AMAZING GRACE!

Sharing The Gospel With A Taxi Driver

Michelle and I were late for an appointment, so we jumped into a taxi. As the driver drove off, I heard the chinese version of the hymn, Amazing Grace, from the radio. This hymn always stirs a passion for the Lord in my soul.

It was too good a chance to let slip. I shared with the taxi driver the testimony of John Newton, author of Amazing Grace. He seemed interested as I spoke to him about Newton's work against slavery after his conversion. My jet lag and flu got the better of me but my wife's enthusiasm was like a second wind. We began to talk to him about God's salvation in Christ. And I shared with him the gospel concerning Jesus and the need to believe.

Someone else had apparently just shared the gospel with him. He was willing to listen and showed keen interest as I drew comparisons between Jesus and Budhha. There is a way to do this without insulting other religions. I genuinely respect other faiths, especially the living religions of Asia.

Michelle then explained to him how the Bible was God's word to us.

Must go to church and study more the bible lah...He told us rather sincerely. I remembered the words of our Lord with reference off another sincere seeker...He is not far from the kingdom.

As our journey came to an end, I was keen on praying with him. The traffic however was heavy and he could not wait for a long period. I prayed to the Lord silently, commended this man to the His mercy and told him to go to his friend's church.

BOB JEPSEN HEALING EVANGELISTIC CAMPAIGN

I mentioned the impending Jepsen campaign in one of my previous posts. Here is a picture of the campaign. Click here for the full story and more photos.

From 19 - 23 June the Anglican Church in Santa Cruz put together an evangelistic campaign and a seminar on healing for pastors and church workers/leaders. This is an exciting time in the life of the church because these activities were organised entirely by Revd Federico Bascunan and the local leadership.

Pray for effective follow up and for the Holy Spirit to further anoint and bless God's people to go and share the gospel in His Power.

PRAISE THE LORD!!

IS IT APPROPRIATE TO EVANGELIZE AT A FUNERAL WAKE?

Yes, wakes are great opportunities to talk about Jesus and His love for lost sinners.

Yesterday, I was asked to preach at a funeral wake. Don Marcial, the deceased, was 72 years old. He had only recently received Christ. His son in law was soundly converted; a few of his relatives have been attending church services; the rest were unsure and hesitant but open to the claims of Christ.

And so I took the opportunity to evangelize. These days I don’t get overly hung up about presenting gospel truths in a formula; I simply proclaim Christ. There is something so liberating and powerful when Jesus is mentioned in the power of the Holy Spirit. He is the message.

Christ breathes life into dead souls. Just mentioning His name and the titles which accompany his person and works is powerful stuff; drawing out the significance of His exclusive claims and uniqueness from the gospels is life giving.

Many responded positively to Him at the wake.

WITNESSING TO A JEHOVAH WITNESS

LAPSED BUT NOT IGNORANT
Last week I shared the gospel with a lapsed Jehovah Witness. I did'nt have time to attend the meetings and I gradually slipped away, he remarked. It was quite obvious, after having conversed with him for a few minutes, that his grasp of JW doctrine was not superficial. We worked our way through JW end-time beliefs and his understanding of Christ. It was tough but worth the effort. He did not appear to cede any of his beliefs.

I sensed however an openness as I shared the Trinitarian faith with him from the Bible and began to kick into proclamation. At some point in any evangelistic encounter there has to be a confident declaration of Christ's uniqueness in human history and his work of salvation and redemption of creation.

ONLY A CRACK
He looked pensive as I shared with him Christ's divinity; its not the church nor an enlightened sect that saves but Christ, the eternal Son Of God. A human or adopted "christ" is impotent and unable to save anyone, be it on a cosmic or existential level. I sensed a crack in his "works-salvation-gnostic-sectarian" mental grid. Sad to say it was only a crack.

