Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop Testimonial

I received this wonderful testimonial after I taught the Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop @ Hopkins Community Church. It is so encouraging to see churches begin to pray for the salvation of those that the Lord has placed in their life and to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Praying that the Lord will continue to raise up workers for the harvest field via Go & Tell Ministries. “Good Monday Morning, Jim! I just wanted to share some experiences we’ve been having here at HCC! A little less than a month ago, after Sunday worship, we led a young man to Christ! Yesterday, we had three people share, as part of the sermon, their different experiences responding to the Holy Spirit’s prompting to talk with others about their faith! Two led people to Jesus; one discovered fellowship with someone he didn’t know was a believer! We are very excited to hear these things! We are pressing forward, believing these are just the first drops of an outpouring of the Kingdom of God here in Hopkins! May Grace and Peace be yours in abundance.” Pastor Jonathon VanderWall HOPKINS COMMUNITY CHURCH

On Mary Poppins and Finding our Song

As a child, one of my favorite movies was Mary Poppins. Mary Poppins is the most award-winning movie of all time and a timeless classic. The movie Saving Mr. Banks is about the making of Mary Poppins.  Saving Mr. Banks focuses on P.L. Travers, author of the Mary Poppins children’s novel. It is the story of the author’s battles with Walt Disney, who wants the rights to a feature-length movie. Walt Disney said he decided many years ago to make Mary Poppins into a feature-length film. He promised his girls he would make a movie from P. L. Traver’s book! Walt Disney was desperate to bring the story to film, but the author was against giving Disney the rights to make a movie out of it.  Why? Because a lot of the book comes from her life experiences growing up. She had a father she loved who was an alcoholic, as well as an aunt who came to help him. This helping aunt became Mary Poppins. The author had a complex family background. For over 20 years, Walt Disney pursued the rights to make the book into a movie, culminating with flying Travers to Los Angeles to begin working on the project. Saving Mr. Banks shows that many writers use personal stories from their life, stories that are part of them. It was hard for Travers, as she had invested so much in Mary Poppins, so much of herself in the story. The film slowly reveals how Traver’s childhood and her father became part of her writing and the themes of her books. In the same way, our lives become the stories in which we proclaim the daily testimony of how Jesus impacts our life. The power of our lives is found in understanding how Jesus impacts our lives daily for His glory. Our testimonies of Jesus not only greatly influence others for the Kingdom of God for His glory, but they also significantly affect overcoming the enemy. Revelation 12:11 says believers “triumphed over [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.” Notice the “word” of their testimony, meaning these triumphant ones spoke verbally, without shame or fear. Some believe Christians should not verbalize their testimony but live it out daily. But it’s not an either-or proposition. Living the gospel message is essential, but it’s no more important than our verbal testimony since God has chosen “hearing” the Word to produce faith (Romans 10:17). A Christian who wants to live his life as a testimony to Jesus will love God above all else and love others above himself. When a believer shares what Jesus has done in his life and serves God and others in tangible ways, he will increasingly reflect the life-giving power of Christ into a dark and evil world. All believers are forgiven and redeemed by the blood of the Lamb (1 Peter 1:18–19). A believer’s testimony also assists in conquering the evil one, and he cannot defeat us if we resolutely confess our faith in Jesus. You are a living witness if you have experienced Jesus’ forgiveness and been born again. Are you enthusiastic about sharing the testimony of Jesus with those around you? As we would tell others about a doctor who cured a physical disease, we should speak about Christ, who forgives our sins and lives within us. And by the Word of their testimony – the faithful testimony they bore to the truth. They declared their belief in Jesus and shared how Jesus has changed⁠—and is changing⁠—their lives. It was by this that they overcame the great enemy. We are called to be like the man in the gospel of Mark who continually told others what the Lord has done and is doing in his life. In Mark 5:19-20 it says: “Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how He has had mercy on you. So, the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.” We overcome the enemy when we hold to the testimony of Jesus in our lives and share it with others. I was having lunch with some close friends after a Go & Tell Ministries weekend at a church in Indianapolis. We began to share the stories of Jesus in our lives when Jayna shared a word of her testimony with me. It was powerful and such an encouragement to me. Jayna shared this testimony with me:  I was blessed to grow up in a Christian home and gave my life to Jesus when I was about 6 or 7. I am thankful that God gave me that opportunity so early in life, but through the years, I’ve felt like I didn’t have a powerful enough testimony to share how I came to faith in Jesus.  Over the years, I have heard several people giving their testimonies of how God miraculously saved them from abuse, addictions, suicide, miraculous healings, etc. I thought their testimonies were so powerful because there was a sudden change in their lives that they and others could easily see. And as I listened, I secretly wished I had a testimony worth sharing, something powerful that would impact others and draw them to Christ so I could feel like my life meant something, like I had a purpose. Then almost as soon as I had that thought, I heard a gentle voice saying, “You know, you have to have a test to have a testimony.”  Wow! I knew that wasn’t my thought and began to think maybe not having much of testimony was ok; as long as I was saved, perhaps it didn’t matter. I felt like I’d had enough hard things in life to at least be able to empathize with others, so maybe I could be used that way? Well, God had other plans!  A few months or so later, Covid

