Took the family to Silver Dollar City today. When it comes to "fishing," Silver Dollar City is a "stocked pond!" I took 200 Million Dollar Bills knowing I'd have plenty of time to pass out tracts and talk to people standing around waiting for their kids to come off of the rides. I came home with about 10! I sowed seeds on every kind of soil that Jesus described (Mark 4). Here are some highlights.
We Three Teens: My typical opening goes something like this. I hand them a million dollar bill and ask, "did you get one of these?" Almost always, people are quite interested in the million dollar bills. It's a great icebreaker. I then usually follow that with something like, "it's got the million dollar question on the back. If you died today, do you know where you'd spend eternity?" The three teens were attentive to that question. They were interested in learning. Had I not taken advantage of that opportunity, who knows if they would have heard the gospel before it's too late.
The Three Amigos: I shared with another group of three friends, three teenage guys. They did not know where they'd spend eternity if they died at that time. I asked if they would like to know how to inherit eternal life, and they were interested. God allowed me to walk through the gospel message with them. I took them through the commands way of the master style. They recognized they would be judged guilty on the day of judgment. We went through the gospel, and they understood their need to repent and trust Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. I concluded by urging them to repent and trust Christ today before it's too late. I also urged them to get a bible (Cody, one of the young men, didn't even have a bible), read a little bit from it everyday, and ask God to help them obey what they read. It was a great encounter.
Parker the Procrastinator: When in line for Fire in the Hole, I had a chance to talk to several people. Lot's of people wanted the celebrity million dollar bill. One young man, Parker, understood his need for a savior. He knew he would be judged guilty on the day of judgment. We went through the gospel. But, in the end, he was not ready to repent and trust Christ for salvation. I asked him what was causing him to delay. He didn't really specify. He just wasn't ready, much like the rich young man who walked away from Jesus sad becaues he wasn't ready to give up the things he loved more than the Master. I asked him if it concerned him that if he died today, he would end up spending eternity in a real place called hell. I told him and his two onlooking friends all that Jesus said about hell. How it's a place of eternal fire that is never quenched and how it's so bad there will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. I told him that Jesus spent a lot of time warning people about hell because He loves us and doesn't want us to spend eternity there. But, he just wasn't ready. I urged him to think about it seriously and not delay his decision. All you can do is sow the seed and allow the Spirit of God to work in His own special time and way. I pray Parker made his decision today.
Grandpa Bill: An older gentleman, Bill, backed his electric cart up to the bench next to me where I was waiting for the kids to exit the Lost River ride. He carefully picked himself up from the cart and sat next to me. I started a conversation with him. Told me that he's from Miami, Florida and always takes his grandchildren somewhere special each year. This year they chose Branson. After some small talk to get to know each other a bit, I pulled out a trust million and asked Bill if he'd received one of them yet. He chuckled at the face of the celebrity and said he hadn't. Turns out that Bill is a believer who's actively involved in discipling men in Miami. We had an encouraging time. I find that believers are often quite encouraged when someone actually tries to share the gospel with them. When was the last time someone tried to share the gospel with you? Bet it's been a while, unfortunately.
The Crusty Trio: Funny how many of my encounters involved groups of three. There was a trio of mature adults looking over a park map. I asked them if they'd received the million dollar bills. They were pretty cold to me. I told them they were special because they have the million dollar question on the back and that they were gospel tracts. They were still cold to me. I urged them to seriously consider the question on the back because nothing is more important than their eternal destiny. They coldly thanked me in a way as if to say, "thanks, but no thanks." You can't judge a book by its cover but I'd say they were some hard ground. Who knows, maybe they'll read them later and the word of God will do its work in their lives. I pray they will.
The Discovery Channel Duo: While in line for one of our many rides on the Powder Keg, I overheard two men in front of me talking about their love for the Discovery Channel and all of the science topics. They were really getting into the laws of physics. I know nothing about the laws of physics except entropy. One thing you begin to learn to do as you follow the Lord into a daily lifestyle of fishing for souls is to be attentive to opportunities to turn the conversation from the things of the world to spiritual things. I found my chance and God me grace to jump on it. "So where did all of these laws of physics come from?" I asked. They were more than glad to share their knowledge with me but missed where I was really going with the question. "Sir Isaac Newton," answered one guy, "and other scientists, too," the other added. "But how were these laws created or made?" I followed up. "A creator, I guess," responded one young man. "That's right," I confirmed. "And do you know about the moral laws of the creator?" I asked. Blank stares followed. I then went into the 10 commandments with them and explained that the bible says in Hebrews 9:27 that we'll all stand before God in judgment to be judged by His moral law, just as Newton found that we're all subject to the laws of gravity. I asked them how they'd do on that day? Whoa!! That's not really a subject that one guy wanted to delve into. He quickly walked off to another part of the line where he could get in place to jump on the roller coaster. The other guy said he thought he was pretty good and should come out fine. Since they were fleeing the conversation at that point, I urged them to read the tract and confirm their eternal destiny before it's too late.
The harvest is definitely plentiful!
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