He did not reject Christ but could not commit himself to pray and deepen his knowledge of our Lord. Evangelism is more than an intellectual encounter but a collision of spiritual forces. Maybe the Lord will send someone to help work through the issues which prevent him from taking the vital step of faith in Christ.

WORKSHOP ON EVANGELISM, FOLLOW UP AND PERSONAL DISCIPLESHIP

Yesterday we gathered the leadership together at a special Sunday workshop where I presented a small group evangelistic strategy which incorporates elements of follow up, personal discipleship and commitment to confirmation and church membership.

I enjoy teaching and running workshops; people got into the act and participated with lots of gusto. Some were quiet as they tried to understand the content of my teaching and the various questions that were raised by the more articulate ones in the workshop. It was great to hear stories of our people sharing the gospel with the lost. One couple had to leave early because they had to strengthen their friendship with a non christian couple. Our present approach is ad hoc, informal and not effective. We need to get our act together. There will be 2 other workshops.

At the heart of this new strategy will be home made evangelistic materials centered on Christ's encounter with individuals in the gospel. The challenge will be to work through the significance of His birth, death, resurrection and 2nd coming in the lives of the participants of these evangelistic small group encounters. In my own evangelistic work I have found that talking about Jesus is a great way of confronting people with the gospel. People by and large are fascinated with Jesus. He is the message!

BOB JEPSEN

A DIFFERENT SORT OF A HEALING EVANGELIST

Bob Jepsen, an american anglican healing evangelist, came to Santa Cruz last week; he worked with us and the local Vineyard chuch. This was his first visit to Santa Cruz. He ran similar meetings and seminars in the other Bolivian cities where pastors reported some dramatic healings. One boy's enlarged heart shrunk. The doctors claimed a miracle and did not go ahead with the surgery. Another lady was healed of liver cancer. He also went to share the gospel in the local prison where many went to the altar for prayer and ministry.

In Santa Cruz, Bob did a seminar on healing, held night services, met pastors from other churches and preached at our sunday services. His visit was a preparatory step toward a larger series of evangelistic meetings this June. This was a low key exploratory visit focused on leaders and Pastors. Hence the night meetings were not characterized by large crowds. The anointing however was present and many were blessed!

Bob's ministry is quiet and self effacing. He is not loud nor does he have a showy "Pentecostal" edge. A camera-man does not follow him as he ministers; he does'nt raise his voice nor does he tell stories in a way which makes you weep and fall of your chair. Bob is no salesman! He facilitates a corporate anointing which draws others to pray for the sick. His ministry is slow, inclusive and dependant on the worship. His style, on some level, is reminiscent of the way John Wimber used to run his meetings. Lay leaders and pastors don't view Bob as the great visiting evangelist but as a shy dude just like us. Ol' Bob cultivates the "If-he-can-do-it-so-can-I" mentality. And that is perhaps the strength of his minstry. Praise the Lord!!

¡MINISTRY EVERYWHERE!

There's a lot of action in the streets. I now understand why our Lord, Paul and people like Wesley attracted crowds in non- religious places. It's a fascinating experience and you get to meet all sorts personalities. I sense that there is a tremendous hunger for spiritual truth in Bolivia; many know that there must be something more to life;lets not forget the walking wounded who need Jesus's love. Friends, the harvest is plentiful!!

The other day I was invited to speak to a group of Bolivian adults who were learning English. I relished the idea of sharing the gospel with them; they were all, "to my disappointment", christians except for one lady; she shared her feelings of loneliness during the Christmas service. Someone suggested that she seek prayer from me. She was not against the idea. So I prayed for her; She felt better after the prayer and thanked me profusely; time prevented her from staying on; it was getting late. She told me of her intention to get counsel at our church.

A few days later I met up with a guy who wanted to sell me berries and raspberries. I began to share with him the gospel; his smile and responses convinced me that I was speaking to a Christian. He was very happy to meet up with a fellow believer. He began telling me his story and showed me a crumpled tract given to him by someone with lots of enthusiasm. It was a Jehovah Witness tract! I shared with him the differences between JW's and Christians. He gave me a quizzical look at first and then joined in with lots of questions and comments. He thanked me profusely for the time we had together and gave me the tract. It was a great session! I also bought some of his berries; they were huge, juicy, red and delicious.

