"John, stay with me," I said. I could see his eyes open and close as the young man sitting next to me was clearly under the influence of some kind of narcotic. John was one of a handful of people who responded to the altar call during the Sunday service and came to the Guest Lounge for follow-up.
Once I finished my presentation of the gospel, we talked briefly about his background and what made him want to accept Christ that morning. Fighting back tears, John said, "Would you pray for me? I want to be clean. I want to get better." After we prayed, I encouraged him to continue coming back to church and told him that "half of success in life is just showing up!" Though the people and the circumstances change from week to week, this conversation with John was not unusual for me in my role as assimilation pastor.
Every week I meet people like John. While they represent a wide range of needs and backgrounds, they are all responding to the gospel, wanting ...
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