A Non-Stop Day of Evangelism in Southampton
Due to the Southampton Boat Show starting today, the city centre was very busy. It was so busy that it resembled a weekend crowd. There were numerous street performers and protesters, and then there was us: a small band of Christians who want all the people to hear the Good News of the God who is loving and kind towards sinners.
After setting everything up, I commenced the preaching by speaking on “The Three S’s”. There was very little direct engagement, but something I did notice was that the table became busier during the preaching. I see this as a good sign, as it means people have been intrigued enough by the preaching to seek out more information.
Throughout the day, the table continued to be busy. In fact, we ran out of Bibles, New Testaments, and most of our copies of John’s Gospel. Numerous conversations also took place around the table. We spoke to so many people that it was hard to keep track of what was happening.
Next up to preach was Jeremy, who spoke on “Warning: Six Deadly Lies”. Unlike me, he had lots of direct engagement. First, a young Sikh man asked questions. Jeremy answered him and gave him material aimed at those in Sikhism. Then came along a man who was ‘entertaining’. He misread the word “Six”, instead thinking it said “Sex”, so he started to ask Jeremy about premarital sex and what the Bible says. Jeremy answered him well, and then the man realised he had misread the message on the board. He laughed and took some tracts before leaving.
But it wasn’t over! Next came along three young men who had some form of religious schooling. They wanted to joke around, but they did ask good questions and heard the Gospel. Finally, as Jeremy continued to preach, a lady walked past screaming that Jesus was a witch, just like her. It was certainly an interesting open-air!
Around this time, Nigel spoke with an imam who was looking at the Bible. He was friendly and intrigued. He ended up taking a booklet for Muslims and said he would come back another time to discuss it.
For the final open-air, I preached on “Are You Good Enough for Heaven?” A man from Liverpool, who had just been released from jail after 21 years, engaged with me. He was wearing a cross and said he was ‘hellish’, so he expected to burn for eternity. So, I asked him to take the ‘bad person test’ to see if he was indeed bad enough for Hell. Interestingly, he wouldn’t say he wasn’t a bad person. He wanted to maintain a level of goodness.
After going through the Ten Commandments and explaining the justice of God, the man did indeed see that he deserved Hell. But when asked how he could be forgiven, he had no idea. I was able to explain to him that Jesus paid the penalty for our sins, so if we repent and trust in Him, we will be forgiven. The man said he hadn’t heard it explained like that before, and he now understood why Jesus died. He received a Gospel of John, as did two other people who had listened.
It was a busy and tiring day, yet we rejoice that many got to hear the Good News. Please pray that the Lord would save many in Southampton.
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