The Call to Evangelize

The following are eight true accounts I would like to share with you, about the power of giving away evangelistic pamphlets, which are also called tracts. It is beyond amazing what God will do when you are prepared.

Account # 1 - Bloor and Yonge

One day, I walked into the Bloor subway station, located at Bloor and Yonge, in downtown Toronto, where I was working at the time. The Holy Spirit immediately spoke to me and said, “Do not go downstairs.” I had no idea why he said those words to me, but I obeyed and did not go downstairs but instead remained on the floor that I was on. Now, just to let you know, I did not hear those words audibly, but I knew exactly what the Lord was saying.

Downstairs was the subway train that I normally took to go home. If I did not go downstairs, I would not go home. For some reason, the Lord was delaying me.

I took the opportunity to sit down on the bench nearby. Two (seemingly) Korean women were talking to each other. I sat beside them and closed my eyes and prayed, “Lord, if you want me to speak with these two women about Jesus, please open a door.” I also prayed about other things. I prayed for about five minutes. When I opened my eyes, the women were gone! So much for talking with the two women.

I suddenly felt the liberty to go downstairs. Although I did not hear the Lord speak to me after this, the burden to remain on that floor was clearly lifted. So I proceeded to go downstairs to catch my train.

As soon as I reached the lower level, I noticed that standing in front of me — about 10 feet in the distance — was a man who looked vaguely familiar. Where had I seen this man before? My brain scrambled to consider where I might have possibly met him. This man looked truly familiar, but he was wearing shades (sunglasses), and a hat, both of which were very unfamiliar.

Oddly, we were staring directly at one another. I did not have to turn either to the left, or to the right, to even begin speaking with him. As our eyes were virtually locked on each other, though separated by about 10 feet of space, I said to him almost at my normal volume of speaking, “Did I meet you perhaps three or four days ago on the subway, and give you a small little pamphlet, about yeah size” (as I gestured with my hands to indicate about how big the pamphlet was). In fact, I had one of those pamphlets right in my pocket — it was an evangelistic pamphlet, or tract, as they are sometimes called.

The man replied astonishingly, “I read the pamphlet, but you didn’t give it to me.”

I thought, “What?”

Then, he said, “You’re confusing me with my twin brother George. I’m Jack, he’s George. George read the pamphlet you gave to him that day, and brought it home, and he gave it to me, and then I read it.”

I was amazed.

Then, I knew why the Lord had spoken to me earlier, telling me, “Do not go downstairs.” For at that point in time, subway trains were running every few minutes, so that in the span of time that it took for me to pray for those two women, and other things, at least one or two trains would have already passed by. Had I gone down too soon, I would have never met Jack. The Lord wanted me to meet Jack. There was a divine plan in it all.

But notice how the entire plan depended upon my having given Jack’s brother, George, an evangelistic pamphlet several days earlier. If I had not done that, then the Lord would not have spoken to me, telling me to wait, that day.

It has been my repeated experience that when I am prepared and willing to share the message of the gospel, in printed format, that God will begin to move in unprecedented ways. In fact, your decision to be obedient to God in this area may very well bring your relationship with God to a whole new level. And so it always surprises me when Christians say things like this: “God never speaks to me.” Because my experience has been that he will speak to me if I am ready to engage other people.

Jack and I spoke that day, as we both entered the same subway car. I was able to speak with him for a good period of time, during which he said to me, “Our family comes from a long line of atheists. We are hard to reach.”

In saying this, Jack knew that I was evangelistically minded. In other words, he knew that I would like to, if it were at all possible, to reach him with the life-giving message of the gospel. It’s almost as though he knew he needed to be reached.

I knew the Lord had placed me there for that very moment, so I asked the Lord, “Lord, what am I going to do for this man? I only have the same pamphlet as he has already read. Is there not something else I can give to him?”

I looked around in my backpack, and found a draft version of a book that I wrote, called, “Supernatural Keys to Healing, Volume 1.” It is a short book, and provides solid teaching on certain key things that may prevent a person from getting healed. There are principles in that book that go right back to the gospel message of repentance and forgiveness. Jack’s stop was coming up soon, so even before showing the book to him, I asked him, saying, “Is anyone in your family sick?”

Jack responded, “Is anyone sick? We’re all sick!”

This then opened the door for me to ask him if he would receive a book from me on healing, and he said, “Yes!” Thus it was that I gave him the book, and he received it. Jack’s stop was next, and he got off the train within just seconds of receiving the book from me.

This was the evangelistic escapade the Lord led me on that day, which all started with the Lord telling me not to go downstairs.

I will never forget this encounter. It says a lot. First, it tells me God is still speaking today. Second, it tells me that God is interested in souls. And the Bible says he who wins souls is wise (see Proverbs 11:30). Another thing it tells me is that God is well able, and even willing, to line up the circumstances of your life, to fit in with his perfect will, if we are but willing to listen to him.

