Brotherly Love

   The Jesus Freaks gathered once again this past Friday night. 7 of us headed for Uptown Minneapolis. We had not been to Uptown since St. Patty’s Day. The weather was perfect, and I was looking forward to the fellowship to follow. 

 There is special fellowship that forms each time we gather in the name of Christ. The Holy Spirit fills us and we take in the experience together. As I have gone out with the Freaks over the years, my trust in the Lord has increased over time to where nervousness and anxiety are almost non-existent. I know that the Holy Spirit will fill me with the knowledge and the words that the lost need to hear. 

 

Greg and I walked up Lake Street to Lyndale, and up to Franklin, back over to Hennepin, and finally back to Lake and Hennepin. As we walked we handed out tracts. Some people just walk by and are not interested. Some take a tract, and keep walking. We walk with them and explain the tract – each of us has broken God’s commandments, we are sinners to be judged by God, Christ has paid our debt with his blood, and we must accept Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, and repent our sins to gain our salvation

 

Some folks are standing on street corners and at storefronts. This is where I approached Nick, a guy in his late 20s. He was hanging out and talking to people as they walked by, making funny comments. Greg and I approached him and upon receiving the tract, he proceeded to open up. He said, “So I have tried to do this before, the whole Jesus and God thing, it didn’t work for me because I always go back to doing the same old thing. So I am just going to wait until I am old and get right with God.” We developed a rapport and I told him “the way you are talking to people out here, you could die tonight!” He laughed because he knew I was right. I shared my own testimony with him, and my issues as a young man. We connected as he was a former Golden Gloves boxing champion, and I was also a boxer at one time. Greg and I shared the gospel with him. We spoke for a good 20 minutes. As others walked by, he hollered for them to join our conversation so that they could be “saved”.

 Nick did not give his life to Christ on Friday night. But I know that the God brought our paths together, men who could relate to each other, and could speak each other’s language. I left him with a Bible, and he told me sincerely that he would read it. I believe him, and I know that if I could be saved, so could this man. Those who God is leading toward salvation are first open to hearing the message. That is always the first step. 

 

I brought my 20-year-old brother, Eric, along with me to the streets to show him that the Holy Spirit is real, that Christ means enough to me that I tell people about it, and that there is nothing un-cool about sharing your faith in Christ with others. Below is his response to the night:

“On my first day of being a Jesus Freak I initially was only going to observe. When we got downtown I saw the others in my group having fun telling people about the word of God. I then decided I would join in and speak to people about it. The people that we talked to listened and enjoyed what we said. I was surprised at their interest in our conversation. When we left, I felt like I had accomplished something good. It was a new experience for myself and I would encourage others to try it.”