Participants: Shelley Quinn (Host), Herb Larson Jr.
Series Code: IAA
Program Code: IAA000307
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00:31 Hello I'm Shelly Quinn
00:33 and welcome again to Issues and Answers. 00:35 You know, we had such a good time last week 00:38 talking about how to witness to someone 00:42 that might be affluent that doesn't know the Lord 00:45 but we don't want to leave this-- 00:49 our special guest is quite the extrovert 00:51 and we won't leave the impression 00:52 that you got to be extrovert 00:53 and that you only witnessing to the affluent of the world 00:57 but that we want to know that there everybody 00:59 has the opportunity to witness. 01:01 Let me introduce again our special guest 01:04 and that's Herb Larsen, 01:05 a--an international businessman from Canada. 01:08 That's right. And the president of-- 01:10 Imagine Life. Imagine Life media. 01:12 Imagine Life Media, which is a lay ministry 01:15 and God has really blessed you in your life 01:17 with quite a bit of success and He is also now 01:20 because He is giving you a testimony. 01:22 He's opened the doors for you to go around 01:24 and share with people around the world. 01:27 I want to share a scripture, the kind of-- 01:29 since we are gonna go to that direction 01:31 where we are talking about how to share with others 01:36 who may not be very influential 01:38 and may be you are not the extrovert. 01:40 You may be member of the PTA and you may be very bashful. 01:45 But you know, here is what Jesus said in Matthew 25. 01:48 He said, "I was hungry and you gave me food, 01:51 I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, 01:54 I was a stranger and you brought me together 01:57 with yourselves and welcomed and lodged me, 01:59 as naked and you clothed me, 02:01 I was sick and you visited me with help and ministering care, 02:05 I was in prison and you came to see me". 02:07 And it goes on in verse 40 to say, 02:09 well, they said when do we do these things to Lord? 02:12 He said, as many of you done 02:14 any time you have done this to one or the least 02:16 then you have done it to me. 02:17 So, when someone is hungry they can be spiritually hungry 02:22 and we can spiritually feed them. 02:23 But when He was talking about, 02:25 you visited me when I was sick. 02:27 You know, I was thinking that for a person 02:30 that is may be not very outgoing 02:33 and sometimes people can appear outgoing but then, 02:35 you know, I'll be honest the one on one witnessing 02:38 is a little more difficult for me with a stranger 02:41 than it is to get up and talk to 15,000 people 02:44 which I have done, that didn't bother me. 02:46 Because you get in on that-- 02:48 I mean when I am not talking in front 15,000 people 02:51 I am relying on the Holy Spirit 02:53 but I'm there to teach, to give a message. 02:56 One on one if someone just came up to me 02:59 and want to start teaching me. 03:00 I might be rejecting them a little so I am expecting that. 03:04 But let's say, since I'm a little more bashful in that 03:07 I can't do something like may be a bake a loaf of bread 03:11 or make some homemade soup and take it to my neighbor 03:14 and just start that friendship which is a way of, 03:19 if they say why did you do this I can say, 03:21 well because Lord just put it in my heart to do. 03:24 Tell us your experience, how did people 03:27 who are not less much an extrovert as you are Herb. 03:30 How did they get to where they can 03:32 what can they do to witness to bash their influence? 03:36 Well, when I started sharing Christ 15 years ago, 03:40 it's really--I mean I wanted to share Christ 03:42 much earlier than that. Because you were a PK. 03:45 Yeah I'm a preacher's kid. I grew up going to church. 03:47 But you didn't have that 03:48 one on one personal relationship with the lord? 03:51 I didn't, I mean and yet I still have the brain 03:52 desired to do something for God. 03:54 See that was always there. 03:56 I--I had the desire to do it but, 03:58 you know, and I pray that prayer that I was told to pray. 04:02 God sent someone my way today, then work. 04:06 You know, I could never figure that all for years. 04:07 I prayed that I wouldn't say a thousand times 04:09 but I should had prayed it enough say send 04:10 because I wanted to be part of that 04:12 but nothing ever happened 04:13 and it was only till I found Jesus. 