I received this email a few weeks ago from one of my friends and loyal readers of this website.
Take an encouragement from what he shares about a divine appointment (shared here with his permission).
Recently, I had a “divine appointment” at Hartsfield International Airport in Atlanta.
We got off the plane and walked into the airport, looking for guidance on where to catch our next plane … we had to go right or left.
I looked left and saw a STARBUCKS not too far down. I jokingly told my wife that Starbucks had to be a “sign from God” and that we had to go that way!
We walked down to Starbucks and wouldn’t you know, the gate for our connecting flight was directly across from Starbucks.
After dropping our carry-on bags in some seats near the gate, I headed to Starbucks to get a coffee.
While standing in line, I encountered a Starbucks employee who caught a glimpse of my shirt. He became captivated by the image on the front of it, which showed Christ hanging on the cross with the caption “Rebel With A Cause” above the image.
He then checked the back of my shirt, which had a concise presentation of the Gospel.
He responded in such a way that allowed me to ask him questions. I asked about where he was spiritually, which led to a brief moment to share the gospel with him, all this time while I was standing in line to get my coffee.
I could tell he was dialed in based on having read my shirt and what I told him. I challenged him to find a Bible and start reading one chapter a day from the book of Matthew.
Before reading, I told him to pray and ask God to reveal himself through the scriptures.
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Lessons Learned From This Encounter:
My friend has a brief conversational encounter with a stranger in an airport. This type of conversation does not happen all the time.
Knowing my friend, he’s able to know when it’s a good time to share about Jesus vs. a forced conversation that is unwelcome.
Here are two lessons to take away:
- ALWAYS be ready to share to share the gospel. I have often found that the opportunity will present itself when you least expect it!
- Christian merchandise or gear like my shirt can be incredibly effective at creating spiritual conversations initiated by people you encounter in everyday life.
Did you catch that? Conversation is initiated by those who come in contact with you … not you!
Responding to curiosity questions is a big open door for moments to share the gospel.
So many of us miss these opportunities. We might be afraid, or we might not know how to get the conversation going to point toward Christ.
When a genuinely curious question opens that door, you are not starting the conversation, they are. !
It is THEY who choose to start the conversation.
THEY opened the door, now you can walk through it.
Interesting aboaut tee shirts, pins, etc. One of our Freshmen had a tee shirt that gave me a really good opportunity to know him better and due to that encounter I’ll remember his name.
How much more can we expect certain attire to prompt questions and open doors for our Lord.