Thank Your Instructor
How does God go about calling and saving lost sinners? By using His disciples as they proclaim the power of the Gospel through His Word. Isaiah 55:10-11 says: “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” God’s Word is the seed that the disciple of Jesus sows into others. Just as the rain and snow are not wasted but somehow accomplish His purposes, God’s Word never fails. Rain and snow come from above and do not return to the heavens without accomplishing their intended purpose. God compares His Word to the rain and snow because God’s Word always fulfills His purposes. We never know how God will use even a simple word of witness to plant and water the seed in somebody’s heart. I recently received an email from Richard. I shared the Gospel with him around 1995, and I never heard his testimony until he sent this to me recently. His email reminded me of Galatians 6:6, which states: “Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor.” I was blessed to hear his testimonial and encouraging words. He sent this to me: Hello Jim, this is Richard from Jacksonville. I wanted to send you a message to say thank you. In a recent church small group, we were encouraged to send a note to someone that shared the Gospel with us. And I’m not sure if I have ever shared with you that you were the first to share the Gospel with me. It was at an FCA event at Fletcher High School. My sophomore year. At the time, I was going to play basketball and eat pizza. And remember thinking it was cool that a pastor would play basketball with us. You shared the Gospel with me when we sat down to eat pizza. It was the first time I had heard that God wanted to have a relationship with me. That night I did not raise my hand because I believed I was already going to heaven. But I remember talking to God and telling him that if I could have a relationship with Him, I wanted to have that. Only a few years later, I realized that was the first moment I accepted the Gospel and could see how God changed my heart and desires towards Him. And from that time, I sought more Christian fellowship and read my Bible to learn more about Jesus. I have shared this as my testimony and in my sermons for many years. I don’t know that you have ever heard that. So, I just wanted to thank you for being so faithful to share the gospel action and its words!” I wonder how many Christians share the power of the Gospel through the Word with others. According to a recent Christian Post article; not too many: A recent poll finds that two-thirds of American Christians don’t know any methods for telling others about Jesus. Most American Christians want to share their faith. Still, only a minority have encouraged others to embrace Jesus Christ in the last six months. According to new data released by Lifeway Research, more than 6 in 10 believers don’t know any methods for telling others about their faith in Christ. However, 52% of Americans who identify as Christian believe that encouraging someone to change their religious beliefs is “offensive and disrespectful,” and 66% of Christians are not familiar with any “methods for telling others about Jesus.” The survey also revealed that 70% of Christians have not shared with others how to become a Christian in the past six months. Go & Tell Ministries exist to equip the church to share the Gospel and make disciples who make disciples. I always share at our Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop that believers take this class for two reasons: First, to learn how to tell others the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The second reason usually surprises people. They take the course because someone has told them the Gospel and they had repented and professed faith in Jesus. I then have everyone in the seminar share the first name of the person most responsible for sharing the Gospel with them. I was truly blessed to receive Richard’s note of thanks for sharing the Gospel many years ago. God’s Word is true, and His Word will not return empty but achieve the purpose He has for it. Richard’s word of affirmation gave me a renewed passion for continuing to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with others, trusting it will achieve His intended purpose and that He will use it for His glory. Romans 10:17 says: “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.”
Coffee Devo: ‘The Day of Salvation”
45 years ago today, I repented of my sins and professed faith in Jesus and became a child of God (John 1:12). Thank you, Jesus, for drawing me to You and being born again! John 3:3 “Jesus answered him, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 2 Corinthians 6:2 “ 2 Corinthians 6:2 (NIV)“For he says, “In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.”