04:15 Spend a serious amount of time seeking Him as the Bible says, 04:20 spend an hour or a day at least digging to the Bible 04:23 praying pouring my guts out to Him. 04:26 When I did that my life changed. Amen. 04:28 And then all the opportunities changed 04:30 and now I don't pray any more 04:32 since I am on my way to be honest sometime 04:34 I say can I have this flight by myself, I beat. 04:37 You know what I mean. Yeah, I know. 04:38 But the thing is so, and, you know, 04:40 sometimes God will give me an empty seat, 04:42 that's pretty nice though when you are really tired out. 04:44 But the point is this my witnessing did start 04:47 like last week we were talking about, 04:49 yeah, you know, a good junk of my influence right now 04:53 in terms of witnessing is with the highly affluent society. 04:57 But it didn't start there. 04:59 It started that really one of the first times 05:02 I really found that God needed my story 05:05 more than He needed what I knew about the Bible 05:07 because that's what really witnessing is all about. 05:09 What I have experienced? 05:10 And if you simply share that, 05:12 the Holy Spirit takes that and says I am in. 05:14 The greatest sermon ever told 05:17 is the one about what the Lord did for you. 05:19 Absolutely, there is nothing better, 05:22 there is nothing more powerful because like I said last week 05:25 nobody really wants to know what you know, 05:26 they want to know what you have. 05:28 And when you explain what you have-- 05:29 why do people buy People magazines 05:30 or enquire whatever these things are these rags they call them. 05:34 They want to--they are not just interested in details 05:37 they want to get into the life of these people. 05:38 They want to live their life with them. 05:40 They want to know what they have, 05:41 you know, like money and power and that kind of stuff. 05:43 So people have this natural tendency to want that. 05:46 So-- so God uses that. 05:48 Our story is the part that interest people. 05:50 What do you have? 05:51 So--so we jump in there and that's we do. 05:54 We start sharing that. 05:55 Now where I started witnessing honestly, 05:59 there's a forklift driver at a warehouse 06:01 that I have in Washington 06:02 a bunch of businessman we have, you know group of warehouses 06:06 across the boarder from where I live. 06:08 And anyway, so there is a forklift driver. 06:09 Well, you know, I mean he is just a "forklift driver" 06:11 that's what the societal business guys would say. 06:14 But I always visited with the guy 06:15 because that's my nature and everything else 06:16 and they were friend of mine. 06:17 I never did bring up a testimony on for-- 06:20 because at that point I really wasn't, 06:22 you know, pushed by the Spirit to do I guess 06:24 or may be I just wasn't ready. 06:26 Anyways, one day he tells me what a hopeless life he has. 06:30 Just that go in no where a life, 06:32 I never dreamed that I'll be stuck 06:33 in a position like this, blah-blah-blah. 06:35 He tells me all the stuff and I said, 06:37 and I am just burning up to share 06:38 what I have just got through experiencing with Jesus 06:40 finally in my life at 38 years old. 06:43 And so I am just like my heart is pounding, 06:46 you know, I am sweating and, 06:47 you know, like my head feels a bit light 06:49 because I am getting ready to talk to this guy. 06:50 That's how bad it was for me, I can be really honest. 06:53 And so I just said well, you know, 06:54 I don't know about you but like I'm a Christian, you know, 06:57 and I said and more recently 06:58 I have gone to church my whole life 07:00 and more recently I decided to give God a real shot. 07:02 I'm thinking all this is probably 07:03 sounding crazing, you know. 07:05 I just shared what happened to me. 07:07 And he just starts to cry and he says, 07:09 you know, at one time I knew Jesus. 07:12 And he talked how alcohol got in the way 07:14 and he became an alcoholic 07:15 and he actually went to jail for a while 07:16 and he is going back to his home in Alaska 07:18 and soon mass wasting 07:19 so he couldn't cross the Canadian boarder 07:20 and he couldn't afford to flyover Canada back home. 07:23 That's where he is stuck. 