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Greetings in the Name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, from the work He is accomplishing in Canada. I would like to give you an update on some of the people I have been reaching out to personally for the sake of Christ. There was a lady who was attending the church for a few months, and had heard the gospel, and even received a Bible. By all accounts, she seemed genuine. Unfortunately, she has since stopped attending and has no intention of returning. A young lady in the congregation reached out to her, and shared with me that, “she has gotten everything she needed from church, and now has to turn to self-care in order to find wholeness.” She has gotten everything she needed from religion and has moved on to more time for self. It was sad to see, but not unexpected. She does have a good study Bible though, and Lord willing, she will read it and come to the realization that it’s not about self, it’s about Christ. 

Second is a more encouraging encounter I had on a Thursday night Bible study. As I mentioned, we have been meeting regularly on Thursday nights to lead a Bible study with some foreign students from Asia. This particular Thursday, all but one of the students were in training. So, I was able to speak for over an hour with one student, one on one. Now, keep in mind this young man is from a closed country. He had almost no knowledge of the Bible, except what he had heard at the previous week’s Bible study. He had no knowledge of Christianity of Christ beyond that. After a brief introduction, he had two questions: “What is the bible, and why is it the most famous book in the world?” 

I told him before we can answer that, to tell me whether or not he believed the God of the Bible existed. He replied, “why would I be here if I did not believe there was a God?” That settled that. I began to answer his questions, starting with the reliability of Scripture, and then why it so famous, because of who it is about: Christ and His gospel. (1 Corinthians 15:3-8). From here we looked at various passages about the Holiness of God, the Law, the sinfulness of man, and the love of God expressed in the work of Christ on the cross. Please pray for this young man, that God would bring him into the fold, and that he would come to a knowledge of the truth. He will be with us for a few more months before returning home. 

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One more instance came early in the month. A member of the congregation set up a meeting between myself and one of his clients. The man had led a life of lies and had found himself in a terrible place. His family was not great, and things were a mess economically. I couldn’t speak much to those things, but I could speak to the reality of Christ. I asked if he considered himself a Christian, in which he quickly affirmed that he was. So, I took him to first John, and after a few minutes, he began to shake his head. I told him that I have good news and bad news for him. The bad news is, “based on what you have been saying, I don’t think you ever really were a Christian. He replied, “Well, if that’s true (pointing to 1 John in the open Bible), what we read, then no, I never was a Christian.” I informed him this was, in fact, good news, because it meant that he has never experienced Christianity before, and the fact that it does have the power to transform our lives and give us the power to overcome sin. But he would have to come to Christ for forgiveness first. He was, and as of yet still is, unwilling to humble himself. Pray that the Lord would deal with his heart and spare him from sinking any lower.  

After the meeting, I left with a member of my congregation who offered me a drive home. Along the way, he told me he had just finished a book comparing Christianity and Islam, and that he thought I would like a copy. Well, unbeknownst to him, I had been praying that very morning for a book to give to a Muslim friend who I would see the very next day. I told him, and he joyfully got a copy to me in time to give to my friend. I ask you to pray that the book would answer some of his questions and that he would come to know the Lord. Thank you for your continued support and prayers.