For the first thirty-nine years of my life I knew nothing about the Bible or God. I was told something about Jesus Christ in my early religious upbringing, but what that personally meant for me I did not have a clue. Neither did anyone else. No priest, nun, pastor, ‘reverend’ or church-goer ever told me that …
Category Archives: Encouragement
But they still have a god
As a “hands on” public messenger of the Christian gospel in my local community I learned some powerful truths about human nature. I learned that everybody holds firmly to a belief system (god) regardless of whether they say they believe in God or not. It was a fascinating experience to listen to someone tell me something like, “I have no need of any God …
You’ve opened my eyes today
Leila was a Ukrainian lady in her early seventies who used to love coming to our church services on a Sunday morning after attending mass at her Ukrainian Catholic church, which was just a few hundred meters up the street. She was proud of the fact that she attended two services and participated in, “two holy communions today.” Doing such, gave her the …
No rules attached
Ben invited me in for a chat when I introduced myself to him at his door. He said he was in his late seventies, an ex-digger who fought in New Guinea during the Second World War, but now he was, “sick, divorced twice and happy with my lot.” He was a lovely old bloke but I …
Spirit to spirit
Salvatore was a neighbor of mine who lived across the street from me. I never knew him all that well however, because like most Italian migrants, he and his wife were hard working people. They seemed to work long hours, including some weekends. There was also a hindrance in communication between us, with me not knowing …
Looking into the eyes
House to house ministry was never easy work for me to engage in at any time, but I always found it much more difficult when looking into the eyes of people who expressed grief and sadness. The first time I spoke with Jillian I detected such sadness but she gave nothing away. She told me she had, “sort of heard of …
Because I feel dirty
Sometimes when I door-knocked a person’s home it was as though he or she was expecting me to call and as a result I was often immediately invited inside. Gordon did this one morning and no sooner had he done so, when his partner Jill asked, “How much do you people charge for somebody to …
I’m free. It’s wonderful!
It was a lovely sunny afternoon, towards the end of winter, when Amy came to her door. Looking to be in her mid to late eighties, she stood in amazement as I explained to her why I was calling and she listened intently as I shared with her a little of my experience of the reality and …
I hope not
Josie was in a wheelchair the day she came to open the door to me. She was a thirty-three year old Italian lady who lived with her mum and forty-three year old sister. It was not readily apparent why she was in the chair but it certainly looked as though this was a permanent situation for her. …
I have to have time to make the choice
The first time I met Len he spoke inside behind his security door for ten minutes, then he stepped out from the door onto the porch and we spoke for another ten minutes or so, then he called for his wife May to come and meet me. May was very happy that this event was taking place …