07:24 So, anyways two weeks later I came in there 07:25 and all of a sudden, 07:27 he runs out of the little place there 07:28 and he bangs on the window and I roll down 07:31 he says Herb, you don't believe what happens. 07:32 He says, I have been spending an hour a day in my Bible 07:35 and my life changed, my wife is going to church with me now. 07:37 Our 13-year-old daughter who has been kicked out 07:39 at several public schools is going to church now. 07:41 And I thought and I'm trying to recap-- 07:44 you know, recall what did I tell him. 07:46 You told him, your experience that God reached you. 07:48 That's it, I never brought any scripture reference 07:50 because I was afraid that would blow it, 07:51 you know, at the time. 07:52 But you did tell him that the way God reached you 07:55 was to spend time with him that hour a day. 07:59 And you know, for me, 08:00 you actually learned a little bit earlier. 08:02 I was involved in part time ministry, by the age of 35. 08:06 I mean and did for 14 years but when God reached me 08:11 is when He got my attention to spend 08:14 an hour a day in prayer with Him 08:15 and I incorporated the Bible as part of my prayer time 08:18 and it--it actually went for much longer than an hour a day 08:21 but He totally changed my life 08:24 when I did that. Absolutely. 08:26 And so it's getting to its spending time with some 08:31 is how they develop a relationship. 08:32 If you don't spend anytime with God-- 08:34 that's why you don't have 08:35 an intimate relationship with Him. 08:37 You know, and somebody is out there though, 08:39 what do you say to the poor person? 08:41 I am thinking of the single mother 08:42 who is working a 12 hour shifts somewhere 08:45 and coming home and she is got kids to feed 08:47 and doing homework to see that they get done 08:50 and house to clean and may be has to stop 08:53 by the grocery store on the way got to feed the dog, 08:55 may be iron and she is got all these things 08:57 and she is thinking how am I going 09:00 to find an hour a day to spend with the Lord? 09:04 And it's a very daunting and challenging thought. 09:07 But the bottom line is this, 09:08 "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness." 09:11 That's when you write your list of priorities out. 09:13 That's what its talking about. Okay. 09:15 Where does Jesus rank in there? 09:17 And yeah, you know, family is important, 09:19 work is important well, that kind of stuff 09:20 but if its more important than Jesus 09:22 then I don't how I was to explain it. 09:24 He is not number one on your list of priorities. 09:26 He is not your first love. He is not your first love. 09:29 You know, I never use to like to get up at 5:30 in the morning, 09:31 that's what I have to do-- I spend an hour and half, 09:33 two hours in some with my writing 09:34 not much more than that. 09:36 But the thing is this, I don't like to get up early normally 09:39 but I love getting up because it's like panning for gold. 09:43 You know, you always find little flakes 09:45 but when you get the nugget once in a while 09:46 it's like the pursuit has been worth it. Amen. 09:49 And then he followed that to mother of hope, 09:50 which is Jesus, you know. Amen. 09:52 But, so--you know, and I completely sympathies with that 09:55 but see shared with that forklift driver 09:58 when I really finding figure it all out 10:00 I realize all I told him about is what I experienced 10:02 and how I spent time in the Bible. 10:03 What changed his life spending time with the Bible 10:05 and I realize what that-- 10:07 that's its not very complicated you know. 10:09 It's-- I couldn't figure out why that worked. 10:11 And it slowly progressed from there 10:13 and then God says, you know, 10:15 you can be trusted with "who you think." 10:17 I was so proud, I thought well, 10:19 you know, I didn't care what he thought about 10:20 he is just a forklift driver. 10:21 Honestly, that's what I thought and God says, 10:22 oh man, this guy is so proud. 10:24 How can we use him? Yeah. 10:26 And yet he did and opened my heart up 10:28 and then I thought okay. 10:29 Then after a while you burn with compassion 10:31 for these people you know and derelict on the street. 10:33 You know, sometimes it's very easy for me 10:35 to fire a dollar bill of the window 10:38 at some guy standing there, you know. 10:40 That's easy to do and that sort of pleases my conscious. 