August Newsletter for Go & Tell Ministries
The Christian Post recently stated, “Two-Thirds of American Christians don’t know any methods for telling others about Jesus.” Go & Tell Ministries exist to equip the church to share the gospel and make disciples who can disciples others. We rejoice in how the Lord is blessing the ministry to equip believers to Delight in God, Declare the Gospel, and Disciple others. Check out our August newsletter to see how we are raising up workers for the harvest field (Matthew 9:35-38)! Click on this link to read the August newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/goandtellministries/go-tell-ministries-august2022-newsletter-14151779
Summer Newsletter for Go & Tell Ministries
Two years ago, I preached my last sermon at Community CRC and retired from the pastorate. It has been one year since I retired from teaching special education at Southwick Elementary School to serve full-time with Go & Tell Ministries. I did not envision where Go & Tell Ministries would go two years ago, and I praise the Lord for where He has led and is leading for His glory. Click this link to read the Go & Tell Ministries summer 2022 newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/goandtellministries/go-tell-ministries-summer2022-newsletter-13866463
The day his heart rejoiced!
“Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love..” Ecclesiastes 9:9a We are celebrating our fortieth wedding anniversary this month. I still remember the joy of seeing my lovely bride walking down the aisle to become my wife. I call my beautiful wife, Kristi, the delight of my eyes. We have been blessed with a solid and committed marriage. We rejoice with our three beautiful children and delight in our two granddaughters. But it almost drastically changed some twenty years ago. Kristi’s eyesight had progressively and noticeably weakened for several months. An ophthalmologist suggested she needed more than a new eyeglass prescription. He told us she had a brain tumor. Of course, we did not immediately accept the grim news, but after a local brain surgeon made his diagnosis, we asked what he could do to repair the problem. How I look at life is that if there is a problem, we can fix it. But we did not like his method of repair. He told Kristi that the procedure would be to open her skull, move her brain, remove about 50 percent of her tumor, then follow up with radiation. Even then, she could suffer brain damage and may not regain her sight. The tumor was benign, but it was growing. Of course, we did not want to accept that suggestion, so we consulted two other experts who told us the same thing. We did not like what we heard. Unhappy with the information we received, I felt that I, as a pastor at the time, had to take some action. The one option we had received from three different, highly respected specialists was not what we wanted to accept. At our church, we held healing services on the second Sunday of the month. I arranged a healing service for Kristi and began a week of fasting and praying to prepare for the anointing. I had high expectations for the service; however, it was poorly attended, and I felt no sense of God’s presence. Nevertheless, I anointed Kristi. I had expected God to do a great work. I saw nothing to indicate that he had done it. I was disheartened. I was angry. I had spent a week fasting, feeling God beside me, feeling certain this would culminate in healing from the hand of God, but I could not see or feel his presence during the healing service. I felt let down and abandoned. The excitement I felt during the week while I fasted turned to anger after the healing service. Later in the day, I expressed my anger with God to Kristi. I told her I had acted and thought God was with me, and I had fasted, prayed, and anointed her. What more could I have done? I had done my part to heal my wife, but God’s presence was missing at the healing service. I expressed my intense anger to Kristi. After unloading my disappointment on her, I asked Kristi how the service had gone for her. She looked me in the eye and, in her sweet tone, said,” “All I know is that no one would have done for me what you have done” I took solace in that, even though God did not meet her needs in the way I wanted, He did help me to meet those of my wife. Still, after all my prayer hours, I could only wonder,” “Where was God’s answer?” And then it came. Kristi’s sister, Amy, a registered nurse, found a doctor through online research who invented a non-invasive