In the Nick of Time

I received this note from my friend Sally today. I just had to let you all in on it!!

Jen, I have to share this with you…

A week ago 3 of us visited a lady who was new to the nursing home. She was battling lung cancer but appeared to be doing well and feeling well. We prayed with her and that was that. She said she was (part of a very ritualistic church). Three days later I felt this urgency to see her. Praise God she came to the Lord! I left her a Bible and told her I’d be back in a few days. When I returned three days later I was told she passed away that morning. I am just so grateful to God that she was saved.

James 4:14-17 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

On Sunday Jeff scheduled some current students to come out. I got paired with Natalie, who was new but willing to be used of God. Natalie was great at being friendly and had no problem handing Million Dollar Bills to people and telling them to read the back.

Walking down through the parking lot we met Brian and Ramone. Brian was actually much more interested in Natalie than he was finding out the state of his soul. Both guys were very honest and listened until I finished. We gave them a Good Person booklet and they went their way. Natalie was able to see the conviction come across their faces and we immediately stopped to pray for these guys. We gave out more tracts and then Natalie met a guy named Mark who had just come up from the beach to his car. He was soaking wet but seemed very polite and said he would talk after he found his towel. He was unsuccessful so he just came around to the front of his car and drip dried. It was actually cool out so I offered him my sweatshirt. He declined politely.

Natalie started a great conversation with Mark and found out that he had attended a church just that morning. Natalie took him through a couple of the 10 Commandments and Mark admitted that he had failed to keep them. Natalie got a little stuck so she asked me to step in. I noticed that Mark had used the word ‘repent’ so I asked him if he knew what it meant. He told me that he thought it meant saying we are sorry to God. I took him to a courtroom where he was ‘guilty of manslaughter’ after backing out of the parking lot and running over a two-year-old unknowingly. He had a look of abject horror on his face. I told him to imagine that the Judge had found him guilty and wanted to know if he had any words before sentencing. I reminded him that the girl’s parents would be in the courtroom. He stated that he would apologize. I asked him if, once he apologized, he could go home.

He said, “Of course not.”

I told him the Judge was going to sentence him to life in prison without possibility of parole OR a $1M fine. I asked if he could come up with the money.

Mark said, “No...I am homeless.”

I told him that someone quickly came in the back door of the courtroom, waving a check. This man had sold everything to pay this penalty. The Judge verified the payment was good and asked Mark if he wanted the court to accept it.

Mark refused and said he would not want someone else to pay for his wrong.
I had a copy of the Gospel of John and asked Mark to read John 14:6 out loud. He did and seemed very quiet. I asked Mark if there was anything he loved more than his soul. He quickly said, “I love my wife-I would die for her.”

I said, “Mark, what if you wanted to give your wife something you know she needed but she refused. You knew that she really did need this but she kept refusing to take it…would you feel frustrated?”

Mark seemed very deep in thought and said that he would be very frustrated.



“OK, now can you leave the courtroom?” I asked him.
“Yes.”
“Yes, not because you apologized but because justice was satisfied. It is a legal transaction, right?”
I took Mark to another courtroom, but this time the person who wanted to pay was Jesus, Himself. I told Mark that it was written in Isaiah-long before Jesus Christ ever came-that all of our iniquity was laid on Him. I told him that Jesus looked far into the future and knew all of the things that Mark would do wrong and He took them anyway. I told Mark that Jesus had kept every tear he had ever cried.
At this he looked up into my eyes. “Mark there is a very, very real possibility that you will wake up one of these times and take your next breath in Hell. You see, all debts will be paid. You will pay for your sin with your own soul, or you will accept this payment Jesus Christ made for you…what will you do?”
He was thinking hard at this point, and then said, “I will take that payment from Jesus Christ.” He was unsure of what to say to God so we asked him to take the literature we gave him and read it through. I told Mark that if I could do it for him I would, but it doesn’t work that way. He would have to talk to God and get things straightened out.
Mark thanked us for talking to him and said he would certainly read everything. He finally accepted the sweatshirt, too. Natalie and I walked away and prayed for Mark and his wife.

No Language Barrier

I saw a couple and their son (about 8) and daughter (about 12) enjoying the ocean view. I gave them each a MDB and asked them if they would read the questions on the back. When I realized the parents were struggling I asked if they spoke Spanish, they did and I gave them the Spanish version, the kids spoke English. I asked if they believed in God and they did, but the father asked the daughter something and she replied they were Catholic.

I asked the daughter if she spoke English well enough to answer some questions and she did. I asked if she knew the Ten Commandments and she knew some of them. I asked if she ever broke them, she said no. I asked if she always obeyed her parents and did everything she was supposed to do. Then her dad said “listen to the man, please”. She said no and also admitted she was a liar and a thief. I told her that according to what she just said, she is guilty of breaking God’s Laws.

Since I was concerned about the language misunderstanding possibilities, I quickly went to the “Good News” I told her that Jesus is God and came to earth as a man so he could take the punishment that she was supposed to pay for her sins. All of them were now paying attention, and again I told them all that they were guilty, as we all are, for breaking God’s laws and the payment is death and eternal punishment from God in Hell. However, if they would admit to God that they were sinners and want to turn away from these sins, and put their faith and trust in His Son, Jesus that they would have eternal life. But they had to admit their sin, repent (turn away from) and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, not a man or a church. They all understood this and said they had a Bible and would read it. The kids at first were a bit frightened but when they heard the “Good News” they smiled and said they would really think about it and read the MDB and RUaGP Booklet.

Billy's Bait Works

When Diana taught her class there was a man named Billy in it-a mechanic. In the first class he stood and gave the reason he was taking the class. As I remember, he said something like “I used to talk to people but no one ever got saved and I guess I got tired of getting beat up”…he sort of hung his head and sat down… (I could not get this testimony out of my head.)

Today she heard this news from Billy-

A few weeks ago a man came in to get his oil changed. After seeing one of the Million Dollar Bills that Billy leaves in the customer waiting area, he told Billy that he found one like it on the ground at the local mall. He picked it up, but when he discovered it wasn’t real he said that he threw it back down in the parking lot. Billy told him that the message on the back was very important and he should read it.

As Billy changed his oil the customer read the tract. When the car was finished, he left.

He came back today for another service and Billy stopped him and asked him what he thought of the message on that tract. The man told Billy that the message on that tract has changed his life. He no longer runs around on his wife and he has surrendered to Christ!! He attends church regularly now.

Praise God for He is at work!!!!!!!!!!!!! The power is not in the messenger-only the Message. It isn't about the delivery but what we have to deliver!

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

My Hindu Friend

God is amazing.

He opened a door for a friend and me to talk with one of our co-workers, who is Hindu. At first she felt condemned and defensive and quoted some verses from the Bible about Jesus.

We continued to talk and I asked how she did at keeping the 10 Commandments. She became scared and concerned and said that she never realized she was heading to Hell. This lady turned pale. Her eyes got teary and red. We explained to her the reason why Jesus came, and what He actually did for her.

It was an awesome night that Sunday night when we were talking to her. She was convicted and said she would think about it. We asked if she knew when she would die. She got even more concerned and she said she would not be able to sleep that night because she was really bugged.

She said she always thought she would reincarnate to someone else or something else. We explained to her that when her body dies her soul will be judge by God. The Resurrection of Jesus is more powerful than what she believes.

Nothing is impossible with God. I give all the glory to Him.
-Rochelle