24 April
This month I visited some of my acquaintances at their homes or in the parks, and I tried to take the Gospel to them. With some, it was the first time that I spoke with them. For example, I spoke with my neighbor whom I see daily sitting on the bench in the park with other people and for many hours, stays to drink and smoke. There were other people that heard what I said, others who probably stood up and left, when they heard that it was talk about God and repentance. But this boy (my neighbor) had questions and some of them were due to unthankfulness before God. For example, he said that why doesn’t God. if He is so mighty, force people to do what He wants, allowing things to turn out well for people. I think that God gave me this response – he, through the fact that he drinks and smokes destroys his life, but God does not forcefully change him. Indirectly, I wanted to tell him that sin also destroys him.
I shared my testimony of turning to the Lord in front of 2 people that said that they can no longer be changed, because of their age. They weren’t that old, but this was their argument. Through my testimony, I wanted to share with them that what is impossible for man, is possible for God. Also, through my testimony, I told them about the problem of sin and the slavery that it brings to a person and how in the Lord Jesus ,there is forgiveness and change. I was with a Brother, and these 2 people told us that we continue to visit them.
I asked a man with whom I speak periodically what is holding him back from repentance. He remembered some problems that he had, however I was not able to continue the discussion as something intervened and he had to leave. My colleague with whom I was with continued the discussion and continues to maintain a relationship with this man.
The mother of a Brother, a member in the church from here, died at the age of 95 years old. She was also a member at Hope Church. The other two pastors had Biblical messages at her wake and funeral. I spoke at the cemetery about the futility of life lived only for this world and that Jesus is the Resurrection and Life. The news of the Gospel was preached and heard by neighbors, relatives and acquaintances from the town, the majority of the people unsaved.
Together with Brothers Marian Stoica and Gheorghe Ileana, we gave out Christian calendars, protective masks against COVID and seeds to the people of Draganesti – Olt. The majority of the people received these, I believe, with joy, one of them thanking us that we thought of them and asked for packages for their acquaintances. With a few of them, we spoke about salvation through the Lord Jesus.
On March 14th, 2004, 17 years ago we had our first baptism at our church, Hope Church. I will attach a picture taken with 7 of these people, in which Brother and Pastor George Serban appears.
