DAILY? Did you get that? Paul had some time to kill, waiting for Timothy and Silas to reach him. So while he was waiting…while he had nothing to do…while he could have done anything he wanted…he looked for an opportunity to share Jesus. And he didn’t just do it once…but DAILY! That’s right…everyday he looked for an opportunity to share about Jesus.
Where? In the MARKETPLACE. Did you get that? Paul didn’t share the gospel only in church. He took it outside the church…into the marketplace!
DAILY you and I are in the MARKETPLACE. We buy groceries and stand behind someone in waiting in line. We take a walk on a nice day and cross paths with others doing the same. We’re at the gas station pumping gas next to others filling up.
We live in the marketplace; a place for the gospel to be demonstrated and talked about!
Yesterday, I was the only customer in line dropping off my rental car. I had a flight to catch, but I felt a desire to share Jesus with the employee who was checking in my car. “I’m working on a personal survey,” I said, “and wonder if I could ask you a question?”
She agreed, so I asked, “What’s the greatest thing that has ever happened to you?” She answered that it was her loving family. Great answer! Then I asked if I could share the best thing that has ever happened to me. She nodded. I went on to say, “I have a great wife and four wonderful sons, but there was a time in my life when... and I briefly shared about how I came to know Jesus Christ. A car drove up in the middle of my story, but she kept listening. My answer only took two minutes, but who knows what will happen in her life for eternity?
Recently, God has been encouraging me to pray for healing in the marketplace. Another example of marketplace evangelism was when my wife, Vicki, and I were walking to the car from a hotel. I noticed a housekeeping employee painfully limping with each footstep. So I asked her, “Is your hip causing you a lot of pain?” She replied, “I’ve experienced level-8 pain for the last seven years.” I told her my wife and I were Christians and that God continues to heal many people today. Then I asked if we could pray over her. She agreed. So while standing in the hotel parking lot, we prayed for her and God healed her on the spot. She lifted her hands in the air and testified that her pain was completely gone!
Praise the Lord for MARKETPLACE EVANGELISM.
Now I have a choice to make… will I make myself available for ‘daily… marketplace… evangelism’? If so, I think I better get ready for a big learning curve and lots of excitement!
Intentional for souls,
Tom Elie
Evangelist/President
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