“Thank you! I’ll read what you’ve given me!” – Portsmouth Evangelism

It was a grey day in Portsmouth, but the city centre still seemed to have its usual level of busyness. After setting up the open-air board and literature table, I commenced preaching on the subject, “Who is Jesus Christ?” (you can listen to the audio of my sermon at the link below).

I must admit, I wasn’t sure if this was the right message for the pre-lunch crowds, but after praying, I felt it was the right message for the moment. Taking Colossians 1, I explored three key truths about Jesus and then called for people to repent and believe. At the end of the message, four people took copies of John’s Gospel, including a security guard from a local shop who had been listening.

Roger went over to the security guard and had a good conversation with him. The man was ‘spiritual’ but not born-again. Later in the day, as we were leaving the outreach, he called out, “Thank you! I’ll read what you’ve given me!” Please pray that this gentleman would read God’s Word and come to the truth.

Meanwhile, Jean was speaking in Chinese to a man from Hong Kong. The man lives in the UK and attends a Chinese church, but he isn’t a Christian. Jean was able to share with him and give him a tract and a copy of Ultimate Questions in his own language.

Throughout the day, literature was being distributed. Tracts were handed out quickly, and material was taken from the literature table. Our prayer is that people will read their way into the Kingdom!

At the table, an older lady spoke with Margaret; she said she thought she was right with God because she had been christened. Margaret shared the good news, and the lady took several gospel booklets.

Roger preached next, speaking on the subject of “Is Your Life a Gamble?” This was the first time he used this message, and he did a good job. He explained the different risks people take, and then looked at the ultimate gamble people make with their eternal souls.

Next up to preach was Chris, the Pastor of Eastney Evangelical Church. He spoke from Mark 2:17, explaining how Jesus came to call sinners, as He is the friend of sinners. He did a good job explaining the gospel.

An older man stood behind the board listening to Chris, and then he walked over to the literature table to speak with me. He told me he now desires to read the Bible, but he needs one in large print. I only had a large print copy of John’s Gospel with me, which the man took and promised to read.

Jean spoke with a man from Bangladesh, who had limited English. Thankfully, we had John’s Gospel in Bengali, which we were able to give him. The man received the Gospel with great care and joy. He was excited to have God’s Word in his language. It was convicting to watch this man get excited about Scripture, especially when so often we take the Bible for granted.

As I prepared to preach once more, I noticed a group of homeless people gathering behind the board. I couldn’t help but overhear the woman in the group say, “I’m going to flip over their table!” I looked at her and said, “No, you won’t! You probably shouldn’t make those statements when standing next to the preacher!” The woman laughed in embarrassment, so I quickly said, “Let me tell you about someone who did flip tables…” She paid attention, so I continued, “This man went into a religious building and started to overthrow tables because the religious leaders were making money off the people. The man who did that was Jesus, and He did it to show that God is to be worshipped rightly.” The woman wasn’t impressed with my story from John 2, so she quickly walked away.

For the final open-air, I preached on “Steps to Peace with God.” A few people sat to listen, and at the end, four took copies of John’s Gospel. Team members were able to speak with some of those who responded.

It was a productive and fruitful day in Portsmouth. Please pray for all those who heard the good news.

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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