Witnessing for Christ: Don’t Give Up

A touching story to encourage you not to give up on your loved ones!

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Are you praying for someone you love to be saved?

How long have you been praying for them?

I’ve been praying for a family member for over 40 years.

I get discouraged. I wonder if I’m just wasting my time.

1 Peter 3:15 (ESV) “…always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,”

Last week, I dropped my car off for repairs, and the shop owner offered me a courtesy ride home.

I saw a sticker advertising a church on his truck window. In making conversation, I asked him about it and told him where I attended.

I told him I went to church with Bill, a mechanic in town he might know.

He chuckled and nodded, “I know him very well.”

He told me the story of how Bill witnessed to him for years about his need to get right with God.

He wasn’t interested and didn’t take Bill seriously.

His turning point came when his wife died.

She had faithfully tried to get him to attend church, but he refused.

I could tell by the tone of his voice he felt ashamed of his resistance to those who were trying to show him the way.

His smile returned when he said Bill never gave up trying to convince him he needed Jesus.

With a sparkle in his eye, he explained how he gave his life to Christ and started attending church.

He now witnesses to his adult children with the same enthusiasm Bill had with him.

He faces the same opposition from his kids as he showed most of his life. I could tell he wasn’t going to give up on them.

Bill could’ve easily gotten frustrated after a few years and quit. Because of his persistence, a precious soul was saved from an eternity in hell.

Sadly, his wife never got to witness the miraculous change in her husband, but she played an integral part in this story too.

Friends, we can’t give up. We never know God’s plan and how you will play a part in it.

See related verses: Matthew 24:14, Mark 16:15, Matthew 9:37-38