procedure that could remove the tumor, cut through the eyebrow, did not move the brain, and did not require radiation follow-up. We contacted Dr. Hrayr Shahinian, director of the Skull Base Institute in Los Angeles. We made an appointment for Dec. 28. On Christmas Day, we said goodbye to our three children, then ages 15, 8, and 6, unsure what would happen, and flew to L.A for brain surgery. We felt a sense of peace when we met the doctor. He was personable and confident. He told us three things: “I’ve never lost a patient. Have great calmness of heart” I think your eyesight will be restored to what it was before you started having eye problems. Bring your glasses to surgery so we can test afterward” and” “I will do my best to keep the pituitary stem. There is only a 30 percent chance of loss; if the function is lost, medicine will correct the problem” “Kristi’s surgery lasted from 5:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Afterward, Kristi put on her glasses, and they worked. Dr. Shahanian told us he had removed 99.9 percent of the tumor, and it was gone. While Kristi recovered in our hotel room, I took walks to give her the quiet she needed. One day I was walking down Via Rodeo in Beverly Hills, marveling at the luxury and wealth around me. The Lord brought to my mind the song” “The Via Dolorosa”-The Way of Suffering”). I began to sing the song to myself when God nudged me if I would choose to have riches or if I would take the way of suffering. The Holy Spirit took over my being, and I replied that I would follow and serve Him wholeheartedly, even if it meant traveling the way of suffering. If I had not felt God’s presence at Kristi’s anointing, I sure experienced it with my heart, soul, and spirit on my walk on the Via Rodeo. It then became clear. God did not answer my prayers on my terms, in my time frame, or in a way I could immediately understand. But He answered them clearly and gloriously. I sang praises aloud without fear as I walked past the shops on Via Rodeo. God had healed Kristi, the delight of my eyes, and opened my eyes to the way of suffering. He had answered my prayer in the holiest and most appropriate ways: His way (Isaiah 55:8-9). As we rejoice on our
It’s Almost Time to Go Home
“Behold now is the accepted time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2 I was finishing up a Bible study when my phone vibrated. I excused myself from the discussion to take Jessica’s phone call. Jessica said quickly, “Pastor, I hope you are not too busy. The hospice nurse said that Dad should pass some time today. Could you come to the house and pray with our family soon?” We set-up the agreed upon time, and I arrived at the house. The family was in the bedroom with Bill, Sherry (his wife of 50 years), his daughter Jessica, the hospice nurse, and Bill’s sister Sheila (and her husband, Larry). As I walked into the room, I greeted Sherry with a hug. Jessica introduced me to Sheila, and she blurted out: “I know you! You are the guy from the video that told Bills’ salvation story.” I chuckled. “Yes, I am. When did you see the video?” I replied. Sheila told me how Jessica has been sharing the video clip with the other family members and friends. I was blessed to hear how the video clip encouraged her heart. I had just published the Go & Tell Great Commission Study Video series the previous month. I then asked Sheila and the others in the room to join me as I held Bill’s hand to pray. Jessica called me a few hours later to share that Bill passed peacefully at home with the family. The family had Bill’s Celebration Service the following week. As I welcomed everyone to the service, we began by singing Amazing Grace. My heart was comforted as we sang the second verse: “Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,And grace my fears relieved:How precious did that grace appearThe hour I first believed.” After several family members shared their eulogies, I began the funeral sermon by telling how I got to know Bill over 10 years ago. When I taught Special Education, Bill’s wife was my favorite substitute teacher. Sherry and I began praying together for Bill’s salvation a decade earlier. I faithfully prayed for Bill’s salvation almost twice a week for the next several years. Bill eventually visited our church one Sunday. Afterward, we began to meet regularly and I learned many things about Bill: He was born in Goshen, Indiana, and moved with his family to Elkhart as a youth. Bill graduated from Elkhart High School and