Eastbourne Outreach – Day 2
The second day of The Open-Air Mission team event in Eastbourne was ‘interesting.’ We had to delay the start of the outreach due to rain, but despite the initial wet weather, the team was still able to speak to a few people. Then, once the rain stopped, we had to contend with constant wind. It certainly was going to be a challenging day!
Once the outreach got underway, much happened, but as with yesterday’s report, I can only detail a few of the encounters I was involved in. Perhaps, in time, the other team members will share their stories.
A nice encounter I had today was with a Bulgarian lady who stopped at the table. She had very broken English, but pointed to the Bible, saying, “I love Jesus.” I happened to have a copy of ‘Ultimate Questions’ by John Blanchard in her language, so I gave it to her. She was very thankful.
Things became much more intense when it came time for me to preach. As I started my open-air, a gang of young men decided to stand in the middle of the road to stop the buses from getting through. Since one of them had told us yesterday that he had become a Christian, I decided to rebuke him for his behaviour. This caught the attention of the gang, and several others.
One of the gang members said he was going to ‘pop’ me, and another yelled at me to ‘shut up.’ I challenged them to step up as men and engage me in discussion. They did!
I will be the first to admit that my preaching towards these young men was hard, but I truly believe that was what they needed. I am old enough to be their father, so I spoke directly to them about their sin. One of them boasted that he was bad enough for Hell, so we looked at the Ten Commandments to see if that was the case (it was!). Sadly, that young man had no knowledge of how to be forgiven.
As I continued to engage them, others stopped to listen, so I made sure to emphasise that even the respectable people who look down on the gang are just as lost and Hell-deserving. Then, I pointed all who would listen to Christ. The gang was urged to repent and flee to Jesus for rescue.
Afterwards, I spoke with the gang members. They all gave me fist bumps, and the one who said he was going to ‘pop’ me said, “You really do care for us, don’t you?” I assured them of my love and care, and again urged them to trust in Christ. They all told me their names, and then they spoke a little further with Mike Mellor.
As they left, their attitude was different. They walked off waving, saying, “Bye Josh! See you tomorrow!” Later in the day, we saw them again, and they all waved again. I found out later that this gang is well-known in the town centre.
Please stop what you are doing right now to pray for those five gang members. Jesus can rescue them from darkness. Please seek the Lord for their salvation.
After the outreach had officially finished, and most of the team had headed back to the church, I remained on the street with two other team members who were still witnessing. It was then that I was brought into a conversation with two young Mormon missionaries.
These young men were from Utah (no surprise!), and had some very good questions. We were able to share the good news with them, answer their questions, and urge them to consider what the Bible really says. At the end of the conversation, they shook our hands and took an in-depth gospel tract. Please pray that the Lord would lead them out of the darkness.
It was an interesting and busy day. May the Lord save all who heard!
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.SUBSCRIBE TO OUR MAGAZINE AND PRAYER NOTES