The Gospel Seed Continues to Grow – Portsmouth Evangelism
What do Lebanese, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Polish, Kurdish, and British people have in common? All of them stopped to talk with us about Jesus today in Portsmouth, and all received Bibles and/or literature. From one city centre in England, we were able to reach the nations with the good news of Jesus.
Before we could even set up, people were stopping to talk. Thomas and I had unfolded the literature table, but before we could put signs out or place material on it, a lady stopped and asked, “Is there something you’d like me to sign?” I replied that we were Christians and would be giving away gospel material. She got excited and told us she liked religion. She ended up taking some gospel booklets to read with her cup of tea.
The table remained busy throughout the day, with people from all over the world stopping to browse the material and chat about Jesus. One man who stopped was from Lebanon. He was very interested but struggled to read English. He looked disappointed as he picked up the Scriptures only to discover they were in English. Thankfully, I had Arabic editions of John’s Gospel in my bag; he was thrilled to receive God’s Word in his language.
A Hungarian lady also stopped at the table to speak with Jyothi. She shared that she had listened to me preach last year and was still thinking about the message. She also mentioned she believes in angels. Jyothi pointed out that angels bow to Jesus, so the lady needed to consider Christ. The Hungarian lady took a copy of the New Testament and Ultimate Questions in her language. It is amazing to think that the gospel seed sown a year ago is still being used by the Lord. How many others are out there considering messages they heard long ago?
Soon after, a couple from Bulgaria stopped to talk. I was able to give them a card linking to the gospel in their language. They were also looking for a church, so Pastor Chris recommended a fellowship near where they live. Before they left, the man asked if I would ever visit Bulgaria to preach the good news—who knows? Maybe the Lord will open that door one day.
Chris from Eastney Evangelical Church was the first to preach today. He did a great job using 1 Peter 5:6 to explain that people need to humble themselves under God’s mighty hand. Then, he turned it around to show that God has extended His mighty hand to rescue sinners.
After Chris, I preached. I took John 3:16 as my text and spoke about ‘Good News for Portsmouth’. A young couple both took copies of John’s Gospel at the end, but there was also another man listening. He has heard me preach several times; he is a Muslim who listens but refuses to take material. Today, however, he took both a tract and a New Testament.
For the rest of the outreach, we focused on handing out tracts and speaking with people. It was encouraging to have a Polish lady and a Kurdish man stop at the table. Both were very keen to read God’s Word, so we gladly gave them copies of the New Testament and gospel literature.
As we packed down, we were amazed that, through conversations at the literature table, thirty people had requested copies of the New Testament! We pray the Lord will take the seed that has been sown and bring in a great harvest.
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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