I concluded my message by explaining the need to repent and turn to Christ in faith as He is the only name by which we can be saved.  

Chuck preached too and I handed out tracts.  A number of Christians were very encouraged by the preaching.  The other team members were also busy chatting and handing out tracts to the public.  It was a good day of gospel proclamation and God showed us favor with the civil authorities and crowds.  SDG!! 

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Maroochydore and Mooloolaba 

It's been  hectic for several weeks now with the arrests and legal challenges we have been facing. We have all been arrested twice,  falsely imprisoned and had to make several difficult decisions regarding these things, however we as a team have decided to fight for our rights to political and religious freedom in Australia. I am going to avoid commenting on our current legal battle for the time being except to state that things are proceeding as expected and we are actively seeking to legally gain our civil liberties and freedoms on the Sunshine Coast. Please could I ask you to pray for our ministry and the government and it's representatives at this time. 

This morning Ryan, Justin and I met early as we had been invited to attend a meeting with council.  We met and prayed and then we travelled to Nambour to the meeting with the council. The meeting unfortunately was as we expected and was really a waste of time and an opportunity again for the council to tell us how wrong our interpretation of the law was. We left upbeat thanking God that he would use this meeting to further His purposes. 

Due to bail restrictions we we unable to preach in Nambour today so we headed to Maroochydore and met with a friend named Michael. Michael is a local Christian businessman and a keen evangelist. Apart from most graciously providing lunch for us he also told us the best spots to preach and give out tracts in the area. So having enjoyed a meal and some fellowship we headed to the Plaza. We set ourselves up outside the Plaza and passed out many tracts and we all got involved in conversations. Ryan spent some time with three young lads, one of the lads said he was a Christian but his brother had talked him out of it of late. He seemed keen on finding out more and all four  had a long conversation together. The young men all said they would think about things some more after Ryan explained the good news to them.  As we were leaving and heading back to the car, I was giving out tracts and then I met with another young man who said he wanted to find out more as he was unsure about the Christian Faith. We talked about the ten commandments, sin and the coming Judgement followed of course by the good news. He was happy to take a free bible and an invitation to a Christianity Explored course invitation from my local church. Please pray that he will repent and put his trust in Jesus Christ and that he will read the bible and attend the course to find out more. 

We then headed for the crowds at Mooloolaba beach.  I started the preaching off reading from Romans 1, and talking about how although people know the truth of God they suppress that knowledge in favour of living selfish sinful lives denying all knowledge of God. I was near a large coffee shop and many people turned to listen to the message. I was approached by three "lighthearted" hecklers, who I had a fruitful conversation with. I pray the Lord left them with something more serious to consider than they had expected I ended the preaching with a call to faith and repentance, and also a thank you for listening to the captive coffee shop audience.  

We moved along the sea front giving out tracts as we went and finally we found a suitable location for Ryan to preach. As Ryan preached several business owners appeared claiming we were breaking the law. One particularly said he was a Christian but didn't think that Christians should disrupt business. Ryan continued as Justin and I talked to the business owners and passed out many tracts.  

Further along the seafront again Justin got up and preached. I could see several people actively listening to his message. Justin is much more softly spoken than Ryan or I, but he used his tone and knowledge of the scripture to full effect as people had to turn an ear to listen. I really enjoy listening to a gospel presentation from Justin and wish I could sometimes just sit and listen, but quickly Ryan and I both got into separate conversation with professing Christians. Of course anyone who professes to be a Christian is asked questions so we can be sure if they understand the gospel.  The young man I got talking to was very excited to hear the preaching and his gospel knowledge was sound. He was on holiday from NSW and was enjoying some family time in Mooloolaba. We talked about preaching and evangelism and he considered it very important personally which was of course a pleasure to hear. I pray as he grows he keeps this conviction and learns to actively share his faith. I pointed him towards some good free resources to look at when he got home. 

For me today has been an absolute privilege, I have enjoyed serving my Lord and saviour and working with Ryan and Justin who I love as brothers in Him. I thank and praise God for giving us all a day without hassle from the police or council as we preach and also for the many encouraging words and conversations we have had.   

SDG.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Watch the video battle log report from the night as we see some people let go of their atheism:

To God be the glory!

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One couple that we spoke to tonight were from the Revival Centres International and their beliefs were very contrary to Scripture. They thought that no one in the Old Testament was saved, they thought that baptism was a requirement for justification and that everyone must speak in tongues.

Soli Deo Gloria!

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What an immense privilege we as Christians have to speak with people about something that is of eternal value.

Here's a 4 minute video report from the night:

To the praise of His name!

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South-East England (UK) Team

The Operation 513 Team evangelized Basildon today and we were blessed with fabulous weather.  The team consisted of Rob, Chuck and Myself and a young man named Sasha who lived nearby and had contacted me through the website.  We set up and prayed.  This was Rob's first time in Basildon and it was his first outreach since coming back from Canada, therefore it was his job to start !!  Rob began to preach using his new amplifier which is very loud and clear; he was soon approached by a man who said "the ten commandments were great advice for life".  However, as Rob unpacked the commandments the Holiness of the Law began to expose the mans sin to which he began to get angry and walk away.  

As Rob continued more people gathered to listen and/or heckle.  A young couple came up and began to ask "why we were forcing our beliefs on people" etc.  Rob dealt with the arguments very succinctly and soon the girl confessed to being a pagan.  The conversation was cut short by a lesbian yelling that we were "judgmental", to which Rob turned the accusation against her and asked her not to judge us either.  Another lady asked about Bible translations and was thankful for the answers she received.  A girl named Sarah who grew up in a Christian home also had a number of good questions and the Gospel was preached to her.  Also a grandmother and her daughter and grandchildren came up and asked "the problem of evil question" relating it to specific events in their life.  Rob responded with empathy and decorum to which the grandmother kind of appreciated his response but her daughter was not interested.  