The Saving Name of Jesus in a Jail Cell

I came home after a long day and was ready for a nice dinner with my wife (Kristi). She greeted me warmly and said dinner would be ready soon. I sat in my favorite recliner and turned on the local news broadcast. I suddenly sat up and sighed out loud, “Oh my!” Kristi heard my sigh from the kitchen and came in and asked what had happened. I just pointed to the television screen and said, “That was my former student, *Jeremy” (*name changed for confidentiality; I have his permission to share his story). The news broadcast showed his picture and told the sad story. A young man had been arrested for fatally striking a pedestrian with his car while she walked on a portion of the city-wide trail. After the news story ended, we joined hands and prayed for the victim’s family and for Jeremy. When I finished praying, Kristi looked up at me and said, “You are already planning to go to the jail to visit and share the gospel with him, aren’t you?” I nodded in affirmation and thought back to the last time I saw Jeremy.  I have taught special education off and for 10 years (before, during, and in between pastoring several churches). I was Jeremy’s elementary special education teacher while he was in 2nd through 5th grade. I spent a lot of time with him, teaching him social skills, de-escalation strategies, and sharing this saying: “The choices I make are the choices that make me.” The last time I saw Jeremy was at the end of his 5th grade school year. His mother called me when he graduated high school to thank me for my impact on his life and to have Jeremy thank me.  I remembered that I had prayed for him daily when I was his special education teacher. All those prayers and the compassion I had for this little boy, who was now a man, welled up in my heart. I thought of a passage of Scripture that talked of Jesus’ compassion for the multitude in Matthew 9:35-38,  “Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”  When Jesus saw these multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them. Jesus saw the harassed and helpless people as sheep having no shepherd. The word “harassed” can also mean troubled, bewildered, or despondent. The word for “helpless” is also “prostrate” or “thrown to the ground.” The two words are near-synonyms that stress man’s helplessness without God.  Jesus looked at the crowds following him and referred to them as a field ripe for harvest, but the laborers to bring in the harvest are few. Jesus commanded His disciples to pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers. These laborers must warn people of coming judgment, call them to repentance, and place their faith in Jesus Christ. Many people are ready to give their lives to Christ if someone shows them how. We are to pray that people will respond to this need for workers. When we pray for something, God often answers our prayers by using us. I knew the Lord had prepared me to go and tell Jeremy the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Since Covid, many local jails have canceled in-person visits and now only allow kiosk or Zoom visits. Our local jail had just begun to let clergy make in-person visits. I called and set up an appointment to meet Jeremy on a Friday afternoon. I walked into the jail and gave them my ID and personal belongings. The corrections staff led me back to the visitation wing. I sat and patiently waited in my glass portion cubicle to visit my former student (age 24), who I had not seen in over a decade. I sat down and wondered if he would even remember me. The guard escorted him into the room, and Jeremy stared at me for a few seconds. (He later told me he was expecting to see his Public Defender). He then had a big smile and said, “Mr. H, is that you?” I replied, “Hi Jeremy, yes, it is Mr. H. I have a few more gray hairs than the last time you saw me in elementary school.” We sat down and started to get reacquainted. I shared about my family, my ministry, and how I had retired from teaching a year ago. I heard his story of hardship and helplessness over the past several years since he graduated from high school. He had been working different temp jobs and struggling to make life work. He had several misdemeanors and other charges and was trying to get his life together when this tragedy happened. He was living in his car with his girlfriend at the time of the accident. Soon after, he found out his girlfriend was pregnant, and now he is a dad.  I asked him about his church background, and he said he seldom attended. I asked him some spiritual questions, and we started talking about his situation and the gospel of Jesus. I asked him if he remembered the saying I had in my classroom when he was in elementary school. I started it by saying, “The choices I make…” and he finished it by saying, “…are the choices that make me.” I told him he could not change the past but could choose to change his future. I shared the gospel of Jesus Christ with him. I quoted Joshua 24:15, which says:  “…then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve… But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”  I asked him if he wanted to repent of his sins and choose

Go & Tell poem

I thought you would like this. I just received this poem from John Jackson…he attends my home church, Alliance Community Church. He wrote this poem for GO & TELL Ministries. It’s called Go & Tell. The world needs the FATHER, SON, and HOLY SPIRIT.How will they know unless they hear it?The Great Commission is for the Chosen.We were never called to be the Frozen!Millions everywhere need to be reached.The Gospel message must be preached.Only JESUS CHRIST can save the lost.Only HIS blood can cover the cost.It was never GOD’S will that any perish in Hell.We must stand up, step up…and Go & Tell!!!