Of course, there are also the naysayers. The naysayers say that God cannot or will not do these things today. But where do they get that from? Certainly not the Bible. The Bible does, however, give a reason why Jesus would not perform miracles among certain people. In Matthew 13:58, it says,

“He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.” (Matthew 13:58)

Account #2 - Domino’s Pizza

Every so often, I will visit Domino’s Pizza where I will pick up a pizza for the family. My daughters love that especially. On one occasion when I went there, I gave out some evangelistic pamphlets (as I often do wherever I go). When I went there, the same man I had met previously was also there. He came up to me and thanked me, saying, “I read that little pamphlet you gave me. It was really good. People need that these days.” This was interesting, because this man did not have a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. But he was very open to receiving the pamphlets.

About five other people were working there, as well. As we were talking, I said to the man, “I have some other true stories you can read. Would you like to read them as well?”

The man’s eyes lit up and he said, “Yes.”

Several of his co-workers then gathered around. I showed them an assortment of pamphlets, which were well received.

Account #3 - Sales Clerk at Canadian Tire

On another occasion, I went to the Canadian Tire store to buy a sheet of plastic to cover our kitchen table. I went to the checkout, and a roughly 18-year old man was working there. He punched through my purchase, and then I felt the immediate presence of God suddenly telling me to ask him if he knew what were to happen to him if he were to die tonight. The Lord was suddenly and clearly pressing me to ask him this question. So I said, “Can I ask you a question?”

The man said, “Sure.”

I said, “If you were to die tonight, where would you go?”

The man was alarmed, and paused, and then exclaimed, “That is a really good question! I have been thinking a lot about that since my mother died last year.”

This single question caused such a stir with this man, that he completely abandoned his responsibilities with the store for about 20 minutes, as we talked about Jesus Christ coming back to this earth, and our need to be ready. I did not press him at all. He was eager to talk, and even turned around, and talked with me, facing the opposite direction from his clients. His clients then went to the other checkout aisle while we kept talking at length. He was listening to me, and gladly received the printed message I gave to him, and then suddenly became alarmed.

“Oh, no!” he said. “I forgot my work! Fortunately,” he said, “my manager is not here right now, otherwise, I would be in big trouble.”

This is how significant this conversation was to this man. Because his own mother had recently died, he knew it was a matter of “life and death.”

Account #4 - The Midnight Stroller

Again on another occasion, I was coming home, and it was about midnight. I was armed with an evangelistic pamphlet, which means that God knew that I was ready. Therefore, it should not be too surprising that the Lord spoke to me. That evening, I do not recall hearing any words, but inside my spirit, I knew the Lord was telling me to keep going straight, rather than turn left. Intuitively, I knew this must have something to do with evangelism. As I headed down the hill, I noticed two people walking up the hill on my left hand side, so I came to the light that was in front of me, and did a U-turn, and slowly made my way back up the hill.

It was midnight, and what was I going to do, and how was I going to be effective at giving an evangelistic pamphlet, or tract, to one of these men? I went very slowly up the hill. There were no other people visible on the street, and my lights were on, and it was midnight. It was quite obvious that I was coming from behind. I needed a quick line, so I stopped, then rolled down the passenger window, and said to one of the two men (who by this time had stopped walking), “Excuse me, but could you please tell me the time?”

I knew what time it was. After all, my car clock was right in front of me. I did not think this man could see it, but perhaps he could. The man replied, “It is ten after midnight.”

I replied, “Thank you very much.”

Then, without waiting too much, I said to him, “Excuse me, but can I give this to you?”

He said, “Sure.”

I passed him an evangelistic pamphlet (that is, tract) through the window. The man looked at it and paused. Then he asked me a revealing question. Something he saw on that pamphlet must have spoken to him, because he said to me, in a very appreciative tone, “You did not stop to ask for the time, did you?”

I said, “No. But I really felt I needed to give this to you.”

The man responded, “Thank-you. Thank-you very much.”

It seems that the Lord had already been speaking with that man, and my job was to simply be obedient, and deliver the message.

I said, “You’re welcome,” and I went on my way.

Account #5 - The Security Guard

One day, I went to eat lunch at a restaurant, and in the process passed through the lobby of a high-rise office building. In those buildings, there are often security guards sitting at desks. This was not the building where I worked, so there was no risk of setting off a firestorm of disapproval from any of my office mates. I gave the pamphlet to the security guard and he accepted it. Then, I went to the restaurant where I met my co-workers.

An hour later, we finished our meal, and I had to yet again pass through the same lobby. There was the security guard’s station, just as before, but there had obviously been a change of shift, because the male security guard was no longer there. It was a female security guard. Her eyes were not at all on her work, nor the building, nor any other person. She was holding up the evangelistic pamphlet I had given to the other security guard, who obviously had left it there, for her, and for anyone else who might want to read it.

And this highlights a huge advantage of giving out evangelistic pamphlets or tracts. Many will get passed on to others. They can travel far and wide. I was even contacted by someone on the other side of the world once, who had read one of my pamphlets. And I had only given it out locally. Thus, your efforts in printing and distributing high quality evangelistic literature can go a very long way.

Account #6 - The Costco Worker

While visiting a Costco warehouse (doing some normal shopping), I offered one of the workers there a small evangelistic pamphlet I had written. Upon showing it to him (and I had never met this man before), he said to me, “I have read that already.”