10:43 I gonna be really honest. 10:44 But, you know what really works? 10:46 Stop and spend an hour just talking with him. 10:50 What was your life, you know, your family blah-blah-blah 10:53 and see what that does for your heart 10:55 and see what that does for them. 10:56 It will change them from-- 10:59 you know, somebody is just babbling nothings 11:01 to bring in their focus right back. 11:03 And what did Jesus do? 11:04 He spent a serious amount of time just with people. 11:06 What was His agenda? I want to impart love to you. 11:09 Amen, Amen. 11:11 And you know it all begins with a friendship. 11:15 A friendship evangelism where we have to reach out 11:18 and connect with people on some level 11:21 and, you know, in 2 Corinthians 5:16 Paul said, 11:25 I think that's what it is 2 Corinthians 5:16 he said, 11:28 you know, we no longer look at anyone 11:31 merely from a human prospective, 11:33 we once looked at Jesus like that and we are wrong. 11:36 So I think sometimes what it is-- 11:38 is that we got to say Lord, 11:40 show me people from Your prospective. 11:43 Let, you know, sometimes there is people 11:45 who are so unlovely and unlovable 11:48 and you might think, you know, 11:49 you may be a clerk that I have recently 11:52 had this experience that this was just 11:55 a mean spirit of person that was behind. 11:57 I was having a rough day any way 11:58 and I am sitting there thinking, 12:00 Lord, let me say something 12:02 because her heart is probably breaking. 12:05 You know, if you treat everyone as if their heart is breaking 12:07 because it probably is but what we have got to do then 12:12 is just come to God, let Him feel through us, 12:15 ask Him to help us see people from His prospective. 12:19 She was lost, she was suffering, she is hurting, 12:22 and when we do that it opens us up a little more 12:26 to want to share with someone, 12:27 to want to be their friend. 12:28 Right, exactly, you are exactly right. 12:30 And another thing is when you do share, 12:33 it's not dependent on your Bible knowledge 12:36 it's dependent on your experience. 12:38 What is Jesus done for me? 12:40 If you look at the story the demoniac, 12:44 so that the housewife you talked about 12:46 is just hairy scary, you know, life. 12:48 So she gets the idea, you know, 12:50 just because he brought that analogy up, 12:52 that you don't have to be some theologian, 12:54 you don't have to be some extravert, 12:56 you don't have to be some prerequisites education. 12:59 It's like the demoniac, 13:00 I mean Jesus comes we know the story well. 13:03 There is this lunatic comes running out of Him, 13:05 prior to that everybody would run away 13:07 and you know parents I can just imagine 13:09 just pull their kids well, don't go near him. 13:11 Oh there he is just run, you know, whatever. 13:12 So now as when this person stands bold 13:14 and Jesus cast the demons away we hear that, 13:16 but then, you know, 13:17 the demons go into pigs, pig drown themselves 13:19 and the whole country comes out and kicks Jesus out. 13:22 Strange response but they do. So here is always people-- 13:26 They were worry about their economy 13:27 when they were about-- Yeah, that's true exactly. 13:30 They saw an unbelievable miracle standing there 13:32 but we say get out of here. 13:34 So here is the demoniac in front of him is Jesus 13:36 in the boat and a few disciples 13:39 and he asks the question that I would have asked. 13:41 Can I come with You 13:42 because behind them is the hostile group. 13:44 The ones that have that have chastised him his whole life, 13:47 because he was menace to society. 13:50 He doesn't want to stay there with the people that hate him, 13:52 he wants to go with Jesus and Jesus 13:53 rejects him and says, no. 13:55 You know and that's most cold thing he could ever said, 13:58 except for He says I want you to stay here 14:01 and I want you to go to your own home town 14:04 that the Decapolis, the Country of Ten Cities. 14:06 I want you to go and share. 14:08 Now what does the guy know? 14:10 Does he knowing anything about behavior? Nothing. 14:13 Does he knowing anything about the Bible? Nothing. 