went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree from Indiana University of South Bend. He was a soldier in the United States Army, attained the rank of First Lieutenant, served one year in Vietnam, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for heroism in ground combat. Bill’s first date with Sherry consisted of dancing and laughter that continued for 50 years. He has two kids: Jessica (Matt) and Josh (Deb), and a grandson (Jacob). Bill had a lifelong love of music, literature, and writing (he was a published author of two short stories). He was an avid fisherman and loved spending time at his cottage on Irish Lake. He also enjoyed many sports, especially San Francisco Giants Baseball, Notre Dame Football, and IU Basketball. I also learned that Bill grew up Methodist, and Sherry’s background was in the Catholic Church. I eventually asked Bill, “May I ask you a spiritual question?” He assured me that I could. I asked him: “Bill, if you were to stand before God and he was to ask you why He should let you into heaven, what would you say?” He replied: “Wow. That’s a huge question, and I assume I would say because I’m a pretty good person.” As we continued our spiritual conversation, he eventually shared with me that he was a sinner, separated from God, and was destined for hell. I then shared the gospel clearly with him and explained that Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead to take away his sins and forgive him. I could see he was not ready to profess faith in Jesus, so I asked him if we could get together every 3 or 4 weeks to explore the gospel story. We began to do just that. We met regularly, laughed, shared coffee, and talked about Jesus. Several years after the first time we discussed sin and salvation, he came to the church to see me. The first thing he said to me was: “Jim, I want you to know I have not repented, and I am still going to hell!” I laughed and said: “Thanks for getting that out of the way! By the way, Bill, how was fishing yesterday?” Three years progressed, and the family asked me to come to their house on a Sunday night to pray with Bill for his upcoming heart surgery. Before we prayed, I shared the gospel of Jesus one more time. Afterward, Bill looked at me and said: “Jim, I guess I’m just supposed to say a prayer, and I’m going to be OK with surgery.” I replied, “That’s not it at all. Bill, you must repent of your sins. You must trust only in Jesus for your salvation. Bill, I will say a prayer of blessing for your surgery right now. But when you repent of your sins and profess faith in Jesus, when God gives you a new heart, when you are born again, I want you to call me and tell me your story.” Two days later, I was in Kalamazoo for a pastors’ meeting. I had just finished the gathering and saw that Bill was calling me. I took Bill’s phone call. I heard a man with a broken and humble heart for the first time. He told me that he saw what he had done to God and his wife the previous night. He asked Jesus for forgiveness, and he repented of his sins. He professed faith in Jesus as his Savior. He asked me to come to see him before surgery and pray with him. I happily agreed to visit him
Roundtable Interview
The Roundtable is part of Life Church’s (Huntington, IN) ministry. At the Roundtable, “we continue the conversations from Sunday morning and how you can learn practical ways to help every person take their next steps towards Jesus…together.” I was blessed to be invited to join Mike and Jenny to discuss Evangelism and to share about Go & Tell Ministries.
Each One Reach One Broadcast
I really enjoyed talking with Christopher and Derimia on their Each One Reach One show this week. May the Lord is it to raise up workers for the harvest field (Matthew 9:35-38)
Are you a Giant?
“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Psalm 19:14 I cannot remember why or when I started praying Psalm 19:14 before I preached or taught a Bible study, but I have done this since I graduated from seminary. I will never forget my ordination service with the Evangelical Free Church of America in the 90s. I preached the message, and I opened the sermon by praying Psalm19:14. After the service, My Aunt Nancy embraced me. She told me with a tear in her eyes how my grandfather, Delmar Halstead, always prayed Psalm 19:14 before family devotions, teaching Sunday School, or praying during the Sunday morning worship service. My grandfather died when I was two, and I have no pictures or recollection of him, but his prayers and life still