Yesterday the cab driver who picked me up at town was a backslidden Christian. He was so keen on sharing his woes with me that he drove slowly, hoping that he would have the time to tell me his whole story. We then decided to stop at a corner; he stopped his engine and poured his heart out. His wife had left him and his 5 year old daughter to start a new life in Spain (quite common these days in Bolivia). To complicate matters he was thinking of starting a relationship with someone he had just met. He was confused and did not know what to do because his wife in Spain was sending him mixed messages about her intent to return to Bolivia. He was looking for clear directions. I gave him a few pointers: the Lord had sovereignly arranged our meeting, he must forgive his wife, he needed to seek the Lord first, clarity over the situation would surface; he needed to make a wise decision that would honor the Lord.

I prayed for him, invited him to our services and gave him my card. He was very grateful and did not want to charge me the taxi fare. I insisted that he keep the money. He smiled and drove away.

Lord, grant us the courage to be your instruments in a lost world!

EVANGELISING JORGE

The Lord's love in our hearts helps us find the right words to reach the lost.

He looked burly and not the sort of taxi driver you'd fool around with. I thought twice and decided to share Christ with him; we exchanged names. Call me Jorge, he said.

I asked him if he was planning to go to the Cabildo today. He said "NO" and went into a tirade against the civic leaders of Santa Cruz, accusing them of being elitist and not sharing their wealth with the poor. Roman priests, nuns and Christian pastors were not spared. According to Jorge, Roman priests and nuns were well taken care of at the expense of the simple folk in the churches; Pastors were no better because they were taking advantage of the people's ignorance. A staunch supporter of President Evo, Jorge said, "Evo is the only president who is looking out for the poor". I was a little taken aback by his support for the government because he was a fair skinned native cruceñan from eastern Bolivia. People from this sector are avowed opponents of President Evo.

How does one share Jesus with the "Jorges" of this world? Well, I told him that he was right; priests and pastors had indeed failed to live up to their calling as God's servants. Jorge remained silent as I told him that Jesus, unlike his servants, is faithful and a person of great integrity. I find that talking about Jesus is a powerful witnessing tool. The Lord's love in our hearts for the lost helps us find the right words to reach those who need him the most. Sometimes its not what we say but the way in which the Holy Spirit fills our words with the Lord's love for the lost. His words were measured and less offensive; he nodded his head in agreement with me about Jesus. I invited him to our Christmas Eve celebrations and prayed for him. He thanked me for the conversation and sped away. I felt a little frustrated that I could not close the deal and lead him to Christ. He appeared to be very hard but there was a softening towards the end.

Pray for Jorge. I'm sure the Lord will send someone else to build on what the Holy Spirit did through me. And pray for discernment, wisdom and boldness to evangelise!

NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER!

A Hardened Taxi Driver Recieves Christ

The taxi driver picked me up at downtown Santa Cruz. Taxi drivers are a captive audience to anyone wanting to lead them to Christ. And so I decided to share the gospel with this particular driver. He was unshavened, looked tired, angry and his right eye was bloodshot. Nope he did not look like the sort that Jesus would want to save. And my hunch was confirmed when he launched into tirade against a particular racial group in Santa Cruz. He did not look or sound like a good church goer. I was not in the mood for a drawn out political discussion; I wish I had taken another taxi.

Then something happened. The Good Shepherd who seeks out the lost took over. His love began to purify my heart as he reached out to embrace this hardened taxi driver. A part of me wanted to share Jesus with him; a part of me was fearful. I launched out anyway; perfect love does cast out fear. He kept quiet as I shared with him about Christ's great love for him. He looked down and out; battered by what was going on in Bolivia. He needed Jesus more than anyone else. I sensed the spiritual walls falling apart before Calvary's love. As he stopped in front of my house, I asked him if he wanted to receive Christ. He said, Yes! I led him in a prayer where he asked Christ to not only forgive him of his sins but to also enter his life.

