Post by Messenger Micah on Nov 9, 2005 22:04:37 GMT -5
Saturday October 29-South Beach: Joining me to South Beach was my wife Elizabeth, Doug, and John and Onica. This was the week following Hurricane Wilma, so it was another slow week by South Beach standards.
We parked again on 11th Street between Ocean and Collins. It was very windy and cold (probably around 70 degrees but we are Miamians you know), so I put on a sweatshirt underneath my Repent or Perish shirt. We prayed and set up our banners. It was very difficult to hold up the banners due to the wind, but we held them up anyway.
We walked down to the square across from the Clevelander where there were a good number of people, put the step-up platform on the square and John started preaching. He had several stop to listen as well as the people around the Clevelander and restaurant across the street. Onica preached here also.
After they finished, I began preaching. After I had preached about a minute, this middle aged guy who turned out to be a doctor comes running up to me furious, gets in my face and starts yelling at me. I ignored him, continued preaching, and he lost his steam after a minute or two. The police pulled up on a cart, sat back and watched us, and left us alone. I noticed the waitresses at the Clevelander all wear referee?s outfits, and at one point the music was turned off and most of the bar could hear me, so I pointed toward the bar and told them those referee?s need to start doing their job and throwing some penalty flags because people are breaking the rules of life (God?s Law). I threw my sweat handkerchief into the air for effect. I also had several stopping to listen and watch, in addition to the many hanging around outside the Clevelander and restaurant across the street.
A friend of ours named Meji (Nigerian name) came to meet us out there, and I asked him to preach after I finished and he stood up and did a good job. I think it was his first time preaching open air.
As the preaching continued at that spot with Meji and Doug, Elizabeth, Onica, and myself walked around the corner to the side of the building where the homeless people tend to conglomerate for shelter. We handed them bagged lunches and then preached to them.
When we came back to the square across from the Clevelander, the team was still preaching. A Hispanic Pentecostal family walked by and saw the team preaching and was very encouraged. They rejoiced that people were preaching on South Beach. They followed us down to Mango?s where we flew the banners, but did not preach because it was too loud. They were planning to follow us for a while, but they walked away to buy some water and we never were able to reconnect.
It was now dark, so we put the wagon and banners into Doug?s van and headed for street corners. Elizabeth preached at the corner of 10th and Collins across from the Essex hotel.
We then moved to the corner of 12th and Washington, where Doug preached for a while. After Doug finished I preached. We preached faithfully, but there were not many people out this weekend.
Monday October 31- Coconut Grove Halloween Block Party: Elizabeth, John and Onica, and Emmanuel arrived in the Coconut Grove area around 8:45 PM. We knew this was an area where they had Halloween costume parties, but we had no idea how many people would be out here.
We set up our banners, and preached to the costumed people we saw making their way into the area for a night of revelry. I set up the step-up platform at the Commodore Plaza and began preaching. I preached here for about 50 minutes, as people would stop, gather, listen for a while, and then move on. Several times it began to rain, but the team brought me an umbrella and I kept preaching.
We moved toward the center of activity, past the bars that were crowded with Halloween revelers. We preached to the people outside as we walked past the sidewalk. They all listened, heckled, interacted, asked questions, etc. Many seemed to think we were dressed up for Halloween.
As we turned the corner the streets were crammed with thousands of people. Traffic was shut down so the revelers could revel. We crossed the street to the beginning of Cocowalk Plaza on Main Highway where several hundred were lined up to enter some club. John put the platform down and started preaching and immediately had a large, heckling crowd. He preached for about 15 to 20 minutes until we were told to move on by the police as they felt they could not control the crowd with us there.
We moved further down, and put down the platform and Emmanuel started preaching. He was having trouble with his voice so I asked the police if we could use a small bullhorn and they said it was ok. They also remembered John from preaching at the Rolling Stones concert a few weeks back. John and Onica went to get the bullhorn from the car.
I asked Emmanuel if he wanted me to preach until the bullhorn arrived and he said yes. I stood on the platform and immediately I was surrounded with rowdy, drunken, silly, and angry hecklers. There were several guys there dressed as Mormons who would follow us everywhere, call us false prophets, blaspheme, etc. Many listeners would come up next to us for someone to take their pictures. After about 20 minutes I was asked by police to move, because they said we were going to cause a riot. I moved down about half a block, began to preach, and again the police stopped me and asked me to move further down as they did not think they could control the crowds with us there.
I moved down again to the Mayfair Plaza on Main Highway, and began preaching and was again surrounded by a large group of hecklers and listeners. Many in the crowd were following us. After I preached for about 15 minutes the police came to me and told me I could not preach on the platform and engage anyone anymore. I respectfully questioned them on this for a while, but realized it was already after 11:00 PM. The police seemed to be sincere and fair with us, and we realized later they were actually looking out for our good, as they said we were in danger.
We decided to head back. John and Emmanuel both had banners, while I pulled the supply wagon with Elizabeth at my side. John preached on the bullhorn to the crowds of revelers (at least 25,000 on the streets) as we walked back. John and Emmanuel had gotten about 25 yards ahead of us. As John preached I watched from behind as a brawl started from right behind John and about 15 yards in front of us. We were stuck in the crowd with the wagon. I yelled at John to keep moving (I thought the police would blame the riot on us), but he told me later he thought I was the one being attacked.