impact me today. I was thinking of this when I read the Book of Ruth, and I wondered if King David knew his grandfather Obed. The Scriptures state: “So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. Then he went to her, and the LORD enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son… Boaz the father of Obed, Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David.” (Ruth 4:13, 21b-22) Did David ever meet Obed? Did he remember him when he was the king of Israel? What impact did Obed have on the faith of David, the King of Israel? Did David know the faith story of his grandfather Obed? I treasure the faith story of my grandfather Delmar. He was laid off from work during the great depression, and my father (a little boy) became very ill. An Elder at the Ellettsville Christian Church, Orie Crismore, helped save my dad’s life by taking him and Delmar to the doctor. Mr. Crismore paid for the doctor’s visit, and the precious medicine that saved my dad’s life. He also invited Delmar and the family to his church. Soon after this event, my grandfather Delmar and my grandmother Anna professed faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. My grandfather eventually became an elder and deacon at Ellettsville Christian Church and physically helped build their new church building. When my dad was leaving for the navy during the Korean War, Delmar gave him a pocket bible with Psalm 19:14 highlighted. I have that precious bible, and I treasure it today. Did King David consider the story of Boaz and Ruth and reflect on how his grandfather came from their story? Do you ever reflect on those who went before you and how they influenced you to know Christ as your Savior? The Jewish poet and storyteller Noah ben Shea tells a parable that serves as a valuable reminder of those who went before us in life: After a meal, some children turned to their father, Jacob, and asked if he would tell them a story. “A story about what?” asked Jacob. “About a giant,” squealed the children. Jacob smiled, leaned against the warm stones at the side of the fireplace, and his voice turned softly inward. “Once, a boy asked his father to take him to see the grand parade that passed through the village. The father, remembering the parade from when he was a boy, quickly agreed, and the following day the boy and his father set out together. “As they approached the parade route, people started to push in from all sides, and the crowd grew thick. When the people became almost a wall, the father lifted his son and placed him on his shoulders. “Soon, the parade began, and as it passed, the boy kept telling his father how wonderful it was and how spectacular were the colors and images. The boy grew so prideful of what he saw that he mocked those who saw less, saying, even to his father, ‘If only you could see what I see.’ “But,” said Jacob staring straight in the faces of the children, “what the boy did not look at was why he could see. The boy forgot that once his father, too, could see.” Then, as if he had finished the story, Jacob stopped speaking. “Is that it?” said a disappointed girl. “We thought you would tell us a story about a giant.” “But I did,” said Jacob. “I told you a story about a boy who could have been a giant.” “How?” squealed the children. “A giant,” said Jacob, “is anyone who remembers we are all sitting on someone else’s shoulders.” “And what does it make us if we don’t remember?” asked the boy. “A burden,” answered Jacob. My grandfather died when I was just two years old. Before he died, he bought seven burial plots for his family. The plots were for his five children and their spouse, Delmar and his wife Anna, and Orie and his wife Leatha Crismore. Every year, I go to the Ellettsville Presbyterian Cemetery to put flowers on each gravesite, and I always make a special visit to Orie’s gravesite. I thank the Lord for his impact on my family: for saving my dad’s life, leading my grandfather and grandmother to faith in Jesus, and how his devotion to Jesus has impacted my life. Whenever I preach or teach a Bible study, I pray Psalm 19:14 and think of those who went before me. I picture my grandfather praying Psalm 19:14 over me and others. I wonder if David ever considered Obed and the impact he had on his life. How about you-do you remember those who went before you and impacted your life for Jesus? Or a better question is this: “Are you a giant or a burden?” “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Psalm 19:14
Jesus’ family thought He was crazy too!
