Divine Appointment

This is a short story about a girl named Heather who I met in D.C. during the Reason Rally. It wouldn't be any different than a normal testimony of one-to-one evangelism except for her response afterwards.

Around one o'clock in the afternoon, Tony Mammen and I were handing out tracts. The tracts made for us had the Reason Rally banner on the front, but a gospel message on the back (see above picture). So we handed them to people by showing them the front and they took them thinking we were promoting the event. When I handed Heather one of these tracts, she asked where the event was because she was trying to get there. Without thinking, Tony and I were about to walk to the corner and point to where the Rally was, but my heart was broken with the idea of sending this eighteen or nineteen year old girl to the slaughter. So I quickly asked her, "Why are you going there, if you don't mind me asking?" 

"Oh, um, I guess I just wanted to see what it's all about." Heather responded.

"Do you believe in God?" I replied.

"Well, sort of. Not really. I guess I just wanted to see what they had to say."

I figured out that Heather was heading over there because she wanted a reason not to believe in God. I quickly jumped on it and started going through The Way Of The Master, but she instantly began justifying herself saying, "Well, I might be a liar, but doesn't the Bible also say you have to dress a certain way?" In order not to lose her, I said, "You're referring to some of the Old Testament laws? Because many of those were fulfilled in Christ." She then said, "But then your distinguishing between what's allowed and what's not allowed in the Bible." So I told her I would explain in a minute. However, I then asked if she had some sort of church background. She proceeded to tell me that she grew up in a legalistic Methodist church for most of her life, which explained the "You must where this or that" comment.

Without any hesitation, I went right back to The Way Of The Master. I had to use the courtroom analogy several times in order to show her that even if she used to be a bad person but she decided to be good and never sinned again for the rest of her life (not possible), the Judge must punish her crime because she is guilty whether she was caught immediately or twenty years later. I also explained that even if you don't believe that the Judge exists, the Laws exists, or the courtroom exists, if you try and leave the court room, you will simply be tackled by the bailiff because it really doesn't matter what you believe, it matters what's true; and the truth is that we have broken the law and the Judge must sentence us for our crimes because He is a just Judge.

Heather's mouth was instantly stopped. I pressed it a little farther with the law to fully show her that she is in fact a sinner in need of a savior, and then I shared the gospel of Jesus Christ with her. I could tell that she was about to start crying because she realized the truth. I then told her that this is why we were out there, which is to share the truth about Jesus Christ with people because we care about their eternal destination. Then we talked for another minute or two, and as she was getting ready to walk away, I asked her to think about what we talked about. She responded with, "I will later in life. Thanks." She seemed so convicted that she didn't know what to do with everything. So I quickly asked her, "Can I ask you one more thing before you go? What if you go to cross that road in order to go to the Reason Rally and you get struck by a car? What happens if there is no 'later in life'?" 

You can ask Tony, but her eyes instantly started welling with tears (I could tell that Tony was praying next to me without letting Heather know). At this point, Heather had no words, and I really didn't either. So we all shook hands and she headed off. However, what happened next is why I am telling this story.

Heather walked over to the stoplight and turned to cross the road to Reason Rally. Tony and I just stood there watching her as she had to wait for the light to turn green before she could cross the street. As she stood there, she looked down at the tract we gave her. She looked back up again, and then she looked back down again. This happened several times, since it was a long light, but before the light turned green, she looked to the right and crossed the street in the other direction. Instead of crossing straight in order to go to the Rally, she crossed to the right and headed in the other direction. Tony and I never saw her look back over at the Reason Rally. 

Right then and there, Tony and I started praying out loud that the Lord would not only convict her and convert her, but that she might not cross the street to go to the Reason Rally later on. And, if she did cross the road, that she would see the difference between the atheists condemning the Christians, Westboro condemning everyone, and "The 500" who shared the love of Jesus Christ with her.

Keep Heather in prayer. Pray that the Lord would draw her to Himself by giving her the faith to believe, so that one day Tony and I might meet her in heaven because she had escaped the fires of Hell through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that she so clearly heard. All praise, and glory, and honor unto Jesus Christ the King (1 Tim. 1:17).