14:14 He is on the wrong side of the, you know, the lake. 14:17 Yeah, hang out for that thought because I got to come back. 14:20 You said Jesus rejects him. 14:21 He didn't reject him, He injected his request. 14:24 Because Jesus, well I want to make sure 14:25 everybody out here says that Jesus 14:27 was not being hard hearted. 14:30 What Jesus knew was that where this man was right now, 14:34 He knew. He could use him. 14:35 He could use him in such a powerful way 14:37 and He needed probably that time to go share and heal 14:41 and mend some broken relationships 14:43 by sharing and getting-- 14:45 gaining forgiveness asking for forgiveness 14:48 and he was ready to go out and he was a miracle story. 14:51 So-- Absolutely. 14:52 God always knows what's best. 14:54 Yeah, that's right, when I say rejection 14:55 I am saying that's what we would have thought humanly. 14:57 He reject, yeah, He reject his request. 14:58 And if God has a plan, just like He is a plan for your life, 15:00 He has a plan for my life and every person watching. Amen. 15:03 God has a plan, in heaven from the foundation of the earth 15:05 and a minimum from our mother's womb 15:07 because lot of disciples said that. 15:08 So he was serious, so God says no, share. 15:10 So what does he do? 15:11 He doesn't he-he is not going with any knowledge. 15:13 He's never probably seen a Bible 15:15 because he is on the heathen side the Greeks and all. 15:18 He doesn't know any about that and Jesus interests him 15:21 with that mission to go spread the word. 15:24 What was he gonna spread? 15:25 Because he doesn't know anything about diet, 15:26 he doesn't know anything about behavior, anything, 15:27 sometimes Christians things 15:29 really what we should be sharing. 15:31 He doesn't know anything about it, 15:32 he doesn't know anything about the Bible, 15:33 doesn't know anything about God all he knows, 15:34 there is this person came and freed me 15:37 and that's all he has for a story he goes. 15:40 And we don't know what all he said, 15:41 but all we know, he has to say is I was freed. 15:45 And then when Jesus comes back to story, He picks up. 15:47 You can read this in Mark 5 and Mark 8 15:49 and then with Luke--Luke 8 really brings it to the head. 15:52 They come- Jesus comes back, 15:54 this time the whole country flocks to Jesus 15:57 and they follow Him for three whole days with out food, water, 16:01 to the point where they see 16:02 what are we gonna do these people are gonna faint. 16:03 And that's where the feeding of the 4,000 took place. 16:06 All over one lunatic who didn't know anything? 16:09 All he had was a story. 16:10 And so we don't think okay, it's only for those. 16:12 Let's look at Paul. 16:13 What did Paul do and King of Agrippa to in Acts 26. 16:17 He says, Paul has one shot to make his case, 16:19 he has one shot to make the case for God. 16:23 He should have engaged that guy with intellectual verbiage 16:26 because, you know, he is a probably a Ph.D king 16:28 and Paul is a Ph.D theologian, 16:30 you know, in terms of the school of Pharisees. 16:32 So, what does Paul do? 16:34 He tells his story even the part, you know, 16:36 I'm going to Damascus to, you know, to make-- 16:41 take it out on this Christians and all kind of stuff 16:42 and there is light hits him and go blind I mean, 16:44 Paul, you are going side ways on these story. 16:46 You are gonna make a fool of yourself in front of the king. 16:48 What did King Agrippa say? 16:50 He says, you almost persuade me. 16:52 You bring me to the brink and I'm almost ready-- 16:54 It's a contention. To the edge. 16:56 Absolutely, over his story you read Acts 26, 17:00 nothing about theology in there. 17:01 He starts from when he is a child 17:03 going to the Pharisees circle schools 17:04 all the way through this ridiculous experience 17:06 in the world would say. 17:08 And the king is brought to the edge in fact, 17:09 governor Festus even said you are mad, 17:12 because he is embarrassed that even allow the king 17:13 to come and listen to the story. 17:15 But the point is what is the housewife, 17:18 the haggard housewife that you are describing earlier 17:20 or who ever it is doesn't matter, what do you have? 17:23 Well, if you don't know Jesus go find him 17:25 but if you do find him which you are gonna, 17:26 because that says seek and you will find. 17:28 There are no conditions about it, you will find. 17:30 So when you find Him now, I simply do say 17:34 this is what's happening in my life. 17:35 This is what its like before. 