An Openness to the Gospel - Winchester Evangelism
Recently, I mentioned in the latest edition of The Open-Air Mission magazine that Winchester is one of the hardest outreach locations I have. There must have been many people praying, as today there was a real openness to the gospel.
When we arrived, we discovered that some buskers had set up in our usual location. Due to the narrow and confined nature of the high street, this meant we had nowhere ideal to preach. That being said, we were able to set up the literature table and open-air board outside The Welcome Gospel Hall. It wouldn’t work as a preaching location, so instead we focused on tract work and one-to-one conversations.
As there were seven of us on the team, we decided that some would walk throughout the city centre handing out tracts, while others stayed at the main location. As I handed out tracts near the literature table, a man I had spoken with previously stopped to talk.
This man is a lifelong Jehovah’s Witness, and the last time we spoke he expressed his doubts. As we chatted today, he said, “I can’t get it out of my head that Jesus is God.” He was wrestling with this truth, but not yet willing to give up the cult he had spent his life serving. I urged him to go with what the Bible says. He shook my hand and said he’d keep thinking.
As the outreach continued, I noticed lots of tracts were going out. Team members reported an openness to taking material.
Back at the literature table, an Arabic man stopped. He told me he wanted to learn more about Christianity and improve his English, so he wanted to read the Bible. I was able to give him an English/Arabic parallel Gospel of John, which he received gladly.
On the other side of the street, John offered a tract to an older man, who replied by saying, “I have all I want!” So, I asked him, “But do you have Christ?” The man stopped, turned, and said that nothing mattered, as when you die you just go into the ground. I answered him by quoting Hebrews 9:27, making it clear that death is not the end.
The man retorted that he had lots of things, so he was fine. I replied by quoting Mark 8:36: “What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul?” The old man walked off shaking his head.
About ten minutes later, the old man returned and spoke with John. Hopefully, the Scripture had begun to make him think.
Not long after this, I offered tracts to two young men. Both took them, then began to chat. One thought life ended at death; the other said he’d go to Hell. We had a good gospel conversation, and at the end both of them took copies of John’s Gospel.
Things were going well, but the enemy was about to counter-attack. A professing Christian stopped and began to argue. He denied the authority of Scripture and encouraged Christians, Roman Catholics, and Muslims to come together to pray for revival. John and Bruce both tried to reason with him, then it was my turn.
The man was not interested. He just wanted to argue and spread his false teaching. His whole mission was to try to stop us sharing the message. I eventually rebuked him, and he left.
But the enemy wasn’t finished; now we had two Mormon missionaries standing nearby, trying to speak with people close to the literature table.
I joined in on a conversation they were having with a lady. When she heard a bit about LDS doctrine, she decided to leave. The Mormons then focused on me.
It was a friendly, though direct, conversation. The Mormons told me they might be wrong, but that it wasn’t a big deal, as their good works made them acceptable to God. I stressed the gospel to them and urged them to read just the Bible.
Both admitted to not knowing the Bible, but said their feelings confirmed the LDS church was true. Eventually, they walked away.
It never ceases to amaze me that the enemy seeks to counter-attack. We must always be ready to stand for truth and proclaim Jesus.
Overall, it was a busy and fruitful day. Please pray for all those who heard the gospel.
SDG!
_____
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.
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR MAGAZINE AND PRAYER NOTES