Evangelism

Anna Lee thought she would throw up all the food she had eaten at the hotel earlier as the taxi maneuvered the bumpy road leading to the airport. She’d been so busy attending meetings, taking calls, writing up reports and running errands for the past five days that all she wanted to do now was fly back home and collapse into bed; but now, it seemed her innards would be the one to collapse into her lap. She rolled her eyes in frustration for the umpteenth time as the driver broke into another local song with his cracked off-tune voice which only added to her migraine. Oh, how she just hated this place! Be thankful, she tried to remind herself. After all, it’s not everyone that gets to work like crazy and then almost die in transit back home. Be thankful.

Finally! The taxi slowed to a stop at the entrance and Anna scrambled to open the door as she willed her stomach to stop churning. She grabbed her suitcases and rushed into the airport, stopping only to pay the driver and show her ticket. The airport seemed to be in a worse state than it was five days ago. The walls seemed more brackish and the staff seemed to wear grimmer expressions, giving the whole place a more eerie nuance. Relax, it’s okay. You’ll be home soon. You’ll have a nice long shower and order takeout. It’s okay, she whispered to herself as she settled down and waited for her flight to be called.

Then the news came, hitting Anna like a cold bucket of water. Her flight had been delayed by an hour.

It wasn’t okay.

Anna looked around her. How was she to endure another hour in this depressing place? She tried to think, didn’t she have her devotion before leaving the hotel? Or had she sinned without realizing it? Was God trying to punish her for something? But she was pretty sure she’d been a good girl. Then what could possibly account for the trauma she was going through now? Anna looked around her again as a tear slipped down her eye. She didn’t deserve this, any of it! She’d worked like a horse for days and she desperately needed a rest. Life just wasn’t fair!

“Look”, the Voice whispered. There was a teenage girl on a seat fiddling with her phone. “Talk to her. Tell her about Me.”

Me? Right now? Here?

“Yes. You. Right now. Here.”

But— But I’m tired. I’m hungry. I have a headache. I’m really not in the right frame of mind to preach. Besides, I can’t just walk up to a random person to talk. Where do I start from? And you know how scary teenagers are these days, what if she reports me? Or what if she posts on social media that she met a religious freak at the airport? What if she uploads my picture? What if my bosses see it? Then I’ll get sacked. Then I’ll be jobless. Then I’ll be broke. Nobody wants to marry a poor woman. So I won’t be able to get married. Then I’ll end up sad and lonely for the rest of my life!

“Tell her about Me”, the Voice persisted.

God, aren’t You listening? It’s too weird, nobody does in-person evangelism anymore, it’s all online nowadays. I don’t know who that girl is or where she’s from. I can’t just walk up to her like I’m her long-lost aunt.

“Tell her about Me.”

Anna Lee sighed. What was she to do? She’d never preached to a stranger before and she just couldn’t imagine herself doing it, it was too weird. Anna wracked her brain as she tried to come up with a compromise. She was a Christian, she didn’t want to flat-out disobey God. Breaking out into a thin smile, she arrived at a decision. Anna gathered her courage.

“Hi.”

The girl looked up with a slight frown and confusion in her reddened eyes. “Umm…hi?”

“Yeah, hi. My name is Anna. May I have a seat?”

“Sure. I’m Naomi”, the girl said as she moved to make room for Anna.

“Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too.”

Anna noticed Naomi’s red eyes but didn’t say a word. It was considered rude to ask strangers personal questions these days. She focused on making small talk instead. “When’s your flight?”

“In about 40 minutes.”

Hmm. Just 10 minutes after mine, Anna thought. “Where are you going? Are you traveling alone?”

“Yes. I’m going to visit my mom and stepfather, they just had a baby.”

“Oh.” Well, that doesn’t sound so pleasant. See, God? She’s not in a good mood; the more reason I can’t just spring up such a sensitive discussion on her. No, let’s talk about more pleasant things, Anna decided, half-expecting the Voice to insist again. But this time the Voice was silent.

So Anna took that as a pass and the two ladies spent time discussing the weather, the country, boys, everything but God. Just as Anna’s flight was called, she mustered the courage to ask for Naomis’s phone number. “I’m just asking because I’d like to check up on you.”

“Awwn thanks”, said Naomi as she scribbled her number on a piece of paper and handed it to Anna.

“Ok, bye.”

“Bye.”

Phew! Anna breathed a sigh of relief as she made a way to the boarding gate. Of course, she didn’t feel too good since she hadn’t talked to Naomi about God. It’s okay. I just got her number. God said to tell her about Him which I will. Getting her number was just a prerequisite, and it’ll be an excellent way to follow up once I finally preach to her. It’s okay, Anna consoled herself. But something still didn’t feel quite right.

Three hours later

Anna stretched her arms as she disembarked the plane, happy that she’d been able to get some rest. As she lugged her bags through customs to where a car from the company was waiting, the Breaking News on the television suddenly caught her eye. It said that the airplane on flight BF183 that took off at 1:40pm had crashed and burned, and no survivors were expected to be found. Anna’s heart began to palpitate. What? It couldn’t be…

Anna struggled to remember. When did her plane take off again? 1:30. And if Naomi’s flight was 10 minutes after hers, then…

“Ahhhhhhhhhhh”, Anna broke into a piercing scream as her whole body began to shake. This couldn’t be. It shouldn’t be. Naomi couldn’t be dead. She couldn’t be! She hadn’t preached to her yet. She hadn’t told her about God. She hadn’t given her a chance to hear the gospel and decide.

Anna froze as a thought occurred to her. She had killed Naomi before she even got a chance to live, not physically but spiritually. Oh, why hadn’t she just at least done her part by telling Naomi about God? After all, she had been able to talk about every other thing. Oh, why? Now, Naomi’s blood would be required of her. Anna was overcome with guilt as she wept bitterly.

• “The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”- 2 Peter 3:9 (AMP)

• “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.”- Mark 16:15 (AMP)

Action point.

Tell someone about God. It doesn’t have to be in a fancy way, it could just be by simply highlighting God’s love for mankind and His plan for redemption. If you’re not sure about how to go about it, ask the Holy Spirit for guidance; He’ll lead you.