You can't pick Heaven's lock!

Late last evening, we locked ourselves out of our car. For an hour and half I worked with an hanger to get the car open. The night sky flashed with lightning and threatened rain. I was embarrassed and frustrated. I was so close so many times, but without success. Finally, as the parking lot was just about empty, I swallowed my pride and called a lock-smith. Once he arrived, he had the car open in less than thirty seconds!

As I paid the lock-smith, I said, "You did a great job, but did you know that you can't pick the lock on Heaven's door?" He looked at me rather strange as I continued, "Only Jesus carries the key to Heaven's door." I gave him a tract and asked him to read it and call me if he had any questions.

As I drove my exhausted pregnant wife home through the rain, I wondered what purpose God had by allowing us to lock our keys in the car? Perhaps it was a divine appointment scheduled by God just to give that lock-smith a gospel tract. Please pray that God's Word would not return void!

Discipleship and a First Aid Kit

Evelyn and I along with others from the church are following up and seeking to disciple those who made professions during our Memorial Day and 4-H Fair outreach. It has been a challenging yet rewarding ministry. We have received many different responses. One particular has been very special to us.

We came to visit two children from one home. When they found out that we were from the Church, they went to get their "God Boxes." As I waited, I wondered what a "God Box" was. The girl came back with this:

There are many parallels between a First-Aid Kit and the needs of sinful mankind. When we opened it, we found everything she had received that had to do with God--a pocket New Testament and several gospel tracts. We quickly found, however, that these children knew basically nothing about God or the Bible.

It has been a great joy and challenge to teach them the basics of the Bible at their home each week. Please pray for them both. The boy has made a profession for Christ, but not the girl. Please pray for Evelyn and I as we seek to disciple them and reach out to their family.

"Have you seen 3 things God cannot do?" - The Gospel at the 4-H Fair!

This past week many from our church helped with the Amazing Grace Mission booth at the St. Joe County 4-H Fair. As people would walk through the commercial exhibit hall, we would hand them a "smiley" tract and ask, "Have you seen 3 things that God cannot do? Did you think that God could do anything? There are some things He cannot do! Open the first door and see!"

1. God cannot lie - Titus 1:2 - "In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;"
2. God cannot change - Malachi 3:6 - "For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed."
3. God cannot let you into heaven unless you have been born again! - John 3:3 - "Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."

Then we asked, "Are you 50%, 75% or 100% sure that you are going to heaven when you die?" If they said 100%, we would ask them why, seeking to verify that they were relying fully on the work of Jesus Christ. If they said anything else, we would invite them to sit down with us in the booth so that we could show them from the Bible how they could know 100% that they were saved and going to heaven when they die.

We praise the Lord for 6,000 tracts distributed and 146 decisions that were made this week. Please pray that God will continue to work through the tracts. Pray for our church and other Baptist churches in the area who are following up on and discipling each person that made a decision.