by MIMADMIN | May 8, 2015 | Testimonies
About five years ago, I had a guy call on me to represent his product in the market place (investments). As I befriended Doug, he accepted my invitation to a number of CBMC luncheons. A few months went by and I asked him to begin meeting with me in First Steps. I felt comfortable asking him “gently” for any kind of a testimony to see if and when he came to Christ. Well, Mr. Judgmental here thought it was quite weak! And after a year or so, it proved to be weak, because one day he came to my office, flopped down in the chair and said, “This Christian life isn’t working for me. I need to surrender my life to Christ”. Since that took place, now fast forward a couple of years. Doug has a substantial Jewish background and most everything growing up was Jewish. He divorced his wife a few years earlier and was seriously looking for other women. After somewhat of a slower growth in Christ, he joined a men’s Bible study in my office August 2010. He shared with the men that his 16 year old daughter (has boy/girl twins) was totally out of control. She even called her mother the “B” word. For financial reasons, he moved back into the house with his former wife and twins. I offered, and the family agreed to have me come over to their place and talk about “family relationships”. It was Saturday morning, July 2nd and I went to their place. After meeting for two hours with the family, I told them they had no foundation in which to “fix” their lives and a...
by MIMADMIN | May 8, 2015 | Testimonies
While at a self-serve -car wash I got visiting with Mike who had driven 2,500 miles, sleeping in his pickup, to visit his son. As conversation progressed he lamented the loss of his nineteen year old son, the result of suicide or murder. As Mike spoke, his deep sense of loss, lonliness and many regrets in his life were poured out. I asked Mike where he thought his son might be if there is a god, heaven and hell. He went on to tell me what a good kid his son had been in spite of many shortcomings and trouble in his life. The question still hanging, Mike answered that he thinks his son is in heaven. I asked Mike where he would go if he died tonight, supposing there is a god, heaven and hell. His response was one of his shortcomings but thinks that he has done enough good works to offset his poor choices in life. He was able to relate to my brief testimony as I told him where I believe I am headed and the reason…Jesus. Standing in my headlights I proceeded to take Mike through the Steps to Peace. He related to the bridge illustrations. I asked him if he would like to receive Jesus right now. He said he wanted to think about it so I asked him again. He wanted to avoid a decision. As I handed him the booklet I assured him that he could make that decision anytime he wants to. As we departed I wished Mike well and hope to see him in heaven. Mike knows the conditions,...
by MIMADMIN | May 8, 2015 | Testimonies
Seated between two women, conversation was not easily forthcoming. After take-off, I pulled down the tray table and opened my bible while sipping on a glass of wine. Sometime later the older woman on my left, Martha, asked if I was a preacher. I said no. She asked why I was reading a bible. The younger woman on my right dropped the music ear bud from her ear trying not to appear as intruding on the conversation. As Martha and I visited I posed the question of where she would go if the plane crashed and she was standing before God and He asked her why He should let her into heaven. She emphatically replied…. Heaven…. as she lives by the Golden Rule and had never sinned but she had an uncle whom she certain is in hell because of the way he lived his life! I almost gagged on the last sip of wine as I gathered my thoughts. We talked about knowing verses certainty. She grasped the concept of knowing we would land safely but not certain. As I worked through Steps to Peace, in plain view of the woman on my right, I asked the closing question. Martha emphatically responded that she had always believed in God. She took the booklet for further consideration As the plane landed she elbowed me and said that she now understands the difference between knowing and certainty. I continue to pray for Martha and the woman on my right hoping to see them in heaven. Thank you, Jesus, that the result is not my responsibility. Always scared, worry about what...
by MIMADMIN | May 8, 2015 | Testimonies
Eddie Ramey and I were arriving at a Poker, Beer, Food and Cigar outreach event in Chandler, AZ., at which Eddie was the featured “Prophet from another country”, Colorado Springs, to speak to a bunch of young guys. I pulled into the adjacent church parking lot and was promptly greeted by a man picking up trash who did not seem to like others using his lot. He asked us what was going on so we told him that we were arriving at the car wash for an outreach event. He immediately wanted to know what organization we represented. I told him just a bunch of guys wanting to share the gospel. He wanted us to produce a brochure or something to prove that we were for real as he was dubious with our answer. It does seem a bit odd …. an outreach in a car wash. Eddie and I looked at each other and didn’t elaborate on the format! We told him that we like to get guys together and explain the gospel to the non-believers. He appeared very skeptical of laymen doing such things. The man identified himself as the pastor of the church and wanted to know the religion we represented. We told him we are just a bunch of bible-believing Christians. I asked him if he was one. He kinda stepped back at such a direct question and said he was. I asked if he believed in salvation by grace and grace alone. He said he did. We did not see the need to pull out the “Steps to Peace”. Maintaining a quizzical look the...
by MIMADMIN | May 8, 2015 | Testimonies
“When they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left.”(Luke 23:33) If you’re at all like me, you often find it difficult to come up with a good segue to introducing the gospel message to folks you come in contact with. But every year, as Good Friday rolls around, I get a little more courageous to speak to people about Jesus, because the name of the holiday is just what the doctor ordered. The beauty of the name is that if you examine the events of that day from an earthly perspective, you almost have to conclude that there appears to be nothing “good” about the day at all. After all, it’s the day Christians commemorate the torture and killing of an innocent man. We understand the other-worldly significance of the event, but the unbelieving world sees either a bloody, brutal murder scene, or, perhaps, a routine execution. Nothing jumps off the page as being worthy of the label, “good.” So after wishing your friends, colleagues and family members a “Happy Good Friday” (and having received a quizzical look in return), you can follow up with, “By the way, do you know why they call it ‘Good Friday’?” Note the blank stare. Your answer: “Because that’s the day that Jesus was hung on the cross and died.” Queue the blank stare again… Your follow up may go something like: “So what’s so good about that, you ask? Well, it’s because…” Thus begins your presentation of the good news of the Father’s love for...
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