We eventually encountered a  "christian" lady who said we were not preaching the Gospel but preaching condemnation.  She was very frustrating and tried to stand infront of Rob and tell everyone that "God loves everybody and has wonderful plan for thier life".  It made me question if she had ever read Ps 5:5, 11:5, Mal 1:3, Rom 9:13 etc or the large number of passages that explain about Gods hatred and anger towards human wickedness and sin.  Anyways, Rob countered these foolish objections by reading John 3.16-20 which makes clear that God's love is for those who repent and those who do not repent are already condemed.

During the course of the afternoon many hecklers came and went but the content of the message had obviously offended the lesbian, because she called the police.  Soon enough the police arrived and questioned the crowd of angry bystanders who were telling all sorts of lies about us.  The police did not ask Rob to stop preaching but waited till he had finished before questioning him.  Eventually the police arrested Rob for breaching Section 5 of the Public Order Act claiming that he had used language that "caused harassment, alarm or distress".  Rob was taken to the Basildon Police Station and I called the Christian Legal Center for help.  Later that evening the CLC lawyer arrived and had an interview with Rob and the Police and all trumped up charges were dropped with no further action to be taken !!  

Rob was vindicated but felt vilified.  It does remind me of when Jesus tells His disciples "Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you" Matt 5:11-12.  By Gods grace we live to preach another day, Praise be to God!! SDG.

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We encountered a few very open people to the gospel on our outreach to the Gold Coast.

Watch the following two minute video battle log report from the night:

Praise be to the Lord of all!

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Nambour

Ryan, Justin and I met this morning and after traveling to Nambour we set straight to prayer. 

During the week, since our last outreach, we all received $550 fines in the mail, for preaching with an amplifier.  Over the last few weeks we have been meeting in Nambour under the peaceful assembly act. This act allows anyone to hold a public meeting on public land. The act also provides provision for the use an amplifier, so we know we are acting lawfully. We of course have all opted to attend magistrates court instead of paying the fine. 

So we set to prayer and prayed particularly for the council officers. We prayed that the Lord would give them an understanding of the local laws, and also that He would open their ears and soften their hearts to the gospel of our Lord and Saviour. 

Following our time of prayer we took it in turns to  preach and gave out tracts. Many people stopped to listen to the preaching and also to engage us in conversations. We met many who openly rejected Christ, but a few people today embraced the gospel and gave professions of faith. It always is a great privilege to see someone convicted by the Holy Spirit, to be repentant and to put their trust in Christ. 

Ryan had an interesting conversation with a man claiming to be a Jehovah's witness. Ryan soon released that this man was not completely following the watchtowers teachings and set about answering his questions and exposing his lack of understanding with the bible, you could see the man was thinking and not just rejecting the scripture. He said he would read the Bible and think more about it. Please pray that he will come to realise the error of the false teaching he has received and come to repentance and acceptance of Jesus Christ as his only saviour.  

I  particularly was uplifted today by the amount of Christians that stopped to thank us for sharing the gospel and to encourage us to continue. We are often criticized for sharing our faith openly in public, so it’s always edifying to hear support from our brothers and sisters in Christ. May I encourage Christians everywhere to just give a simple word of encouragement to anyone who stands up to share their faith, as it does uplift spirits and lead us to praise God and thank Him for the privilege of sharing His glorious gospel. 

As we approached lunch, we were approached by our local “regular” representative of the council, Matthew Bell.  He started by quoting the bible, Romans 13:1-7, which we thought was an interesting approach and very unusual for him. We did explain we were happy to submit to the authorities as we were in fact acting lawfully and in compliance with the laws, however we could not submit to officers who were acting unlawfully by continually stopping a lawful public assembly.  He offered us some forms to apply for a public assembly and stated they had never received our application forms. We happily showed him our proof of postage and delivery notifications regarding the said paperwork. He had already been to see the local police Senior Sergeant who had kindly told us he had received our applications a couple weeks previously. It seems that the council had lost our application forms. Thankfully Matthew was able to obtain copies from the very helpful senior sergeant at Nambour Police station and we explained we were happy for him to use those as originals under the circumstances.  Many thanks to the senior officer at Nambour police station. 

It now appears that Matthew and the council are happy we are acting under the peaceful assembly act, however he stated that they are still unhappy with our use of amplification and also our handing out of Christian gospel tracts. So it seems they don’t understand the application of this law either which again is no surprise.  So we will continue to preach and hand out tracts and God willing we will see what happens next. 

I think its so important to thank God for our religious freedoms in Australia. I have been preaching the gospel on the Sunshine Coast for some time now with no objections from Police or council, however since we have been preaching in Nambour we have encountered weekly opposition particularly from the local council office. One thing we must bare in mind is that we are not trying to be obstructive or to waste anybody's time. It is still a legal right in Australia for us to meet in public and to practice our religious and political freedoms. I personally feel as Christians we must stand to protect these freedoms as we are called to do so.

We are all commanded to share the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ and this is of utmost importance, but we must also protect our religious freedoms or we will lose them. May I please ask you to pray for the Sunshine Coast team particularly at this time, please pray that we receive the grace, strength and the wisdom we need to serve our Lord and to bring glory to Him.  

SDG. 

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