Post by Jeffrey Olver on Jan 12, 2008 15:56:10 GMT -5
The city of Tyler, Texas is home to well over 350 churches of all denominations.
Smith county, where Tyler is located, contains 550+ (I stopped counting after reaching that number) churches.
Smith County, being a 'dry' county (no alcohol distributors), has roughly less than 20 bars and nightclubs, including four or five strip clubs.
One of the more popular nightclubs "The Electric Cowboy" has been in Tyler for 14 years.
The largest church in Tyler, with 13,000 members, is located just down the street from the Electric Cowboy...and has been at home in Tyler for 50 years.
Every night I go out to preach the Gospel in front of the bars I wonder, "Why is this place still here?"
Last night I hit the streets around 10:00pm, Bible and repent-sign in hand. As I trudged down to my usual spot in front of Click's I noticed the Electric Cowboy had huge lines outside. The first time I preached there, I only was able to preach for five minutes before threatened with arrest by the general manager, Tim.
I have been reading Brother Andrew's "Is Life So Dear?" and it has been greatly inspiring to me, reminding me that Christ is the rightful ruler of this world. And that in our call to "obey Christ, rather than men." Seeing such a long line, I could not pass up this opportunity to preach there again, private parking lot or not.
I stood for a minute so the people got a good look at my neon yellow Repent and Trust Jesus Sign, then began to preach. I quoted about three scriptures before the manager and his assistant approached me again - very angry. "I thought we cleared this up several weeks ago. This is private property." I asked "Do you own it?" "Yes!" He claimed. Something I sincerely doubt, because he's got to pay rent to somebody. His assitant radioded the onsite police officer saying there was someone out here they wanted to file criminal tresspass charges against.
I was through with discussing property lines and used this opportunity to share the Gospel with the manager, assistant and another bouncer than came by. I shared with them the Gospel of love and salvation from sin. He called me a hypocrite for saying sinners went to his bar. I called him out on that for the last time we met, he said he believed in Jesus, but still wanted to sell drinks and allow the sin to go on.
I was able to briefly share the Gospel of recconciliation with them and the police officer before I was told to leave or be arrested. I decided to leave that night - and as I did so I boldly preached that Jesus was MIGHTY TO SAVE from sin, and even preached to the police officer as he trailed me through the parking lot telling me to be quiet. I thanked him for being an officer of the law, but that he too was subject to God's law.
Greatly encouraged by the chance I had to share the gospel with those men, all I did was cross the street to the other bar, stand on the public sidewalk and continue to preach to the other bar.
A man who was just starting to get drunk approached and offered his rather confused opinion on the Bible and evangelism and just kept talking, talking, talking. I was able to share some key points of the Gospel to think about and he went back inside.
Two seperate groups came and had their picture taken with me. Praise God that the picture of the "Repent and Trust Jesus" sign and my shirt which read "trust jesus" is in the hands of people who will most likely show it to their friends!
Two ladies who had seen me across the street mocked and shouted as they went into Click's. Then a husband and wife couple pulled into the parking lot to speak to me. They were Christians - but were concerned because I was not developing a relationship with people. They suggested it might be more effective to go inside the bar and buy people games of pool so I could talk to them one on one and serve them. They understood that you just can't "befriend" people and expect them to get savedm but that you need to share the Gospel with them. However, they felt that this mode was only right for the prophets and Jesus to have used. We spoke for almost an hour, going in the same circles. They thanked me for my heart and motives and I thanked them for stopping by and that they too had a concern for the lost, and they left. I sincerely hope that they do share the gospel with people to come across and their lives serve as burning lamps to a dark world, however they choose to do it.
The two ladies then came out who had mocked me earlier. As they headed to their car I said "Up until now, you've made room for pleasure in your heart, room for sin, room for business, room for friends, room for school and family...Will you make room for Jesus?" Their whole attitude changed. They told me they respected me for what I was doing, and said they didn't have to go to Church to be a Christian. I agreed, but going to a bar certainly doesn't help. Then one lady brought up that she turned away from the church because she was told she had too many piercings in her ears. I told her that while that may have been wrong - it was wrong of you to turn away from God because someone hurt your feelings. She agreed. They got in their car and drove away.
I turned around to walk home and I saw that the people from the Electric Cowboy were flooding out to their cars. I hurried across the street and stood on a small knoll at the end of the parking lot (public property!) and proclaimed scripture across the parking lot as loud as I could. I was stunned to hear my own voice echoing back to me from the buildings - menaing people could hear it.
A young man approached and asked "What are you doing?" I said "Preaching the Gospel." He said, "I'm a Christian." to which I replied, "What are you doing in a place like this?" "I went to listen to some good music." I said "If you can enter a place like the Electric Cowboy where people are enjoying sin all around you and you can be entertained, then there's something wrong with you." He said, "it's not a sin to enjoy music." I said no that it's not, then repeated the previous statement. I encouraged him to read his Bible. He walked to his car and I coninued to preach until the flood of people stopped.
I am praying the Lord raises up people in the hundreds of churches to pray against the strongholds of Satan and people to actually go into their neighborhoods and nearby clubs and bars to share the Gospel that will set men free! If just a few people from these churches 'addicted themselves' to the spreading the Gospel, like Stephanas' household in Acts, then we would see mighty change here in this town.
