Trip Summary (3/11-3/12, 2016 - Richmond, Greensburg, Connersville, Rushville)
Good morning everyone! It's been a very busy week and a half since we evangelized Richmond, Greensburg, Connersville, and Rushville. While it may be a bit overdue, we did still want to share a quick summary of our most recent trip.
We started our trip Friday evening (March 11) in Greensburg, IN. Despite the slightly warmer (yet still cool) temperatures, there were not as many people out and about as we had expected. Our original plan was to walk the sidewalks around the square near the shops and restaurants. However, it was pretty bare, so we decided to visit the one place you can always find plenty of people...Walmart!
But first, we stopped for a quick bite to eat. At the restaurant, we took a few moments to speak with the young lady helping us with our order about the Lord. We left her with some literature as well. We spent the rest of our time discussing our gameplan.
Just a bit later, we arrived at Walmart and saw plenty of foot-traffic! Kris set up shop in the parking lot, while I spent most of my time up near the doors, rotating between the two entrances/exists.
Kris was able to engage in conversation with several shoppers on their way back to their cars. I know what you're thinking, "I wouldn't talk to a man at night in the Walmart parking lot". But Kris was wearing a sweatshirt with Jesus and a cross on it, and he was of course very friendly and polite....we didn't chase anyone (haha). Several people stopped to speak with him. He spoke with young, middle-aged, and older folks. Some believed, some were misguided in their faith, some were not believers, and of course there were a few that didn't want to talk about their need for the Savior.
I started my evening with a gentleman on a bench right outside the doors. He was waiting on his ride, so I took a few moments to share the Gospel with him. I spent much of the rest of the evening distributing flyers with the Gospel on one side and the plan of salvation on the other, along with contact information for Kris and myself. I also spoke with a young lady who believed and was requesting prayer for a family member.
After spending a couple of hours outside of Walmart, we loaded up the car and took off for Richmond, IN. We rolled into Richmond and decided to hit a coffee shop before checking into our hotel. We both grabbed a cup of something hot and spent some time discussing how Greensburg went, how Richmond might go, and of course trading some stories.
Before we left the coffee shop, we spoke with one of the employees and gave him a Bible and a flyer with the Gospel and plan of salvation.
We rolled into the hotel pretty late. I was worn out as we were checking in, but Kris didn't let this opportunity pass. As the young lady was working to get us all set, Kris began speaking with her about the Lord. And, as it turns out, she was a believer. Kris used an awesome illustration to demonstrate to her the importance of our obedience to Christ...giving to the Lord what He wants, rather than what we want to give Him. She was very receptive to the message!
We got up to the room and spent the next few hours discussing Scripture, evangelism, the current state of Christianity, and a variety of other topics. We listened to some excellent preaching on YouTube, and nearly preached a few sermons to each other! Needless to say, it was pretty late (or should I say early?) before the lights went out. We were fired up and ready for Richmond already!
We started off Saturday (March 12) with a gameplan. We were going to take donuts to the Reid Hospital emergency room (Richmond) and take time to speak and pray with those waiting for loved ones. We found a Richmond favorite, Square Donuts, and bought a couple dozen. Of course, the young ladies working there were able to hear a short sermon before we left. Kris left some cash and some Gospel literature for the next couple of customers. The young lady running the register agreed to apply the money to the next customers' bills and to give them the Gospel too!
Upon arriving at the Reid Hospital, we entered the emergency room with 24 square donuts, a few Bibles, several flyers with the Gospel and plan of salvation, and a notepad and pen to write names of those we met and need to pray for. We were very sensitive to those we around us while we were in the waiting room. Of course, we did not bother those who were clearly patients in pain or extremely ill. We tried to identify and speak with those who were waiting on others. Everyone was very appreciative of the donuts. They were even more appreciative of having someone to talk with and have pray for them and their loved ones. Kris spent some time with a gentleman who was very worried about his sister's condition and was able to pray with him. I spoke with a very young family, quite nervous about a family member who was in the ER at that time. We did our best to provide for the needs of as many people there as we could...talking, taking down names to pray, providing a few dollars for one family, and providing a few donuts for them all. In the end, this turned out to be time very well spent!
From there, we drove around the city a bit, looking for additional opportunities to evangelize before we left. We ended up back at the Square Donuts shop, this time for a soda. While we were there, one of the young ladies let us know how things went as she used the money and flyers we had given them for customers who came in after us the first time we were there. We were also able to get a little more background on the young lady and share some more truth with her based on her specific situation.
