Gospel Hope for Portsmouth!
Living on the south coast of England, something we don’t see much of is snow. It gets cold, but snow isn’t that common. However, yesterday we had snow, and today we had a few flurries. It was strange walking into the city centre of Portsmouth with snow gently falling. As I looked around, it also appeared that the outreach team were the only people out and about. The city was empty. The fountain near where we preach was frozen over, which added to the surreal feeling.
Looking around, I thought, “It is going to be quiet today. Perhaps we’ll finish early. Maybe we will get to speak to one or two people.” It turns out I was wrong! We finished late and had good conversations and interactions all outreach long. Indeed, the six of us on the team were kept very busy!
After getting everything set up, we handed out tracts for a few minutes before the preaching commenced. I find it is always good to settle into the area before preaching, as it allows you to get a feel for what is happening and to hear what people are talking about. This then allows the preaching to speak to the current situation and climate.
When I started preaching, I spoke on “Hope for a Broken World.” As the message began, I shared about suicide rates and the depression that many people feel. I then spoke about how the world is broken, so we need to ask, ‘Why is it broken?’ and ‘Can it be fixed?’ From the very beginning, a good number of people stopped to listen, including a couple who were very focused on the preaching.
One lady did call out a few heckles. She yelled, “Preacher, everyone is going to Hell!” I told her that wasn’t right, as some aren’t going there, and that I could explain why she doesn’t need to go there either. She wasn’t interested in engaging, but others listened. At the end of the message, two men who had been listening walked forward to receive copies of John’s Gospel, saying they wanted to learn more about Jesus.
Next up to preach was Jim, who spoke on ‘The Love of God’ from 1 John 4. He did a good job explaining the kindness of our Lord and His call for people to come to Him. One lady who listened to him preach spoke with me afterwards. She told me that last year she had listened to me preach and then spoke with me about the gospel. Sadly, I couldn’t remember the conversation. She went on to say that I gave her a Bible, and since then she has been reading it and has become a Christian. It is always encouraging to hear news of people coming to profess faith in Jesus!
Throughout the outreach, the team was busy handing out tracts and chatting with people about the gospel. At one point, Alan found himself engaged with three older people who were arguing strongly for the false teaching of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. What they didn’t realise was that Alan is a former JW! He did a great job countering them, and then brought me into the conversation. Together, we were able to use Scripture to show the truth of who Jesus is and the gospel.
As our usual time for evangelism came to an end, I started to pack down, thinking that was the end of it, but the Lord had other plans. Over at the literature table, Alan and Jyothi were busy talking with a young lady who was an atheist but has now become a traditional Roman Catholic. She was very friendly and open to talking. I was brought into the conversation, and together we had a good chat about the gospel and the authority of Scripture. She took several booklets, including tracts designed for Roman Catholics.
By now, the outreach had gone much longer than planned! I thought it would be a quiet and short day, but Christ was at work. Please pray for all those who heard the good news.
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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