Wayne Dawg is an evangelizing brother in Christ, a friend and fellow blogger from Georgia. His latest post on His Feet On The Street blog moved me and I thought it good to post it here.
Though this witness encounter Wayne describes here did not end the way he would have wanted it to, I believe this story has more to do with Wayne's heart than it does about the end result.
May we all share the same depth of concern for those who are without Christ.
One of the last witnessing conversations we had In New Orleans was with a couple self-professing lesbians who were sitting down in a little area between business buildings along Canal Street.
As we approached the girls I got out a couple tracts while my partner was reaching for the video camera to film the encounter.I asked him not to film the encounter. I felt God leading me to these girls and I knew, somehow, that if we were to start filming the encounter these girls would have got up and walked away.
I asked the girls if they had got their Million Dollar Bill yet and after a little chit chat starting asking them about their thoughts on eternity, God and the characteristics / attributes of God.
One of the girls (the one whom would be the focus of my conversation) said she didn’t think there was a God. I went through the building/builder, painting/painter and creation/Creator with her and she didn’t say to much to that.
I asked her, “If” there was a God, what kind of attributes do you think He would have?
Kind. Loving. Not full of hate like those people down the street.
She was referring to what most people down there called the “Turn or Burn” preachers who were holding large colorful signs that pointed out what God hates in big bold letters while almost yelling in a megaphone or P.A. system what happens to those folks who die doing those things God hates.
She was obviously turned off and repelled by these preachers. The only conversation she was ever going to have with that kind of preacher would be to tell him what she thought of him and his message.
I asked her if she thought God would be a just God. Would He punish those who deserved to be punished? Like murderers who never got caught? Like rapists who evaded the law?
She said yes; God, if He existed, would punish those kinds of people.
Once we started talking, I realized how beautiful this girl was. Oh, she had crazy colored spiked hair. She had a piercing through the top of her nose and other places on her face.
Her face was even painted different colors to match her clothing.
But while we talked, all I could see was her humanity.
As we were talking, her eyes never left my eyes. She never looked around. She almost literally stared right through me. She was intelligent, sharp and serious.
Through my years of witnessing I have never had someone to seem to hang on every word I said and be that focused during a conversation.
She had questions for me too.
She asked where a five year old would go if she were struck by a car and was killed.
She asked where a fifty year old woman in the deepest jungle in Africa would go if she never heard about Christ before she died.
I answered her questions by telling her God was a just God and could not be unjust in dealing with mankind. The child, I reasoned with her, based on King David’s experience with the death of his own child, would be in Heaven; in a place where David was confident he himself would be re-united with his son.
The fifty year old woman in Africa was a different story. I told her that no one goes to hell because they never hear about Jesus Christ. I told her that Scripture says that ‘all’ have fallen short of the glory of God and have sinned against Him. I explained that the woman is condemned to hell because she has sinned against the God of the Universe by breaking His laws.
This was my opening to tell her that she had sinned against God too.
She admitted to being a liar; transgressing the 9th Commandment.
She admitted to be a thief; transgressing the 8th Commandment.
She admitted to blasphemy; transgressing the 3rd Commandment.
By her own admission, she is a liar, thief and blasphemer.
I told her that when she died, she would face God and stand before Him guilty of transgressing His law.
My partner, who also was kneeled down beside me, was in prayer during the conversation. He told me that she was visibly shaking at the end of our conversation (I did not see this as my eyes never left hers either).
I believe that God was trying to wake her up from the dead through the proclamation of His law. On and on we talked and I discerned that she was ready for God’s grace so I expounded on the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ:
God becoming a Man through the virgin birth.
Jesus walking a perfect sinless life.
His sacrificial death on a cross.
His glorious resurrection on the third day.
She had broken God’s perfect law but the perfect Jesus Christ paid her fine in His life’s blood. If she would only repent and put her faith in Him and Him alone for her salvation, He would save her; make her a new creation in Christ.
I pleaded with her. I had tears welling up in my eyes because of my concern for her soul.
But it was not to be……..
She shook my hand and her and her girlfriend got up and left.
I was heartbroken.
I have witnessed to hundreds of people over the last four to five years. I have given out thousands upon thousands of tracts.
I thought I had a high level of compassion for the lost.
When my partner and I got up and walked away I stopped, turned back to watch them walk away, and just started crying.
I’m not ashamed to admit that.
My buddy put his arm around me and said that was the most amazing witnessing encounter he ever saw. It wasn’t me, of course; it was the Holy Spirit pouring out of me.
I wanted her to repent and trust Christ so badly that I felt like grabbing her by the arms and shaking her until she woke up.
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!
Matthew 23:37.
But I can’t grab and shake her. I can only preach the gospel and let God do the rest. It’s not up to me to save anyone; it’s just up to me faithfully proclaim that which God has commanded all believers to proclaim; the glorious gospel.
Thank you, Father, for giving me a new level of compassion to seek and save that which is lost.
Forbid it Lord that I should ever lose my concern and alarm that the lost are going to a real place called hell and You have given us believers the task of bringing the gospel to them.
