Category: I Believe!

Who shares Bible verses at a soccer match?!

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Soccer match
(Editor’s note: Over Christmas, we received a very encouraging testimony that reminded us of three things: 1) the power of God to transform lives, 2) the effectiveness of the prayers of friends and family, and 3) the fruit resulting from a lifelong lifestyle of sharing the gospel.)

During a Christmas Eve service last year, Stephen* shared how he had been turned off by Christianity when he was 17. While watching a soccer match at a stadium, someone invited him to read aloud some Bible verses. That immediately put him off anything to do with Christianity.

Over the years, whatever Stephen learned about the Bible was gleaned from TV documentaries. It didn’t make sense to him. Then, Mabel*, a friend of his wife, invited both of them to attend a “By This Name” course. Stephen wasn’t interested but his wife insisted on him accompanying her. Unknown to him at the time, Mabel and his wife had been praying very hard for Stephen to attend the course.

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Read to me, please

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Reading Together

(Editor’s note: In life, we are often faced with difficult circumstances: an illness or some tragedy. Even during these times, if we look beyond ourselves, we can find God bringing someone into our lives with whom we can share the gospel message. This is Phoebe’s* story.)

A day after we shared Brad Powell’s video testimony, we received an email from Phoebe. She wrote, “I have wanted to write to you for some time and thank you for the book, ‘By this Name.'”

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I’m calling you from the casino!

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Casino cards

(Editor’s note: So often we find that people stay clear of the church simply because they don’t understand what the Bible is all about. But when there is understanding, there is life transformation.)

One of our staff had the opportunity to preach at church one Sunday morning. He chose John 1:29 as the key verse to speak on: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”

“Do you know what that truly means?” he asked the congregation. “Here is John baptizing people in the waters of the Jordan, when all of a sudden, he stops and points to an approaching man. And he exclaims, ‘Behold the lamb of God!’ What a strange expression.”

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No one has ever given me a gift before!

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Photo credit: Daniela Olivia Aviña on flickr

(Editor’s note: We never know what God can do when we are faithfully looking for opportunities to give away the good news.)

After church service one Sunday morning, Kevin* met a young Chinese lady who had just arrived in the U.S. to attend university. They chatted for a few minutes and Kevin found out she was taking a course on environmental issues.

“I just happen to have a book on environmental issues that I think you’ll enjoy,” he said. “I’ll pass it to you next week.”

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Easy enough for a burned-out mind like mine to understand.

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Photo credit: Quinn Dombrowski on flickr

(Editor’s note: Upfront it seems difficult to guide someone through a study of the Bible. But what if you had to deal with troubled teens? How do you hold their attention? How do you explain the Bible’s truth in a way that they can understand? Learn how George used the Worldview Rethink tools to do just that.)

Recently, George* finished a Worldview Rethink course with teenage boys from a resident recovery program. These boys were aged between 13-18 and were struggling with life-controlling issues like behavioral problems, substance abuse and more. The Worldview Rethink curriculum provided an easy and clear way to teach the Bible’s message to these troubled youths.

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Why wouldn’t I believe!

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Coffee heart

What would you do if your son or daughter was interested in someone of a different worldview? Learn how one father in Australia lovingly provided a way for a young man to explore the Bible’s worldview and see what God did in this young man’s life.

We recently received an email from Greg* in Australia. He related to us how his son-in-law, Kyle,* came to put his trust in Jesus. When Kyle had been serving in the military, he had wanted to date Greg’s daughter, Megan*. She was interested in Kyle, but unwilling to date an unbeliever. Her father also made it clear to Kyle that he did not approve of a relationship. But Greg offered Kyle an opportunity to get an understanding of what the Bible is about so Kyle could understand Megan’s faith.

Kyle said he was willing to explore the Bible and so Greg led a study with Kyle and Megan. They got together to read through By This Name. Greg was understandably skeptical about Kyle’s level of interest. Was this just Kyle’s way of getting over the family’s objections? Was Kyle being sincere in wanting to investigate the Bible? Kyle had never been to any church and he had no knowledge of the Bible. He wasn’t even religious in any way. But Greg pushed ahead with the study.

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Only God is able to penetrate the minds of the young and old

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100 Years Old

Editor’s note: How can we share the gospel with an elderly person, especially one who suffers from dementia or another condition that limits the clarity of the mind? Doug Nichols, Founder and International Director Emeritus of Action International Ministries, has found a good way to share the gospel with such senior citizens. He and his wife Margaret read aloud “The Lamb” and managed to share a clear gospel with a group of elderly folks. Now that’s inspiring! Read on as Doug shares the story:

Doug and Margaret Nichols
Doug and Margaret Nichols

My 100 year-old father-in-law resides in a home-care facility with five other residents (Dad calls them “inmates!”). Even though the facility owners are Christians, we have been praying about how to share the gospel and minister to these elderly residents. Many have Alzheimer’s, dementia, or are otherwise slow in their thinking. Recently, my wife Margaret began reading the children’s picture book, The Lamb to six residents after lunch. They could hardly wait for each session. It was excellent!

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The gospel smashed into my heart

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Photo credit: Willem van Bergen on flickr

Out of the blue, we received a phone call last week. It was from a gentleman named Manuel* who lives in the US. He said he was prompted by God to share his story with us.

Manuel related that he became a believer 30 years ago but his life took a dramatic turn when he attended one of our TERM Seminars in Idaho. He was brought through The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus and he said he really “bumped into the meaning of God.” He fell in love with the book and sought to use it to explain the gospel to others.

His first two students were his mum and dad. They were impacted by the message. His dad said the gospel “smashed into my heart” and made him realize how much of a sinner he was.

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A cycle of sin, confess… sin, confess…

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Sin, Confess... Sin, Confess...Let me take a moment of your time to tell you my story–the true story of a Christian who became a Christian. No, that was not a typo! Let me explain…

I grew up in the Bible Belt surrounded by churches. The local school was called a Christian school; and most folks were called Christians. My parents also subscribed to this way of thinking. We went to church Sunday after Sunday, read our Bibles and prayed regularly. In fact, we made a good number of short-term mission trips together.

So it happened one day that the local evangelical church we attended had a joint Sunday School meeting. All the kids were gathered together to watch a film. I can’t remember what it was about but I do remember an adult stepping forward after the film and saying that if we wanted to go to heaven that we needed to invite Jesus into our hearts. So around the age of five I did just that–without telling a single soul–not even my own mother.

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How churches are grounding their congregations

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By This Name Clas in SingaporeRecently we received two testimonies. One was from a ladies’ small group from a church in Alberta, Canada and the other was from a church in Singapore. These two churches were an ocean apart but they had the same vision: to ensure every member understood a clear gospel.

These two churches found it useful to use By This Name as the book for small group study. Longtime churchgoers as well as and people still seeking to understand what the Bible is all about benefited from going through the creation-to-the-cross approach used in the book. They saw how the Old and New Testament tied together as one story, and for many, it made them want to read the Bible more! Here are their stories.

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