Fishing in the Rain

Tonight it was raining in Burbank, so we moved into the mall. There were relatively few of us out tonight, so it was easy to blend in and speak to people one to one. Joey actually did get stopped by a security guard but after talking to the head of the security department, was told that he was not breaking any rules and was absolutely allowed to start conversations with people. They even offered to help Joey file a complaint against the one guard. Of course, he didn't do that.


I spoke with a kid who had been living on the streets of Burbank for ten years and told me he was 'born again'. He said that by having faith in God he would be saved. But, he couldn't really explain what that meant, or exactly what that faith would produce. He was doing drugs, and was hurting his body in other ways and when I offered him a bible, he said that he wasn't able to read it without falling asleep. I spent some time with him and pray that he doesn't end up one of the people crying out Lord, Lord, only to be sent away.

Back outside, it was a little slow, but I actually had a few great conversations with groups of kids. As usual, there were plenty of kids joking around and coming in and out of the conversation, but one or two in each group sat there focused till the end and I left them with something to read. One kid kept coming back trying to get $20 for memorizing the Ten Commandments. I told him that I was not going to pay him to call his friend and write them down and come read them to me. In fact, I gave him a list of them to keep for himself. He still kept coming back trying to show my that he could memorize them. At first I was trying to ignore him, but after he kept coming back, I realized that he really wanted to talk. It was not about the money. After memorizing them, we went through them and I explained the ones that he didn't understand, and I explained how Jesus maginified them and judges our hearts and not just our actions. At the end, he understood why we were out there speaking about God's law and pleading with them to get right with God while He is still patient with us. When God pours out His wrath on sin, I begged him to place his faith in Jesus to take that punishment and not be in a position to take it himself.

Please pray that each of the people that heard the gospel tonight keep those words in their heart so the Holy Spirit can go to work on them when they are not distracted by the peer pressure of being with their friends. I thank God for giving me the heart to get out of the house on a Friday night in the rain and for entrusting me with the precious gift of the gospel and the commandment to bring it to all the world.