17:37 I have fulfillment now even though I am stuck on the street, 17:39 I am stuck with screaming kids, 17:41 I can't keep up in the laundering everything else 17:43 but I spend an hour or day with Jesus in the morning 17:45 and, you know, what I have peace of mind. 17:48 At least that hour is such an incredible moment of, 17:52 you know, rehab. 17:54 You know, what, I-- it suddenly just struck me 17:56 that there is time that I have got this long list 18:00 of what I know has to be done during the day 18:02 and it just keeps growing and growing, 18:05 through out the day and you are thinking, 18:06 how am I going to get this done? 18:08 I won't, I mean, there is only so much one person can do. 18:11 When I take that time out to be with Jesus 18:14 I don't always get everything done on my list 18:17 but I get everything its important done on my list 18:19 and it's so amazing by the next day 18:21 some of those things that were on my 'A' list 18:23 that needed to be doing. Yeah. 18:24 It's almost like they just dissipated, they, 18:27 you know, they were dispelled like a little poof. 18:29 What seem so important to me the day before, 18:32 it has been taken care of. 18:34 And so, there is seek first Matthew 6:33 18:38 "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, 18:41 and all these things will be added unto you." 18:43 Absolutely, and that's a guarantee. 18:45 It's not it a may be and it's a guarantee. 18:47 So if you just share what's happened, 18:49 then your neighbors gonna want that. 18:51 The person you come in contact with that your PTA club 18:54 or your kids little league soccer whatever it is. 18:58 The people you come and contact with 19:00 and how much do you need to know to share your story. 19:03 I don't know of anybody but it's so intimidated 19:06 that they can't tell what's happened in their life. Amen. 19:09 You know, I mean it's intimidating 19:11 to say I don't know this text, 19:12 I don't know that text and this one. 19:14 But, there is nothing to share what's happening in your life. 19:16 You are an authority anyways. 19:17 Get that in your head that I am an authority on one thing. 19:20 In fact they have done this a few times 19:21 when I have done in posterities, begin to pastors. 19:24 I'll get a franchise to shake him a little bit 19:26 and I will say when I am going to speak about them 19:28 I am preeminent authority on this. 19:29 There is--none of you guys know as much as I know about this 19:32 and there is no church leaders and no much about there else. 19:33 Who invited this arrogant guy? 19:35 And its because what I had talk about is my story. Yeah. 19:39 I can be bold about that and so can the person out there 19:42 who thinks they don't have anything to offer. 19:45 But that's all a Holy Spirit needs 19:46 that's all a Holy Spirit wants. 19:47 Its all Jesus used in Paul, 19:49 its all Jesus used in the demoniac is their story, 19:53 to allow the Holy Spirit to come in and do the work. 19:56 See we tend to take too much responsibility in ourself 19:58 think we got to be qualified, 20:00 we have to have a degree in theology 20:01 or we need this or we need that. 20:02 No, afraid not. 20:03 That's Satan telling us that. Right. 20:06 Jesus is telling us, go ye let me speak through you. 20:10 But you know one thing I will say that, 20:12 I have found that I was much more bold witness 20:15 the more promises of God that I knew 20:18 and that I was praying back to the Lord. 20:20 I learned how to pray God's promises 20:22 to claim them over my life. 20:23 Speak them over my life. Absolutely. 20:25 And when I talk to people I don't always you know, 20:28 I do this with my husband, 20:29 I don't think I do it with anybody else but you know, 20:32 I don't tell him well its, you know, 20:35 2 Corinthians 5"17 says that 20:37 "You are the new creation in Christ. 20:39 The old has gone, the new has come" Great. 20:40 But I will say, you know the Bible says 20:43 the more-- the more I can share with them 20:45 at that some point of life the Bible says 20:48 that you are a new creation in Christ 20:49 and that's been my experience a totally new. 20:52 Now, it also says that the old is gone and the new is coming. 