Stories from all over our city & beyond

Faith Discussion with fellow believer (client co-worker) aligned with Genesis 15 sermon hours earlier. God can handle all doubts!

Had a great conversation at work today! I have a new Muslim coworker (as of last week), and I was talking to him and two of my (nominally Christian) coworkers. Somehow we got on the topic of his halal diet (my coworkers were unfamiliar with it and were asking), and we got into a long discussion about the Bible vs the Quran, how we each pray, what each of our end time prophecies are, how Muslims get to heaven vs how Christians do. My Christian coworkers still seem to think I’m surely “Christian enough” to get to heaven so I was able to re-emphasize how much I actually don’t deserve to go to heaven and that I need Jesus. We even talked about what the Quran says about Jesus vs what the Bible says! This conversation started right before lunch and lasted til we realized it was 1 p.m. and should probably eat something/get to work. Everyone was cool with the conversation and all asking questions. I’m hoping this opens the door to future conversations but am seeking wisdom from God in not overdoing it because I’m so excited about this!

I popped in the grocery store last night for baby carrots. It was late, and the store would be closing soon. When I got to the checkout the cashier was immediately very friendly. I got the impression he really just wanted to talk. For once, I wasn’t in a hurry, and there was no one waiting in line behind me, so I made the conscious decision to settle in, listen, and respond.

His name was […], and he’s originally from Israel. We talked briefly about the war going on both there and Ukraine. He asked me about my family, and was surprised when I said we’d been married 15 years but our daughter was only 2 years old. I told him that we thought we couldn’t have children, but God gave us a miracle. He gave a big smile and said congratulations. He told me about his nephew who is a little over a year old and is teething. As I walked away, he said he hoped that I would bring my daughter next time so he could meet her. It was a really sweet chat, and I only wish I had thought to offer to pray for him before I left.”

Here is the reply I got from the person I had talked to about Jesus and recommended the book Jesus Calling…her father is very depressed and contemplating suicide:

“Good morning Marc,

It was certainly a pleasure meeting you as well. I left our conversation feeling more empowered and determined.

I appreciate you sharing your story and also recommending that book.

My father was receptive and appreciates the encouraging words. He seems to be in better spirits today so I’m hoping it continues.

I will certainly keep you posted!

Stay Encouraged!”

A friend and I got to visit with an Afghan family we recently became friends with. As we spent time together, the nine year old daughter started expressing questions about Jesus and how she could believe in Him. We got to read Isaiah 53 together in their language, and they could identify that this chapter was speaking about Jesus, and talked about how this prophecy was written hundreds of years before Jesus was born and He fulfilled it!

I was at a work event at a Rough Riders game and struck up a conversation with a coworker about our summer travel including the missions trip to London. That turned into a 30 min conversation about faith and joy and the brokenness in this world and finally he shared that he is agnostic and how he came to that conclusion. It was a good seed sowing conversation and I offered to be there to talk in the future if he had questions about faith or to pray for him or his students. Excited to pray for my coworker this year and see God work in his life!

A homeless man […] frequents the DTS library and I have been seeking an opportunity to converse with him for a few weeks. Today I saw the opportunity and took it. I shared my story with [him] and presented the Gospel within my story. We talked for a good thirty minutes. When I finished and asked him if he wanted to receive Christ as his Savior, he said he had a lot to think about, but the door of opportunity is still open. Please keep [this man] in your prayers.

Had a wonderful conversation with my haircut lady at Supercuts.

Dane and I had a really cool experience at the least expected location – the car dealership.

As we were driving to the dealership we asked God to lead us in a conversation with the car dealer who we had previously met. While we didn’t get to have a conversation about Jesus, we did get to encourage him, explain how we worked with Northwest Bible and our heart to adopt from the lens of Christianity. 

But later that day, as we were in financing with a woman …, we got to have a surprisingly easy to start conversation with her. She was a woman of peace who began asking questions about us, our marriage, our faith. We got to explain our love for Jesus and the Rock He is to our marriage and our purpose in life.

She told us that she was in a relationship where her boyfriend was a Christian and she was Catholic and she has been checking out some Bible churches with him. She also said that she’s interacted with lots of pastors and church ministers recently who have been encouraging her. At the end, we asked if there was anything we could pray for her about. She immediately teared up and asked for prayer for her father who is battling cancer. We got to pray for her right there in her office and it was such a blessing to us all! 

We walked away reminded of how good God is.

I had asked a co-worker if she would like to come to church with me, she said yes even through she hasn’t been to church since she was 14. We met for breakfast and I listened to her story for an hour and then she attended church with me. I know the Lord was already working on her life through other people because she talked about other co-workers and how they talked about their faith with each other but she realized she did not have that kind of relationship with them. On another date at work I prayed for her, her chronic medical problem and anxiety. I’ve invited her to a a summer Bible study I am hosting in my house but she has not attended yet. My next step is to take her out to lunch again and see where she is in her faith. Please pray for [her].