Smith county, where Tyler is located, contains 550+ (I stopped counting after reaching that number) churches.
Smith County, being a 'dry' county (no alcohol distributors), has roughly less than 20 bars and nightclubs, including four or five strip clubs.
One of the more popular nightclubs "The Electric Cowboy" has been in Tyler for 14 years.
The largest church in Tyler, with 13,000 members, is located just down the street from the Electric Cowboy...and has been at home in Tyler for 50 years.
Every night I go out to preach the Gospel in front of the bars I wonder, "Why is this place still here?"
Last night I hit the streets around 10:00pm, Bible and repent-sign in hand. As I trudged down to my usual spot in front of Click's I noticed the Electric Cowboy had huge lines outside. The first time I preached there, I only was able to preach for five minutes before threatened with arrest by the general manager, Tim.
I have been reading Brother Andrew's "Is Life So Dear?" and it has been greatly inspiring to me, reminding me that Christ is the rightful ruler of this world. And that in our call to "obey Christ, rather than men." Seeing such a long line, I could not pass up this opportunity to preach there again, private parking lot or not.
I stood for a minute so the people got a good look at my neon yellow Repent and Trust Jesus Sign, then began to preach. I quoted about three scriptures before the manager and his assistant approached me again - very angry. "I thought we cleared this up several weeks ago. This is private property." I asked "Do you own it?" "Yes!" He claimed. Something I sincerely doubt, because he's got to pay rent to somebody. His assitant radioded the onsite police officer saying there was someone out here they wanted to file criminal tresspass charges against.
I was through with discussing property lines and used this opportunity to share the Gospel with the manager, assistant and another bouncer than came by. I shared with them the Gospel of love and salvation from sin. He called me a hypocrite for saying sinners went to his bar. I called him out on that for the last time we met, he said he believed in Jesus, but still wanted to sell drinks and allow the sin to go on.
I was able to briefly share the Gospel of recconciliation with them and the police officer before I was told to leave or be arrested. I decided to leave that night - and as I did so I boldly preached that Jesus was MIGHTY TO SAVE from sin, and even preached to the police officer as he trailed me through the parking lot telling me to be quiet. I thanked him for being an officer of the law, but that he too was subject to God's law.
Greatly encouraged by the chance I had to share the gospel with those men, all I did was cross the street to the other bar, stand on the public sidewalk and continue to preach to the other bar.
A man who was just starting to get drunk approached and offered his rather confused opinion on the Bible and evangelism and just kept talking, talking, talking. I was able to share some key points of the Gospel to think about and he went back inside.
Two seperate groups came and had their picture taken with me. Praise God that the picture of the "Repent and Trust Jesus" sign and my shirt which read "trust jesus" is in the hands of people who will most likely show it to their friends!
Two ladies who had seen me across the street mocked and shouted as they went into Click's. Then a husband and wife couple pulled into the parking lot to speak to me. They were Christians - but were concerned because I was not developing a relationship with people. They suggested it might be more effective to go inside the bar and buy people games of pool so I could talk to them one on one and serve them. They understood that you just can't "befriend" people and expect them to get savedm but that you need to share the Gospel with them. However, they felt that this mode was only right for the prophets and Jesus to have used. We spoke for almost an hour, going in the same circles. They thanked me for my heart and motives and I thanked them for stopping by and that they too had a concern for the lost, and they left. I sincerely hope that they do share the gospel with people to come across and their lives serve as burning lamps to a dark world, however they choose to do it.
The two ladies then came out who had mocked me earlier. As they headed to their car I said "Up until now, you've made room for pleasure in your heart, room for sin, room for business, room for friends, room for school and family...Will you make room for Jesus?" Their whole attitude changed. They told me they respected me for what I was doing, and said they didn't have to go to Church to be a Christian. I agreed, but going to a bar certainly doesn't help. Then one lady brought up that she turned away from the church because she was told she had too many piercings in her ears. I told her that while that may have been wrong - it was wrong of you to turn away from God because someone hurt your feelings. She agreed. They got in their car and drove away.
I turned around to walk home and I saw that the people from the Electric Cowboy were flooding out to their cars. I hurried across the street and stood on a small knoll at the end of the parking lot (public property!) and proclaimed scripture across the parking lot as loud as I could. I was stunned to hear my own voice echoing back to me from the buildings - menaing people could hear it.
A young man approached and asked "What are you doing?" I said "Preaching the Gospel." He said, "I'm a Christian." to which I replied, "What are you doing in a place like this?" "I went to listen to some good music." I said "If you can enter a place like the Electric Cowboy where people are enjoying sin all around you and you can be entertained, then there's something wrong with you." He said, "it's not a sin to enjoy music." I said no that it's not, then repeated the previous statement. I encouraged him to read his Bible. He walked to his car and I coninued to preach until the flood of people stopped.
I am praying the Lord raises up people in the hundreds of churches to pray against the strongholds of Satan and people to actually go into their neighborhoods and nearby clubs and bars to share the Gospel that will set men free! If just a few people from these churches 'addicted themselves' to the spreading the Gospel, like Stephanas' household in Acts, then we would see mighty change here in this town.