20:57 I will say sometimes that old loose its ugly head, 21:00 and I have to remember by faith that God counseling 21:03 that are not as though they already were. 21:05 So, I am not telling them that's Romans 4:17, 21:08 I am not telling them where this is 21:10 but I start explaining my own experience 21:12 using the word of God which has transforming power, 21:15 and quite often then they will say where is that scripture. 21:19 Well, at that point if you don't know admit-- 21:21 at least if you know scripture in your heart 21:23 there is power in the word of God 21:25 to talk about God's promises. 21:27 But you don't have to know the Bible 21:29 is what you are saying before you begin sharing. 21:32 You don't need extra word either. 21:33 You just start sharing. 21:35 Because the--the inter word on one, one you are right. 21:38 The inter word on one on one 21:40 can share on something the authority on. 21:42 You know, my life used to be this way 21:44 and there may be you know, timid 21:45 when they are telling whatever else. 21:46 But, here's what my life is like now, 21:48 you know I don't have this peace. 21:50 And you know, I think we said this in a previous program 21:53 and I just kind of want to reiterate this, 21:56 it all has to begin with that bounding of friendship. 21:59 So let's say that I'm a mother of three 22:05 and I am very shy and my next door neighbor 22:08 and the apartment next door is also may be a single mother. 22:12 Well, I may not-- I may be so shy 22:14 that I don't how to go over and open up 22:17 a conversation with her to start sharing that story. 22:19 But, what you can do is go share 22:21 something with her a flower. 22:24 Well absolutely, that's true. 22:25 Something, you know, a cupcake whatever it is 22:28 that your sharing and somebody on the health message 22:30 is gonna call me on to the cupcake but-- 22:34 and then ask questions about their life. 22:37 Get them to talking 22:38 because everybody loves to talk about them self. 22:41 Then usually what follows after someone is told 22:44 their story is they began to ask your story. 22:46 And then they have given you permission to share, 22:49 and they are inviting you to share. 22:50 Great, and in their story they are gonna find this. 22:53 I am haggard, you should be haggard 22:56 even though you probably are bit haggard 22:58 you have peace of mind about you. 23:00 You have a sense of sanity in this all. 23:02 So as they begin to see, 23:04 even though you don't have more money than I do 23:06 or anything else you have something I don't have. 23:08 See when I--when I share with a billionaire, 23:12 I know, you know, they don't take my wallet off say well, 23:14 let me look first to see if you're qualified 23:16 you can give me advice. 23:17 No, no all they want to know was 23:19 what's going to fill that emptiness they have. 23:21 When I share with a derelict on the street 23:23 and here is what you do. 23:24 As you share what you know they don't have, 23:25 because you as a Christian have it all. You know-- 23:29 Well, a big statement and some people out there 23:31 probably going, I don't feel like that. 23:32 Well, even I don't feel like that but you know what 23:34 how many meals have you missed? 23:36 I mean are you really you know, 23:37 and so with the derelict you know what I share with them? 23:39 You know, I haven't gone without him, 23:40 I haven't missed the meal and I don't know when 23:42 and I got a place to stay. 23:44 I don't tell my own my house, I just say I got a place to stay 23:46 and I got door locks on my doors. 23:49 Well, that sounds pathetically you know 23:51 not even elementary to say door locks but the billionaire 23:54 if I told him I got door locks. 23:55 He says, I've got whole security, 23:57 groups of people looking after me. 23:59 So I am sharing with that person what I know 24:02 that they don't have and what they need. 24:03 And see I don't tell him you are empty, 24:05 you are hungry, if you get God-- 24:06 no I am telling what I have because of God 24:09 and then they see the answer. 24:11 And see what the billionaire, what do I talk to him about? 24:14 I talk about peace of mind, I talk to him about 24:16 I am pinnacle of my little empire. 