As we got further away from the center of activity, we met up again and continued preaching to the revelers until we got to the car.
We parked again on 11th Street between Ocean and Collins. It was very windy and cold (probably around 70 degrees but we are Miamians you know), so I put on a sweatshirt underneath my Repent or Perish shirt. We prayed and set up our banners. It was very difficult to hold up the banners due to the wind, but we held them up anyway.
We walked down to the square across from the Clevelander where there were a good number of people, put the step-up platform on the square and John started preaching. He had several stop to listen as well as the people around the Clevelander and restaurant across the street. Onica preached here also.
After they finished, I began preaching. After I had preached about a minute, this middle aged guy who turned out to be a doctor comes running up to me furious, gets in my face and starts yelling at me. I ignored him, continued preaching, and he lost his steam after a minute or two. The police pulled up on a cart, sat back and watched us, and left us alone. I noticed the waitresses at the Clevelander all wear referee?s outfits, and at one point the music was turned off and most of the bar could hear me, so I pointed toward the bar and told them those referee?s need to start doing their job and throwing some penalty flags because people are breaking the rules of life (God?s Law). I threw my sweat handkerchief into the air for effect. I also had several stopping to listen and watch, in addition to the many hanging around outside the Clevelander and restaurant across the street.
A friend of ours named Meji (Nigerian name) came to meet us out there, and I asked him to preach after I finished and he stood up and did a good job. I think it was his first time preaching open air.
As the preaching continued at that spot with Meji and Doug, Elizabeth, Onica, and myself walked around the corner to the side of the building where the homeless people tend to conglomerate for shelter. We handed them bagged lunches and then preached to them.
When we came back to the square across from the Clevelander, the team was still preaching. A Hispanic Pentecostal family walked by and saw the team preaching and was very encouraged. They rejoiced that people were preaching on South Beach. They followed us down to Mango?s where we flew the banners, but did not preach because it was too loud. They were planning to follow us for a while, but they walked away to buy some water and we never were able to reconnect.
It was now dark, so we put the wagon and banners into Doug?s van and headed for street corners. Elizabeth preached at the corner of 10th and Collins across from the Essex hotel.
We then moved to the corner of 12th and Washington, where Doug preached for a while. After Doug finished I preached. We preached faithfully, but there were not many people out this weekend.
Monday October 31- Coconut Grove Halloween Block Party: Elizabeth, John and Onica, and Emmanuel arrived in the Coconut Grove area around 8:45 PM. We knew this was an area where they had Halloween costume parties, but we had no idea how many people would be out here.
We set up our banners, and preached to the costumed people we saw making their way into the area for a night of revelry. I set up the step-up platform at the Commodore Plaza and began preaching. I preached here for about 50 minutes, as people would stop, gather, listen for a while, and then move on. Several times it began to rain, but the team brought me an umbrella and I kept preaching.
We moved toward the center of activity, past the bars that were crowded with Halloween revelers. We preached to the people outside as we walked past the sidewalk. They all listened, heckled, interacted, asked questions, etc. Many seemed to think we were dressed up for Halloween.
As we turned the corner the streets were crammed with thousands of people. Traffic was shut down so the revelers could revel. We crossed the street to the beginning of Cocowalk Plaza on Main Highway where several hundred were lined up to enter some club. John put the platform down and started preaching and immediately had a large, heckling crowd. He preached for about 15 to 20 minutes until we were told to move on by the police as they felt they could not control the crowd with us there.
We moved further down, and put down the platform and Emmanuel started preaching. He was having trouble with his voice so I asked the police if we could use a small bullhorn and they said it was ok. They also remembered John from preaching at the Rolling Stones concert a few weeks back. John and Onica went to get the bullhorn from the car.
I asked Emmanuel if he wanted me to preach until the bullhorn arrived and he said yes. I stood on the platform and immediately I was surrounded with rowdy, drunken, silly, and angry hecklers. There were several guys there dressed as Mormons who would follow us everywhere, call us false prophets, blaspheme, etc. Many listeners would come up next to us for someone to take their pictures. After about 20 minutes I was asked by police to move, because they said we were going to cause a riot. I moved down about half a block, began to preach, and again the police stopped me and asked me to move further down as they did not think they could control the crowds with us there.
I moved down again to the Mayfair Plaza on Main Highway, and began preaching and was again surrounded by a large group of hecklers and listeners. Many in the crowd were following us. After I preached for about 15 minutes the police came to me and told me I could not preach on the platform and engage anyone anymore. I respectfully questioned them on this for a while, but realized it was already after 11:00 PM. The police seemed to be sincere and fair with us, and we realized later they were actually looking out for our good, as they said we were in danger.
We decided to head back. John and Emmanuel both had banners, while I pulled the supply wagon with Elizabeth at my side. John preached on the bullhorn to the crowds of revelers (at least 25,000 on the streets) as we walked back. John and Emmanuel had gotten about 25 yards ahead of us. As John preached I watched from behind as a brawl started from right behind John and about 15 yards in front of us. We were stuck in the crowd with the wagon. I yelled at John to keep moving (I thought the police would blame the riot on us), but he told me later he thought I was the one being attacked.
As we got further away from the center of activity, we met up again and continued preaching to the revelers until we got to the car.