14 comments

• 

  Cheryl

  10 months ago

  Very cool! You look like him a little bit. Did he survive the war?
  reply
• 

  Randy

  10 months ago

  Yes, he did and has had a good long life.
  reply
• 

  B.T.Carolus

  10 months ago

  What do you do when you meet those side-walk preacher types? (that was a real question, not a Socratic one, Randy).
  reply
• 

  Randy

  10 months ago

  Explain "side-walk preacher types." Are you being literal or just descriptive of a particular temperament?
  reply
• 

  B.T.Carolus

  10 months ago

  Well, there's this one man at the bus station who walks up to me everday (at the same time, at the same bench) and tries to hand me the same pamphlet, and tells/asks me the same things. This has been going on for several years now.
  
  And then there are less frequent people who come by, doing the tract and telling/asking routine. These are not the same people every time, at the same time, and they usually are your typical sidewalk evangelism types (I don't know what all denominations/religions they hail from).
  
  I never know what to say to these types of people, except no thank you (I tried responding to the man who always comes by, but I realized after a while that he has no idea that he's seen me everyday for several years, which is just weird/disturbing). I'm not very socially outgoing around strangers, especially if I'm alone at a public bus station, or downtown LA, or El Monte, and I never feel like I've come up with an adequate response to these people. I've sort of been wondering what other people do (or would do, in theory, if they don't have much interaction with sidewalk preachers).
  
  Then there are the men who seem more like they're trying to flirt with me, and using God as an excuse (I don't consider this a good excuse, because I don't like to flirt w/ total strangers at bus stops). I ignore them. Like all the other creepy men who try to flirt with me.
  reply
• 

  Randy

  10 months ago

  I don't think I have a standard response and it doesn't happen to me often. When I was an unbeliever I ranged from "yeah, yeah, son of God ... sure I know him" to just ignoring the street preachers. The few I run across I usually just watch from afar for a little while and pray. Some would seem to be mentally unbalanced but I try not to judge because ... hello ... the prophets of the old testament were pretty freaky at times ... because God told them to do some bold or "odd" things.
  
  If it happens today I just tell them, "thanks but I have known Jesus for sixteen years and trust in His atonement for my sin so that I can have the great relationship with Him that I have. Thank you and I pray God's will over your efforts."
  
  Only one time in my Christian life was that answer not accepted. One man got really pushy and nosey about my "relationship" with God. I finally had to tell him, "Listen, I know Christ. Thanks for your concern about the truth of my relationship with Him but I have got to go."
  
  Now, I have never encountered someone using "witnessing" as a means to flirt. You will probably need to ask someone else about that.
  reply
• 

  B.T.Carolus

  10 months ago

  I guess you do more or less what I do...
  
  Trust me, ignoring the flirting "witnessers" works just as well as it works for regular flirting guys at the bus stop.
  reply
• 

  Cheryl

  10 months ago

  Very cool! You look like him a little bit. Did he survive the war?
  reply
• 

  Randy

  10 months ago

  Yes, he did and has had a good long life.
  reply
• 

  Ellie

  10 months ago

  What do you do when you meet those side-walk preacher types? (that was a real question, not a Socratic one, Randy).
  reply
• 

  Randy

  10 months ago

  Explain "side-walk preacher types." Are you being literal or just descriptive of a particular temperament?
  reply
• 

  Ellie

  10 months ago

  Well, there's this one man at the bus station who walks up to me everday (at the same time, at the same bench) and tries to hand me the same pamphlet, and tells/asks me the same things. This has been going on for several years now.
  
  
  And then there are less frequent people who come by, doing the tract and telling/asking routine. These are not the same people every time, at the same time, and they usually are your typical sidewalk evangelism types (I don't know what all denominations/religions they hail from).
  
  
  
  I never know what to say to these types of people, except no thank you (I tried responding to the man who always comes by, but I realized after a while that he has no idea that he's seen me everyday for several years, which is just weird/disturbing). I'm not very socially outgoing around strangers, especially if I'm alone at a public bus station, or downtown LA, or El Monte, and I never feel like I've come up with an adequate response to these people. I've sort of been wondering what other people do (or would do, in theory, if they don't have much interaction with sidewalk preachers).
  
  
  
  Then there are the men who seem more like they're trying to flirt with me, and using God as an excuse (I don't consider this a good excuse, because I don't like to flirt w/ total strangers at bus stops). I ignore them. Like all the other creepy men who try to flirt with me.
  
  
  reply
• 

  Randy

  10 months ago

  I don't think I have a standard response and it doesn't happen to me often. When I was an unbeliever I ranged from "yeah, yeah, son of God ... sure I know him" to just ignoring the street preachers. The few I run across I usually just watch from afar for a little while and pray. Some would seem to be mentally unbalanced but I try not to judge because ... hello ... the prophets of the old testament were pretty freaky at times ... because God told them to do some bold or "odd" things.
  
  
  If it happens today I just tell them, "thanks but I have known Jesus for sixteen years and trust in His atonement for my sin so that I can have the great relationship with Him that I have. Thank you and I pray God's will over your efforts."
  
  
  
  Only one time in my Christian life was that answer not accepted. One man got really pushy and nosey about my "relationship" with God. I finally had to tell him, "Listen, I know Christ. Thanks for your concern about the truth of my relationship with Him but I have got to go."
  
  
  
  Now, I have never encountered someone using "witnessing" as a means to flirt. You will probably need to ask someone else about that.
  
  
  reply
• 

  Ellie

  10 months ago

  I guess you do more or less what I do...
  
  
  Trust me, ignoring the flirting "witnessers" works just as well as it works for regular flirting guys at the bus stop.
  
  
  reply