On Friday, April 15, 1966, at 6:30 PM, when I came to the Lord, the man, Stan, who had led me to Him, gave me a Phillips New Testament. I was 20 years old, from a rough "world", and this truly became a whole new blessed world for me, instantly. AND Stan's Word/verse, chosen specially for me, referenced in the Bible was this:
Philippians 2:13: For it is God who is at work within you, giving you the will and the power to achieve his purpose.
That was my special Bible.
Almost a year later -- February, 1967 -- I had been shifted from Tacoma, WA, to East St. Louis, IL. I was living with a friend the first couple months, and working in St. Louis.
Then, during May, life changed again. I was spending time out and about in the downtown area of East St. Louis, mostly as part of a serious gang-and-racial-and-poverty ministry. I was a serious, tough-cookie oriented person, and very few times was I hesitant or frightened by what others were doing towards, around, or about me. I was amazingly protected by the Lord, believe me!
Anyhow, I remember walking around downtown. Casually. A scruffy middle-aged man was standing on a corner, and asking for money. A homeless man, same as today. I had almost no money, couldn't help him. I might have been able to give him a buck or two, but that was all. THEN, however, while sharing the Word with him, just a bit, for a couple minutes, he said he couldn't keep knowing more; he didn't have a Bible.
I reached into the top pocket of my jacket, removed my small "Born-Again gift", and gave it to him, told him it was easy to read and that he could learn more of the Lord, that it was small enough that he could easily keep it in his pockets.
He thanked me. We smiled at each other. I left.
I haven't known anything further, of course. I hope it entered into his heart. I'll find out for certain sure whether this gift to him, one of the first personal spiritual ones I ever gave after my salvation, changed him. I sure hope to meet him again --
in heaven.
1 comment:
Well, if you have to give up a Bible, that's the way to do it... Good for you that you'd part with a part of you. What a gift... I still have my first red one from 1970...
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