30 Day Challenge

Hello Everyone,
I am sorry it has been so long. I have become so frustrated with this internet. I am pleased to announce that a local business man has offered to let me use his computer to upload pictures, video, and music. However as it was late, and I hadn’t written in awhile, I thought I would attempt a quick note. We have now been gone from Tullahoma for just over thirty days. Although, we have been very busy and much involved in a variety of ministries I felt the Lord was speaking to me. I was still not feeling at peace about my schedule and activities. Then it occurred to me. I believe what God is most interested in, is that we talk to others about His Son, Jesus Christ. It doesn’t matter where we are, that is the most important thing. It is easy to stay busy in ministry (In the US or even in Swaziland) and not talk to people about Jesus. Sure, I talk about him all the time in my sermons and my preaching and teaching, but what about in the streets, when we are in the stores, or just walking about town.

I have always been moved by the words of John the Baptist in John 3:30. His own followers came to him, alarmed. “John,” they said, “all of the people who have been following you, are now following that Jesus guy you introduced the other day.” John answered them so plainly and so perfectly. I highlighted this verse in my Bible when I was in seventh grade. John said, “Relax, guys. Thats the idea of our existence. He must increase, and I must decrease.” The reason that we are here, it so point others to Christ. That day I tried to get online. I tried my email. I tried my blog. I thought I was getting on Facebook, but quickly it fell apart. However, before I got booted, I noticed someone had posted a “thirty-day challenge” on my wall. I still don’t even know what the challenge was, but I felt the Lord speaking to me. I have come up with a personal thirty-day challenge. I have decided to talk to someone about Jesus every day for thirty days. In some converstation I will attempt to bring up Jesus and ask the person about Jesus. Of course it will be easy for me to do this in my classes and preaching, but I want to talk to someone new about Jesus, every day.

Well, I started last Friday. On that day Caleb and I returned to the marketplace to pick up some crafts he had purchased. I packed my “fanny-pack” full of gospel tracts. As we talked to three craftsmen (one woman) I gave them each a gospel tract. I didn’t go into anything else. I asked them to read the material and I would be back to talk with them later. They all recieved them graciously.

The next day was Saturday. It was a teaching day for me. I arrived at my class. It was a rural church building like the others I have taught in. It was in a fenced in yard. Of course I taught and I talked a lot about Jesus, God, and God’s Word. Soon, I had finished my hour. I left the fenced in area and started walking down the road. Before long a group of children had gathered around me. I greeted them in Siswati. The all laughed. I continued to attempt to speak Siswati. They continued to laugh but then offered me new words to try. Before long we were laughing and talking and playing soccer. Before long there were about twelve boys and three or four girls standing in a circle on a red dirt road surrounded by mountains, tall corn, and mango trees. It was then I remembered my challenge. “Before we play any more,” I said,”I have an important question for all of you. How can someone know for certain they are going to Heaven.” I had already asked them all if they attended church. They all admitted attending church, but no one offered the answere to my question. I quoted John 3:16 and wrote it on that dirt road, so they could come back later and look it up in their Bibles. We had some good discussion. They were extremely fearful of Satan, and wicked people. I said goodbye. I told them I would come back to play again. I returned to class.

Sunday I got up early and went again to the prison. Instead of speaking in Maximum as we had before, they directed us to Medium Security. Bruce told me their would be about thirty people. However do to changes in the prison, everyone now is required to attend Sunday Service. We were led into a large building. It was the dining Hall. Over 600 men crowded every seat and were standing along the walls. I had a prepared message from Romans 5, but instead I simply shared the Gospel and reminded those men, that “He that Has the Son, Has Life, and He that Has not the Son, Does not have Life.” I have never spoken to such a large crowd, After this, I shook hands with each man as they left the building. We then attended the smaller meeting with thirty Christians. I preached my prepared sermon from Romans. We had a great time singing and praying together. I sang the song, “How Deep the Father’s Love for Us”. ( I preached again in an afternoon service. I again shared the message I prepared and the Gospel challenge).

Today was Monday. I met Bruce at his house and we walked to the marketplace to buy a special robe worn by the men of the churches we are trying to encourage to come to our Bible College. We talked and prayed with the seamstress, a widow, and a dear Christian. After that I asked Bruce to come back with me to talk with the craftsmen, I had left with my tracts. We visited first with Clement. He was from Mozambique and said, he didn’t read English well. I talked with Him about Jesus and what is required for a man to go to Heaven. He asked me to return and talk to him more on Saturday when his daughter was present, as she spoke better English. Next I talked with John. John also had trouble discussing things clearly in English, but he understood our questions about Jesus and shared his testimony of how he had come to Christ a few years ago. He thanked us for talking with him, and before we left all three of us got on our knees in the corner of the market and prayed.

Next we visited Caesar. In a short time we discovered that he was a Christian. He showed us the devotional he had been reading as we approached. Together we read the verses and then we had prayer for his family.

I invite you to take this challenge with me. I am sure I will not keep it perfectly, and I admit to you that I am scared every time I share the gospel with anyone. I always feel I have done poorly, and feel like I will never share again. However, we must take such a challenge, and we must keep sharing. Satan is so good at keeping us from sharing this important, eternity-changing news. And so what if we fail. At least we will be able to stand before Christ and count the times we stumbled as we “attempted” to share the Good News. I dare say, I don’t like to consider the alternative, standing before Him and having Him review my life to see that I never shared the Good News, at all for fearing I was too inept. And, what if, in all my attempts I get better, or somehow in my imperfection, someone still recieves this Good News. Anyhow, this is what the Lord is doing in my life. Stay tuned, and I will keep you informed of how God is working. May God richly bless you all. Sincerely, Jim