Is there anything more fulfilling in life than leading someone to Christ? No, not at all!

EVANGELIZING MEN

A Talk On Communism & Socialism From A Christian Perspective At A Local Hotel Draws A Big Crowd.

What sort of a talk would interest men to consider the claims of Christ? Bolivian men like politics; the country's swing toward the left has stirred interest; the press and the radio/TV talk shows have latched on to this story. Bolivia is also no stranger to communism and socialism. So the men's ministry decided to organize a talk based on a Christian perspective of Communism and Socialism. About 2/3 of the men who attended the talk were non christians. The speaker, Leopoldo Sceti, is an experienced christian radio talk show host; he spoke for about 4o minutes. After the talk we mingled with the newcomers and invited them to a fellowship meeting in a member's home where the theme of the talk would be further dealt with. We've never done anything like this; the results are very encouraging.

There is a stereotype of men as being anti church and not interested in spiritual matters. The men's ministry is trying to undo this false stereotype. Winning men to Christ is a top priority; setting a man on fire for the Lord has an immediate and positive impact on his wife and family!

FIRE AT THE FIRE CONFERENCE!
Reinhard Bonnke Singapore Indoor Stadium 30/6/06 - 1/7/06


I was a delegate at the recently concluded fire conference at the Indoor Stadium. Here's a quick evaluation.

Action!
Bonnke likes action. Getting people out of their comfortable seats to evangelize the lost is his passion. Don't be a parked car...no one follows a parked car...the church should be like a car on the road!! he roars. Nope, Bonnke is not one for understatement. His messages reminds me of a WW2 panzer tank , firing its shells.

Age Is No Limit
Bonnke is 66 years old! My wife and I spent our honeymoon at his first nationwide evangelistic crusade at the national stadium more than 20 years ago . The man hasn't changed. He's still proclaiming Jesus and the gasspell (that's “gospel” for the uninitiated). No lack of fire and passion when Bonnke's around. My prayer is that ,like Bonnke, I will remain red hot for Jesus at 66!!

South East Asia & The Pacific
Bonnke's ministry is now a well oiled global ministry made visible through a worldwide network of regional representatives. Africa was his launching pad. Apart from Latin America he has ministered in all the major continents of the earth. China was mentioned as a focal point of the Lord's end-time global harvest as a missionary sending church.

Marketplace Evangelism
The workshop on marketplace evangelism at Emmanuel AOG was quite well attended. There were many speakers who covered a wide range of experiences. An Australian shared about his experiences in the corporate world. Benny Ong's teaching was testimony based. Two ladies talked about the effectiveness of the Alpha course in their attempts to evangelize their colleagues. Very interesting stuff. The session closed with a rip roaring evangelistic presentation by an Indian evangelist.

The Anointing “Kicks In” As We Launch Out
Bonnke's last plenary message centered on Joseph's wish to bury his bones in the promised land. Very powerful stuff. He closed by saying that there was no need to seek a new anointing and that the initial experience of the baptism of the Holy Spirit automatically would kick in as believers grabbed the initiative and do the Lord's work. We don't wait for the anointing before we minister; the anointing flows through us as we launch out!

Laying On Of Hands & The Eucharist
There was an anointing service at the end of the conference. Bonnke laid his hands on every single delegate. It was well organized. He stood on an elevated dias. The delegates were prayed for in pairs as they streamed through Bonnke's left and right. I would have preferred to share the Eucharist with the other delegates (It would have meant more work!!).

Conclusion
The Fire conference renewed my sense of calling to serve the Lord in Bolivia. The next steps promise to be very challenging and the messages spoke to me on a personal level. The Lord bless Bonnke and his team as they continue to serve the King of Kings!