Even in the Quietness – God was at Work! – Portsmouth Evangelism

When one thinks of evangelistic ministry, it is easy to cast our mind to those big, flashy, and exciting events; or perhaps, when we think of evangelism on the street, our mind rushes to those times when large crowds of people gathered to hear the Word of God preached. But today wasn’t like that, it was ordinary – it was quiet, it was slower, and that is completely fine as God still works in the quietness.

Seven of us made our way to the heart of Portsmouth to share the good news, and upon arrival, we noticed that the city centre wasn’t as busy as usual. People were walking around, but in general, it just appeared to be slower. However, we know that God is sovereign over all the affairs of humanity, so we had confidence that the people He wanted to be there, were there.

As usual, we set up the Free Bible and Literature table, and soon people were walking up to see what was on offer. A family of Nigerians who now live in the UK stopped and were quite intrigued by God’s Word. They took a New Testament, and all the children took age-appropriate tracts. While they were there, another lady stopped to browse – she took an apologetic booklet and a copy of John’s Gospel. Throughout the day, the table would prove to be a magnet for people wanting to stop to chat or to take material to discover more about God. Even in the quietness – God was at work!

Roger was the first preacher for the day, and as he spoke a few people paid attention. It was quite encouraging to overhear people sitting on park benches discussing the message and talking about Jesus. One Christian lady was so thankful for Roger’s preaching, that she came up to give him a hug. Even in the quietness – God was at work!

I was the next preacher. Today, I spoke on “What’s in a Name?” In this message, I seek to examine the names – “Immanuel” and “Jesus.” These two names reveal who the Lord is, and His purpose for coming to this earth. As I spoke, I noticed a man standing in a shopfront with his dog. The man was paying very close attention to the preaching. At the end of my message, when I extended an offer of a Gospel of John to anyone who wanted to discover more about Jesus, he quickly responded. Roger was then able to speak to him further. Even in the quietness – God was at work!

Of particular encouragement was seeing the thawing of a lady who has listened to us preach multiple times. This older lady often sits on the bench right near the open-air board; over the past few weeks, whenever we have approached her she would quickly say, “I am not interested” and then shoo us away. Last week, I was able to chat and joke with her a little about non-Christian matters, but today, she happily spoke at length to one of the team members. We know she has been listening to the preaching, as she commented on the different preachers and their messages. The team member who spoke to her offered a tract, but she refused. However, she was happy to listen to him share his testimony/story. Even in the quietness – God was at work!

When the history of Christianity in this century is written, today’s outreach in Portsmouth won’t get a mention. However, I truly believe based on all the conversations that the team had, all the tracts and Bibles that were distributed, and all the preaching that took place, there will be people in eternity who will testify to God’s grace, saying how in the midst of the quietness – He was at work!

SDG!