24:18 When I come home at night, well the God is really not 24:20 because at this point my belief system allows me 24:23 to unload on someone bigger than myself. 24:27 So they get the picture of that boy, you know, 24:29 I can never get the bucker. 24:30 It always comes up to me and it stops here 24:32 and I am under so much pressure with my empire. 24:35 I say, I can unload. 24:37 And I say when I get kicked in the face 24:38 and sand thrown on my eyes from foot, 24:40 you know, threaten lawsuits and all that kind of stuff, 24:42 you know I can shrug it off 24:44 because I got a bigger calling, 24:45 you know, and that's what they see. 24:48 And that's all we need to do share-- 24:49 share the benefits of Christianity 24:51 and if you know Jesus you will know the benefits. 24:54 And if you don't know the benefits 24:56 you don't know Jesus. That's true. 24:57 So you need to get into that. 24:59 It all comes back down to that spending time 25:02 in the word and in prayer with the Lord, absolutely. 25:05 But is it worth it? Yes, there is nothing, 25:08 burn nothing like leaving lost soul to Jesus. 25:12 That is the pinnacle of, its not human accomplishment 25:15 but it's the pinnacle of relevance. 25:19 Is to see--to see a God and Creator of the universe 25:23 can use a twig like me. 25:26 Who, you know, who isn't always nice to people. 25:30 Who has his hang-ups but in spite of it all 25:34 we can use Him 25:36 and when you realize it, that it's not me. 25:38 I couldn't ever set this up, this person in the airplane, 25:41 this person in business meeting and this and that. 25:43 I could never set this things up. 25:44 Now, the person in the line at the grocery store. 25:46 Absolutely, you know, you could ever set up. 25:47 You see, this had a flat tire that you start. 25:50 You know, you got it right, exactly. 25:51 So it's every where and Jesus you started all with it, 25:53 it all comes right back to that. 25:55 I was hungry and you either fed me or you didn't 25:59 and if we couple that with 26:01 that was been faithful over few things 26:02 I am gonna make you rule over bigger things. 26:04 If your life is going nowhere well, may be you should start 26:06 by being in faith where you are today. 26:07 See lot of people say, 26:08 if I only had millions I would help people. 26:11 No, do it today and you will have whatever 26:12 God needs to give you later to help people. Amen. 26:16 So anyways, yeah, so that's a precisely where it's all at. 26:19 It's just been-- it's been open to what 26:21 Jesus had done for you and guaranteed. 26:24 I can guarantee on beyond the shadow of doubt 26:26 I have got emails an inch thick 26:28 that have are actually printed. 26:29 Not the ones that I have saved of people's testimony 26:31 all over who gave an hour or a day to Jesus 26:34 and look what happened in their life. 26:35 This is all over the world. 26:37 So basically let's sum this up, 26:38 because our time is already gone again. 26:40 That when you are witnessing to someone 26:42 you are steps are, have a common bond, 26:45 you establish some kind of a something, 26:48 find something that you have in common in with them 26:51 and talk to them about it. 26:52 Let them talk about themselves first then 26:54 when they start you just share your testimony, 26:56 what God has done in your life. Yeah, nothing more. 26:59 And then to know, that you got to have 27:01 that testimony to share though, 27:03 you got to have that real relationship with them. 27:06 You know, its so exciting Herb, 27:08 to see how God is using your life. 27:10 You are a unique individual. 27:11 We all unique but I just want to thank you so much 27:15 for coming back again and joining us 27:18 and this is been really exciting. 27:20 So it's always a privilege Shelley, thanks. 27:23 You bet, Herb. 27:24 You know, for those of you at home 27:26 wherever you are around the world 27:29 I don't care if you are in Africa 27:30 or if you are in Tunisia 27:32 or if you are in Australia or China 27:36 remember that God only-- you may be the only Jesus 27:41 the only Bible than anybody ever gets to read. 27:44 So let your little light shine and be a light onto the world. 27:49 Now, may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, 27:51 the love of the Father 27:52 and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you. |
Revised 2014-12-17