I said, “What? You have read it already?”

He said, “Yes, you leave those lying around.”

I said, “No, I do not leave those lying around. When I give them away, I always give them to a person. I do not leave them lying around.” (And that is certainly true for a store like Costco. I would never leave them lying around. Furthermore, as a general rule, I only give them to workers at Costco. I never offer them to clients.)

The Costco worker replied, “Well, you left it at the Gas Centre.”

Then, I remembered, roughly the day before, I had bought gas at Costco, and had given the same pamphlet to a worker who was working at the Gas Centre. I had distinctly noticed that as soon as I gave it to him, he then put it down in the little booth, where this other man must have found it. So once again, evangelistic messages can easily make their way into other people’s hands.

After that, I reflected and told the man that I had given it to one of his co-workers at the gas station. Then, we had a good discussion about Jesus. I did not need to tell him anything about what was in the pamphlet. He already knew what was in it, for he had read the whole thing.

The man was convicted, and tried to make excuses as to why he did not need to trust in Jesus. I said to him, “I sense the Lord is trying to speak to you.” After some discussion, he went about doing his work. I then turned to my right, and immediately met a fellow Christian from church, and we prayed for this man’s salvation. You just have to wonder about the Lord’s timing sometimes.

Account #7 - Man #2 at Bloor and Yonge

Since I took the Bloor and Yonge subway rather frequently, the Lord has taken opportunity to speak with me there on more than one occasion. Once I walked in, and the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, “There is a man on this floor you need to speak with.”

Armed with an evangelistic pamphlet (that is, tract), I had what it took to do the job. But why did I need an evangelistic tract to do the job?

The main reason is because evangelistic tracts provide a natural opening to share the gospel. For example, you never need to fear interrupting someone if they don’t have time. You can simply say, “Here is something to read.” Also, if you are not sure what to say, it gives you confidence knowing you have the message in printed format. Third, evangelistic tracts may contain information which you do not have time to share. You may only have a minute, but the evangelistic tract contains 5 minutes of material. And that’s good stewardship. For one day, you will have to stand to give an account to the Lord for how effectively you shared the gospel. And by including literature as part of your arsenal, you will reap more fruit. And reaping a harvest is what it is all about. That is God’s intention for you, because Jesus said,

“In this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; and so you will be my disciples.” (John 15:8)

Thus it was that I sought out to find the man. But how could I find a man among all these people? Well, it had to be someone who was not going in and out of this place. Therefore, the man had to be stationary. And I found him. He was the one playing the guitar. This man had some deep wounds that went back to his experience with the Roman Catholic church. This was holding him back from understanding who God was. I explained to him the difference between true biblical Christianity, and Roman Catholicism. They were not the same.

We spoke for about 45 minutes, while a man about 15 feet away listened to the entire conversation. Then, after I had testified to this man, who was very open but who was not yet a believer, the man who had been listening to us from a distance came by and said to the man, “Listen to him. What he is telling you is the truth!”

Account #8 - The Highways and Byways

This will be our final account. And perhaps it is the most important. Because this account demonstrates how important it can be to go out and evangelize, even apart from your daily activities.

On one particular Saturday morning, I felt like I was missing something, and that I was not handling my accountability before God properly. I wondered, “Lord, what am I missing?” I did not know what the Lord was saying. Eventually I went outside, and said to my wife, “I am going out for a walk.” I did this because I felt miserable. What was wrong? Why was my spirit saddened? The Spirit of the Lord was grieved and he was letting me know. The issue was that someone needed hope and needed to hear the gospel. And sometimes, you and I might be their only hope. There may be no one else!

I found a woman one block away who gladly accepted three evangelistic pamphlets. I was surprised. She wanted them, saying she was going to give them to her Christian husband. But I have no doubt that the Lord wanted her to read them and hopefully she did.

I found another two people at the gas station who each accepted one. Five pamphlets were given in the span of about five minutes. My spirit was beginning to feel better. The groaning, that sad feeling, I had been feeling, started to lift.

I went back to the house and grabbed more pamphlets. I walked to the bus stop and met a Jamaican man, John by name. I struck up a conversation with him. He was going home for the day. He lived more than an hour away by local transport, and could easily read some of these tracts, or evangelistic pamphlets, en route. There was joy in my heart. I could feel the joy, and my own heart was being lifted, because God was in it.

John gladly received various tracts from me, and went on his way. It had been a good encounter, and he went away smiling, and so did I. My burden was completely lifted, and I went home rejoicing.

This little episode further emphasizes the fact that God may lead us, even through feelings of discouragement, to get outside and do the work of evangelizing. It really is a critical task. You certainly cannot expect all people to simply enter into a church building. In fact, the majority will not! And if they will not, then who is going to take the gospel message to them? That would be you and I, if you are a believer in Christ.

Therefore, let us do what Jesus commanded his disciples to do, which is to take the message of the gospel to the lost. For we read,

Jesus came to them and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I commanded you. Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. (Matthew 28:18-20)