I grew up in a loving, supportive, non-Christian family. I was told about the gospel of Jesus Christ through the Fellowship of Christian Athletes ministry while I was in high school. When I first the gospel of Jesus, I told my coach that they needed to write a book about this. He looked at me and said: “Jim, they did, and it is called the Bible.” I did not know. I studied the Bible they gave me and attended church for a year to examine if what they told me was true. Afterward, I repented of my sins and professed in Jesus the summer before my senior year in high school. I was in love with Jesus and started attending church, bible studies, and growing in the disciplines of faith. I will never forget when my mom came into my room soon after my conversion. I was playing the only Christian album I could find-Tom Netherton singing the Gospel Hymns. Tom was a regular singer on the Lawrence Welk show. My mom entered my room and saw me on my knees singing a hymn with tears in my eyes. She left my room and told my father: “I understand him listening to rock and roll, but I don’t know what to do with him listening to Lawrence Welk.” My parents thought I had joined some crazy cult that included the Lawrence Welk singers. I was not alone. It says in Mark 3:20-21: “Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, ‘He is out of his mind.’” Jesus’ family decided he had indeed gone out of his mind with this “Messiah stuff” and that they needed to take charge of him. Jesus’ family was concerned for him, The family may be the most challenging place to witness Jesus. To be the first or only believing Christian may go against the family tradition. Our faith may come across as a criticism of how others have lived their lives. Our passion may be misunderstood and be overwhelming for others. Family members require the most patience, love, and grace. Remember that Christ’s family rejected and ridiculed him. Jesus knows what you face by trying to be a witness for him in your own family. You see God’s heart for the family when you read the Bible. Jesus’s ministry was announced by Mary’s relative Elizabeth’s child: John the Baptist. We see that Andrew’s first thing was to find his brother Simon and bring him to Jesus. We read the Old Testament stories of families: Moses and Aaron, Jacob and Esau, Rachel and Leah, Joseph and his brothers. The Scriptures are full of references to families and their relationship with God. In Acts, we read about Paul and his nephew. “But when the son of Paul’s sister heard of this plot, he went into the barracks and told Paul.” (Acts 23:16) This is the only biblical reference to Paul’s family. Some theologians believe that Paul’s family disowned him when he became a Christian. Paul wrote of having suffered the loss of everything for Christ (Philippians 3:8). Paul’s nephew, who is never named, visited Paul in prison and helped his uncle. We do not know if any of Paul’s relatives were converted later, but I believe he prayed for their salvation. I have seen my parents who thought I was crazy with this Jesus thing, both come to faith in Jesus. I have also seen many other family members still think I am a little extreme with Jesus. I have faithfully prayed every week for my immediate family’s salvation, life, and health. I remember rejoicing when my sister’s son Jimmy was born. I began to pray for his salvation every Thursday of his life. I remember when I first shared the gospel with him, he thought I was crazy. I continued to share the gospel when I performed his wedding, but I could see that the gospel did not penetrate his heart. But I kept praying and hoping that the Lord would lead someone else to share the gospel with him. After thirty-five years of praying, my prayers were answered. I took him out for dinner one night and asked him this question again “If you were to stand before God and He asked you why I should let you into my Heaven-what would you say?” But his answer was different-here is his story: “I was raised Catholic and went to Lutheran schools, but I just took it as information and never put His word in my heart. I lived a life that was very self-centered and self-pleasing. After high school, I only prayed if I wanted something, basically treating God as a genie to grant my will. Eventually, I walked through life existing but never truly enjoyed it to its fullest. I would go to work and come home to my wife and dogs. At 26, I received a traumatic brain injury, and I was in a medically induced coma for two weeks. I was in pain most days, depressed, and anxious. I drank daily to numb the pain and anxiety. I was completely lost and didn’t care about anything or anyone. I just existed, and eventually, my wife filed for divorce. I had no income and had to move in with my mom at 32. I was at my lowest point in life and felt utterly worthless. A friend of mine invited me to his church at this time. The church was so welcoming, and I needed to see some kind faces. I kept going every Sunday and listening to the sermons. I could feel God slowly opening my heart to care again. He was patient and kind with my stubborn and questioning mind, but a conversation started between us. I could take all my pain, anxiety, worries, faults and lay them down before him, and He
Go Tell It on the Mountain, Over the Hills, and to Your Neighbor!
