An International Outreach in Southampton
After being away at a conference for evangelists over the past few days, I returned to the streets encouraged and ready to make much of Jesus. The weather was nearly perfect for evangelism, even though it was a little chilly and windy.
Throughout the outreach, the free Bible table was busy. Shortly after setting up, two men from the Greek Orthodox Church stopped to chat. Their English was good, so we were able to engage. Even though they had grown up in a church, they’d never seen a Bible in English. Both took a copy, saying they were looking forward to reading it for themselves.
I commenced the preaching aspect of the outreach by speaking on “Death: Is It the End?” Soon, a few people stopped to listen, including a Muslim man who was a friendly heckler. We went back and forth talking about sin and how someone can be made right with God (this attracted another heckler who wasn’t as good!) In the end, the Muslim man took the Gospel of John and a booklet designed for Muslims. Among those who stopped to listen was a young lady from China. She is a student at the university and has many questions about death. We had a good chat about Jesus and all that He has done. She then took a copy of John’s Gospel and Ultimate Questions in Chinese. Before she left, she said, “I don’t know if God even knows I exist or that he loves me.” I pointed out that God brought her from China to England and me from Australia to England just so we could talk about Jesus. This shows that He knows all about her and that He loves her.
Another student who listened was also from China and had a Buddhist background. She spoke to Mike about the gospel and took material from him. Towards the end of the outreach, she would listen to me preach again and then talk further. When I spoke to her, she asked, “Why do you do this?” I replied that we love God and love her, which is why we come out to tell people about Jesus. She was shocked and took gospel material in Chinese.
Mike preached next, and soon a man who started off a bit aggressive was chatting with him. As they spoke, the man became calm and friendly. Mike pointed him towards Jesus. Next to preach was Richard, who preached on “Life.” As he proclaimed the gospel, a Muslim lady listened and took a gospel tract.
While all this was happening, an Ethiopian lady stopped at the literature table. Her English was OK, but not the best. She took material but expressed her desire to read the Bible in Amharic. Thankfully, we had a link that allowed her to download the Bible in her language. She was very grateful to have a copy of God’s Word.
I finished the day by preaching about “How Can You Be Sure You’ll Go to Heaven?” It was good to see the Chinese student from earlier come back. She was interested and engaged. It appears that the Lord was working on her heart.
It was an international day in Southampton! Throughout the outreach, we handed out material in English, Polish, German, Chinese, French and Amharic. Our prayer is that all those who heard the good news will come to repentance and faith. Would you please join us in praying for their conversion?
SDG!
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Josh Williamson is a full-time evangelist with The Open-Air Mission. Since 1853, OAM has been sharing the good news on the streets of the United Kingdom. To stay updated about the work of the Mission, please sign up for the free quarterly magazine and monthly prayer notes.
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