Squatter Family Walk: A family of five I made an instant connection with in a squatter neighborhood in Volcan. They came to our Christmas Day Program later! 🙂
I pulled a bit of a Jonah this month. December found Team Lionheart in Panama (not like planned Costa Rica) with a ministry contact whom LOVES (and I mean whose heart beats for) evangelism – handing out tracts, street dramas and evangi-cubes. I’ll be the first to tell you evangelism is not my spiritual gifting.
The thought of handing out a tract about Jesus and walking away makes my insides go a little shaky. I want to build relationships. I want to know someone and not deliver a hell-fire and brimstone message, drop off a thin slip of paper in someone’s hand and walk away. I want investment.
So in my heart, I was acting a bit like Jonah not wanting to go to Ninevah. I didn’t get on a boat in Panama (though I looked at some in the Panama Canal), but my heart was running as fast as it could. I walked the streets, I handed out tracts, but my insides were groaning until…
Until God asked me if I trusted Him. Until He brought to my attention – yet again – that He is Sovereign and in control of my exact placement on the Race. He knew before sending me to Panama that street evangelism isn’t my passion. He was asking me to trust Him, to depend on Him, to love Him, to love His people, and to trust Him with His sheep. He knew the people who would cross our paths each day. He knows what it will take for them to come to know Him.
Do you love me, Ginger? Feed my sheep. A seed. Just a seed. The Holy Spirit does the rest.
A seed was a tract. A seed was a drama. A seed was a smile. A seed was a “can I pray for you?”
Did I love God’s people enough to be embarrassed? To trust that I was indeed making an investment that I would not be able to cash in on or see the results here on earth? Did I love His people enough to step out of my comfort zone and ask?
He helped me to do those things.
Sharing the Gospel: After our skit we would explain what our performance was about and always bring it back to the Gospel. Here, I’m explaining and Zeb (or Enrique) is translating in Spanish.
Our team learned several street dramas (and they were SO much fun!). We handed out a TON of tracts. One man even approached Zeb (or Enrique, his Spanish name) and God had Zeb lead him in a prayer of salvation. Zeb got to disciple him a bit too on another day before we left that city.
Sharing the Gospel with Soccer: The Evangi-soccer ball. Each color represents part of the Gospel story. Yellow: creation, light. Black: sin and our separation from God. Red: Jesus’ blood and our redemption. White: newness of life when we believe and confess that Jesus is our Savior. Green: growth in our relationship with God through prayer, bible reading and sharing His love with the world.
I kicked a soccer ball with a group of boys in a park one day and used the colors on the ball to tell the Gospel. I was well versed in the message by Christmas Day to share it with the kids that came to our Christmas program. The words weren’t only for them though. Each time I shared the story, the meaning echoed deep in my heart – reminding me of a book that said to “preach the Gospel to yourself every day.”
The truth is we all (believers too!) need the Gospel. We need to be reminded of what True Love did for us – to be humbled, grateful and full of praise, ready to walk in obedience and trust with a loving God who would go to such measures for us.
Blue Eyes Blue Wigs: Our base in David was a church member’s party store. She let us put on wigs and costumes to “draw attention” and strike up conversation. These little girls were big fans of the blue wig and quite curious about the eyes.