“Go, tell it on the mountains,over the hills and everywhere,go, tell it on the mountain,that Jesus Christ is born.” Go Tell it on the Mountain is an African American spiritual song dating back to 1865. It is now known as a Christmas hymn announcing that Jesus Christ is born. When I sing this wondrous song, I think of Isaiah 52:7, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’” As the hymn begins, it announces that we need to proclaim Jesus from the mountains, over the hills to everywhere. But I often think that the church that so joyously sings this classic during the Advent season fails to see the disconnect. They seldom realize that they neglect to share the good news with the people that the Lord has brought into their life. Instead of climbing a mountain, or going overseas, maybe we need to begin by crossing our street and telling our neighbor the glorious gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. We need to sing Go & Tell it to your neighbor that Jesus Christ is born. In John chapter four, we see a perfect example of this with the Samaritan woman telling her neighbors of finding Jesus Christ. In John 4:25-26, we read: The woman said, “I know that Messiah (called Christ) is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to you am He.” Immediately she wanted to share her faith with others, so she went into the village and told the men she had met the Messiah. John 4:28-30 goes on to say: Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” They came out of the town and made their way toward Him.” As disciples of Jesus begin to realize that the Lord wants them to bloom where He has planted them, they will open their eyes to see that the harvest field is all around them. As the Samaritan woman told her neighbors about Jesus, we see the Lord opening their hearts to come to faith in Him. We read in John 4:39-42, Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.’ So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and He stayed two days. And because of His words, many more became believers. They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this Man really is the Savior of the world.” These Samaritans began their spiritual walk by trusting in what their neighbor said. “Now we know!” was their happy testimony and the joy of a faithful neighbor who told them about Jesus. I wrote the Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop to help disciples of Jesus not only begin to pray for their neighbor’s salvation but also learn how to tell them about the gospel of Jesus Christ. I received this testimonial from Lance, who took the Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop and began to pray for his neighbor Ray. Lance did not tell it on the mountain, but he told Ray across the street. Here is Lance’s story: Several years ago, a new family moved in next door, right at the same time we were preparing to sell our house. Ray was friendly from the start, and he seemed genuinely disappointed when he learned we were actively trying to sell. It was easy to see that Ray needed Jesus from the first interaction. So, I began to pray for his salvation. A month later, we found our next house and were mere hours from putting our house on the market and locking in an offer on the new house. Then something strange happened. Our realtor called and said the seller had backed out, sold to another buyer, and had no recourse. It didn’t seem fair or logical, and we were very disappointed, so we decided to end the search and unpack our boxes. Over the next two years, Ray and I swapped stories about home improvement projects. He would text me to ask how I remodeled this or that or where an electrical or plumbing line ran. Beyond our house similarities, Ray’s preschool son was the same age as my preschool daughter, which resulted in several outdoor conversations as the kids played together. Many days a week, I would stop to pray, asking God to draw Ray to Himself, that Ray would seek to know Him, that Ray would believe the Scriptures, that Ray would believe in Christ and become saved. There was zero evidence of spiritual interest in all my interactions with Ray. His God was making money, evident by the long hours he worked to serve that master. Recently, Ray and I went to breakfast. After an hour of good food and conversation, I told Ray about a man in our church who went into cardiac arrest right at the start of the sermon. Thankfully a nurse and a defibrillator were close by, thus saving him from certain physical death. Ray then shared that he had been in a severe car accident five years earlier and had almost died. So, I asked the question, “Ray, what if you had died that day? Where would you be now?” Ray asked, “What do you mean, like heaven or hell? I don’t know.” “Ray,” I said, “would you like to know where you would’ve gone?” “Yes,” he said. So, I asked him if he was a good person, to which he answered the way most lost people do, with a confident “yes.” I went through several of the 10 Commandments, which are God’s mirror, to show us how far from perfection
Changing the World, One Person at a Time
