“There Has to Be More to Life Than This!” – Salisbury Evangelism

We were blessed with good weather for the outreach in Salisbury. The sun was shining, and it wasn’t too hot or cold – it was just right. Due to the pleasant weather, there were a good number of people in the city centre. We set up the open-air board and the literature table, then began to share the good news.

One highlight of the day was when a Dutch-Jewish lady, whom we’ve spoken to many times before, passed by. She stopped to chat and was friendly with the team. Paul, anticipating her return, had a copy of the Dutch and Hebrew New Testament in his bag. When he gave it to her, she was overjoyed and hugged him.

The preaching began with my talk on “Why Christianity?”. Unfortunately, there was little interaction, though some elderly people walked past, shaking their heads and tutting at me. It is truly sad to see people nearing the day they’ll meet God, yet shaking their heads in unbelief. May the Lord soften their hearts before it is too late.

Paul preached next, speaking on the subject of “Changes We Can Make.” One young lady walked by, calling out, “God bless your soul!” She then stopped at the literature table, where I was able to chat with her. She was interested in Christianity, though her boyfriend wasn’t. After talking for a few minutes, she took a copy of John’s Gospel and said she’d read it. 

Around this time, a man stopped at the table with a problem. Somehow, he had been scheduled to do the Bible reading at the Cathedral, but he didn’t own a Bible. We happily gave him a copy, along with other material explaining the good news.

Geoff was busy throughout the day, speaking with different people, including Christians who were encouraged by the witness, and a young man who expressed a desire to read the Bible. Geoff gave him a copy of God’s Word and pointed him to a local church.

The best conversation I had was with a British man around my age. He told me he had grown up going to Sunday School, but over the years, life happened, and he walked away from the church and, in his words, ‘became wild’. As he engaged in various vices, he came to realise that God exists, and he needed to discover Him. After sharing his experiences, the man said, “There has to be more to life than this!” I asked him a few questions to better understand his spiritual condition, and it soon became clear he was trusting in his good deeds to merit salvation. He wanted to live a good life and hoped Jesus would take that into account. I was able to share the gospel with him and emphasised that salvation is all of Jesus. By the end of our conversation, the man seemed to grasp this truth, and he took a copy of the Bible and gospel booklets. He was very open and willing to hear the truth – please pray for him.

For my next open-air message, I spoke on “Lessons from the Boomerang.” There was a bit of engagement, and a few people listened. One older man who paid attention spoke with Paul afterwards, as he had questions about suffering and wondered why Jesus had to suffer. Paul used 1 Peter 3:18 to explain the gospel. A lady also paid attention; she told me she enjoyed the preaching and took a few tracts.

Paul finished the outreach by preaching on “Are You Good Enough to Go to Heaven?” A young lady engaged with Paul, and as he spoke about sin, she admitted her guilt before God. Paul then carefully and lovingly explained the good news. The young lady took a Gospel of John and several different tracts. 

It was an enjoyable day in Salisbury, with many hearing of Jesus. Please pray that the gospel seed would fall on good soil and that many would be saved.

SDG!

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Josh Williamson is a full-time evangelist with The Open-Air Mission. Since 1853, OAM has been sharing the good news on the streets of the United Kingdom. To stay updated about the work of the Mission, please sign up for the free quarterly magazine and monthly prayer notes.

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