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

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

That is Why They Call Him Jesus

“Hey Jim, someone is on the phone for you. I cannot tell if they know you or if it is another solicitor,” My wife yelled to me downstairs while I was riding my exercise bike in our basement. I begrudgingly got off my exercise bike thinking I was receiving another unsolicited phone call while I climbed the steps. “Hello, this is Jim,” I said while I waited for another rehearsed sales pitch. “Hey Pastor, my family and I attended your church fifteen years ago when you pastored at Alliance Community Church.” As Mike introduced himself to me on the phone, I was able to remember him and his family. I responded, “Mike, it is so nice to hear from you. How is your wife Jen doing?” Mike began to share and update me on his family and how that they had moved to Cocoa Beach, Florida several years ago because of work. Mike then began to share why he was calling. “I wish I was calling with good news, but I felt I was led by the Lord last night to find you and ask you if you would be able visit my Uncle Ken who is dying of cancer.” He continued, “He has been moved to a hospice wing in a Fort Wayne hospital and I am pretty sure he is not a Christian.” As Mike continued to share with me, I learned that his Uncle Ken and Aunt Traci had never attended church nor had they shown much interest in Jesus. Mike was concerned for his uncle’s salvation and shared with me that he had never explained the gospel of Christ to his uncle. As Mike was praying that night for his Uncle Ken’s salvation, the Lord had led him to find me and ask if I would be able to make a visit and share the gospel with Ken. After hearing Mike’s story, I looked at my clock and realized it was getting late on a Saturday night. I asked Mike if it would be okay if I visited Ken Sunday after our Sunday morning worship service. Mike responded, “Pastor thank you so much!” “I don’t know if Ken will be awake (he was in a coma) or able to speak but I wanted him to hear the gospel and God’s love for him before he died.” After Mike and I prayed on the phone for Ken’s salvation, I knew that I would have to share this story with my church on Sunday morning. I asked our church family to pray for the Lord to bless this divine appointment by having Ken awake and alert and for the Lord to open his heart to respond to the gospel of Jesus. As I walked into Ken’s hospital room, I saw his wife Traci on the phone and Ken watching the Green Bay Packers football game with his Packers blanket covering him. Traci got off the phone and I introduced myself: “Hi Ken and Traci. I am Pastor Jim and your nephew Mike from Florida called me to request that I come and visit with you.” They shared how they have not seen Mike for several years; however, they were thankful to have a visit with me. As I was trying to get a conversation started, I commented on Ken being a Packers fan and how I have been a Bears fan for many years. Once I said that, I thought that was probably not the best way to get a die-hard Packers fan to be open to the gospel; however, Ken responded with a broken voice, “The…bears…are playing well…this year.” He gave me the remote to turn off the Packers game so we could visit and talk about why I had come…to prepare him for death and eternity. I asked Traci how long they have been married and she said proudly (with a tear in her eye), “We have been married 17 years and we lived together for two years before that.” As we talked about life, family, and work, I also heard from them that they did not attend church. I looked at Ken and said, “May I ask you a spiritual question?” He replied affirmatively and I said, “If you were to stand before God and He asked you, ‘Why should I let you into my heaven?’ what would you say?” Ken and Traci both told me they had no idea what they would say to that question. I informed Ken that was why his nephew Mike asked me to come see him, “because he wanted you to know how to get to heaven and be prepared to meet God.” I told Ken and Traci that most people think they get to heaven by having more good deeds than bad deeds. . .would they agree? They agreed, so I asked them if I could ask them a few questions in regards to God’s Law (The Ten Commandments) to see how they measured up. As Ken nodded his head towards me, I asked him several questions: “Have you ever told a lie (breaking the 9th commandment)? What would you call someone who lied?  (He said yes, and responded a liar.) Have you ever stolen anything? What do you call someone who has stolen something (He said yes, and a thief)? Have you ever coveted for someone’s else things? (He said yes). I looked at Ken and Traci and said compassionately, “By your own admission, you are a lying covetous thief at heart and we only looked at a few of the commandments. Would you say that you were innocent or guilty before God for breaking His Law?” Ken responded with a laugh and said “You…got me…I would be guilty.” I responded, “Ken, I am not trying to ‘get you,’ but I have another big question for you. Since you admit you are guilty before God for breaking His law, would you go to heaven or hell when you die?” There was a silent hush in the room when Ken admitted