I have learned over the years that Evangelism is Relational. It begins with your relationship with Jesus Christ. It spreads within the circle of relationships you have with family, co-workers, neighbors, and others that the Lord has brought into your lives. Evangelism begins not with talking to others about Jesus but by talking with Jesus about others. Over 35+ years of pastoral ministry, I have learned that very few believers pray for the lost by name. A recent Lifeway study surveyed what people typically request when they pray. The study revealed that among people who pray, more people prayed to win the lottery than praying for others who have no faith. Not only do few believers pray for the salvation of others, but even fewer are sharing the gospel with others. Billy Graham once said that 90% of the Church today has never shared the gospel with someone else. I now serve full-time with Go & Tell Ministries, which seeks to equip the Church to share the gospel using practical and straightforward evangelism and discipleship tools. One of those tools is the Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop. It is a 3-hour workshop that teaches your Church to share their faith with others. I taught the Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop at an RCA Church in Detroit last month. Their group was very engaged with the seminar and was excited to begin to pray for the salvation of others. I left the weekend very encouraged with their response, and I was praying for the Lord to raise workers for the harvest field from our time together. Last week I received a text from the pastor of the Church in Detroit. He said: “Hey Jim, we have a celebration testimony from your Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop. Talina attended the workshop, and she was able to share Jesus in the way you taught. She called me and was so excited to share that her Uncle decided to repent of his sins and profess faith in Jesus. There is more to her testimony that makes it so amazing, and I think you would like to hear from her.” I was excited to hear from the pastor, and I immediately texted Talina. I think she was even more excited to share the story with me because she responded soon after. This is Talina’s testimonial: “Hi Jim. First, thank you so much for being at Grace Church that day. My Uncle Tim lost his son two weeks ago. He was missing for over a year. He had got on drugs and finally walked out one day and never heard another word. Timmy (my cousin) was 32-years-old. Two weeks ago, my Uncle got the call no parent ever wants. They found his skeletal remains in an attic in Detroit. He had been there about a year. Of course, my Aunt Jane and Tim were beyond words. I went to them and gave them my condolences. I am close to all of them. At first, it wasn’t easy being there. My Uncle didn’t believe in God. How could God do something or allow something like this to happen? He didn’t want to hear any God stuff, so I would go over and sit, often feeling like I was taking a verbal assault for believing. But that was okay. I just listened and prayed for them. We had a quiet dinner last week when his remains came home cremated. There was not much said at the dinner table that night. But my Uncle said something that gave me hope. He said that he hoped he would see Timmy again. So I have been going over every few days, just listening to them and speaking when needed (and crying when I can’t help it). This past Monday night, I went over, and my Uncle asked me to come out to the garage; he wanted to talk to me. So out I went. He asked me if I thought he’d see Timmy again. He told me that he couldn’t imagine seeing him again. I told him my beliefs in God. And how that gave me peace in anything that happens. I told him it wasn’t God who took His son and let all these terrible things happen in the world. It goes back from the fall of man and sin. So, he started crying and asked me what I was going to do. I asked if I could pray with him. Shockingly, he said yes. I held his hand, and we prayed. Afterward, I asked him: “Uncle Tim, have you ever lied?” He said, yeah. I then asked him: “Have you ever stolen anything?” He giggled and said, well yeah. I wondered, “Have you ever committed adultery (and Jesus said lust is adultery in the Sermon of the Mount)?” He said, okay, Talina, yes, yes, I’m a sinner. I said, “Okay, so if you had to stand before God and He asked if you were to go to hell or heaven, what would you say?” He started crying and said, well, I believe I have sinned against God, I would go to hell. But if I believe what you are saying, then I’d be saved. I asked him, “And why would you go to heaven?” He sat for a minute and said God sent Jesus to die for our sins. He stopped and said, GOD SENT HIS SON TO DIE FOR ME? I said exactly. He said Talina, I get it, and I believe it! It was absolutely beautiful. I never felt or seen anything like it. If I died today, I would feel complete. I’ve never witnessed someone believe in Jesus and have hope like that for the first time. The only thing I could compare it with would be watching a child be born.” After I read her text, I was rejoicing in Tim’s salvation like the angels in heaven (Luke 15:7, 10), and I was rejoicing in Talina’s walk with Jesus as she lovingly and boldly shared the gospel with her Uncle Tim. I then shared with Talina 2 Corinthians 5:17-20: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a