We did encounter a gentleman standing on a street corner evangelizing. He said he lived 4 blocks down the street. We were excited to see another believer spending a Saturday for Christ Jesus!
Next, we found ourselves at the Richmond Walmart. This time, I went inside to get some sturdy foam board and multi-colored permanent markers. I created a few large posters with convicting messages to use throughout the remainder of our trip. We blasted some sermons over the car stereo as I worked on the posters in the Walmart parking lot.
After finishing up with the posters, we strategically placed them in the windows of the car until we needed them for something else.
Kris spotted a Christian bookstore, so we pulled in to see if there were any discounted/clearanced items we could use for our trip or future trips. We didn't find much. There wasn't a whole lot there for the Christian only.
We grabbed lunch, left some literature with one of the restaurant employees, and then left for Connersville. The city was not exactly bustling with people walking around outside. So, after a short period of time, we realized we were destined for more Walmart evangelism. We pulled up to the Connersville Walmart and set up shop. Kris walked through the parking lot speaking with several people about Jesus. I took one of the signs out of the car and walked out to a concrete 'island' at the end of the parking lot. Cars were constantly coming and going on either side of this island. There seemed to be very few passengers who didn't nearly break their necks reading the sign. I call that a success! The message even received a few honks and thumbs up! Meanwhile, Kris was still hard at it, speaking with individual after individual after individual! We regrouped for a moment. Kris had previously mentioned that he figured he could use his loudspeaker and microphone to preach for 15 minutes before being asked to stop. So, Kris mic'd up for his parking lot sermon. As he began to preach, I walked around to see how far he could be heard. I walked to the entrance/exit doors and then to the very back of the parking lot. In the end, I took another sign and went out to a busier corner near the highway and could still hear Kris preaching the Gospel to the people of Walmart. His impromptu sermon was even getting me fired up! What a great opportunity this was! Imagine yourself walking out of Walmart or your local grocery or mall, and hearing the Gospel preached over a loudspeaker as you walked to your car and unloaded your bags. It was powerful. Almost exactly 15 minutes later, a Walmart employee did come out to speak to Kris. He was very polite, and spoke with Kris for a while about what he was doing. Yes, he did ask him to stop doing it over the loud speaker, but again, he was very polite and courteous about it. He also remained for a few minutes while Kris shared the Gospel with him.
So, we loaded back up in the car and took off. As I drove, Kris briefly preached over the loudspeaker from the car to a small neighborhood. We like to call it "drive-by evangelism"!
It began to rain as we left Connersville and headed toward Rushville. As we drove around Rushville checking out the place, a light (but cold) rain was coming down. Rushville is a very small town and we were having difficulty again locating people (especially with the rain coming down). So, we checked out the Walmart in Rushville. It was a very small Walmart store with only a few cars in the parking lot. I went inside, and found almost no one.
Since it was about supper time, we decided to make the most of this small town, in the cold rain, by evangelizing the restaurant. We spoke with our server about the Lord and gave him a Bible along with some needed encouragement. When we entered the restuarant, there were probably 5 or 6 other people in there. As we sat there eating our meal and speaking with our server, the placed literally filled up. There was not an open seat in the place. So, while we were waiting in line to pay, we passed out flyers with the Gospel, and spoke with people as they came inside. Before we left, we spoke with a couple who was in line to pay, along with another lady and her son at the check-out counter, as well as the employee who was ringing up our bill. So, we ended up evangelizing the Park Restaurant!
From there, it was time to return to our families. We spent the drive home talking about the trip, our future vision for the mission, and all the challenges facing the Church today. We arrived at my place around 8:30 Saturday night. Of course, we continuted to talk until probably 9:15 or so. Kris still had about an hour and a half to drive home!
We had such a great time sharing the Lord with those four cities! We are so thankful for those we were able to reach. However, our hearts are still burdened for those we were not able to reach. We pray for all of these people, and it is our hope that God will work in the hearts of the people in these cities, and draw them to Himself!
We ask that you continue to pray for these people, for the Lord's Church, for our mission, and for us! We have full confidence and faith in the Lord and in His Gospel! We are not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation!
If you're already a Christian out there reading this, pray that God will use you to do something BIG where you are! And then get out there and start doing it! If you are motivated by true faith in Christ, your love for Him, and genuine compassion for the lost, He will be with you! Go and share the WHOLE truth of the Gospel with the world around you.
Love in Christ, Jake
