Then the Spirit said unto Philip, “Go near and join thyself to this chariot.”  Acts 8 v 29

Honiton is a small town in Devon with just a main street. Today it was busy with market stall lining the streets packed with bustling people shopping.

Tony picked up his boards with text from the Bible on, proclaiming Jesus Christ as Lord” and walked with Dick down the busy street.  When they came to the towns memorial cross the Spirit of the Lord spoke to Tony urging him to preach.   Tony called to Dick, “Broether come and pray”   Dick was involved in looking at some stall . Tony called more urgently “Dick come and pray”  Tony was shaking as the spirit of the Lord filled him. Dick came over and they prayed asking the Lord for blessings.

It was not easy to preach in the street in England as there was so much noise so many distractions and the noise also of the heavy traffic seemed to drown out any chance of the Word being heard, but God was not hindered in any way. As Tony lifted up his voice to proclaim the Word, a strange thing happened.  Suddenly it was quiet.  No traffic   The Word of God went forth, people stopped to listen  arrested by the power of the speaker.  The message was a mocking one as well as the Gospel as the people at one point were all scrabbling on the floor in the gutter by the roadside. What was happening?

Apparently Honiton were celebrating an old pagan festival and a man dressed in a pagan costume was throwing old small pennies from a balcony into the street. Thus were the people involved collecting as many as they could. The Words of the preacher rang out again, “Look what the devils has got you to do”  Scrabbling about in the gutter”  Yes it was true.  The preacher continued challenging the people to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ   to repent of their sins and to accept that Jesus Christ was Lord of all.  To repent of their sins or be judged on Judgment day when we will all stand before the Lord to give an account….  Around 40 minutes passed and then as Tony concluded his message challenging the o=]people to accept a Gospel to read. Suddenly as He lowered his voice lowered his arms  at that very second the traffic commenced to pass by and the noise levels increased.

What had happened?  The police had in accordance with a pre planned program shut of the road at the top and bottom at exactly 3PM this was the time the Lord prompted the preacher to raise His voice  and again when the preacher stopped preaching the police allowed the traffic to flow.

But God had not finished.  A young man approached with an iced cool drink  It was hot and the preacher was perspiring.

“The Lord told me to give you this”   Mark a local Christian offered the can to the preacher .

The Lord indeed has his angels guarding his chosen saints…

“He rolled back the waters” 17

It was a Friday night at Princess Alice Hospital. The gospel group known as the  Dalybread were visiting a ladies ward. It was 7.PM and the patients were still in the dayroom at the end of the ward. They had all wanted to go to bed as they were very tired but the ward sister had a policy of keeping them up until 8PM before the nurses were allowed to start the procedure bath and bed, which took quite a time before the last one actually got into bed.

Mrs. Crook sat in wheelchair with the other sleepy drugged patients, their heads were down resting on chest and as Tony and Sheila entered with a bright hello for everyone,  only one or two heads looked up in response. Tony and Sheila were used to this reaction and Tony unlocked the guitar case as Sheila  enlightened the nuts on the music stand.   When they started to sing the old and familiar hymns and sacred solos from a worn out old blue hymn book several of the old ladies perked up and started to join in. There were one or two remarks and smiles as a well remembered tune was brought to their memory

Tony started up a chorus “He rolled back the waters of the mighty red sea, He said I’ll never leave thee, put your trust in me”.  Mrs Crook was bouncing up and down in her wheelchair with a beaming smile lighting up her wrinkled face. She turned to her companion If he can turn back the waters of the red sea why have  I  been so depressed?  Yes it was true Mrs Crooks at one time had sunk into a pit of despair and nothing and no one could lift her up.

Until that day in the main meeting on Sunday when Sheila had told the story of how in a traffic jam nine miles long the other side of the Dart ford tunnel we had started to pray for the Lord to remove the traffic before our return journey home.  Later three hours later on our return to Sussex we traveled onto the main A13 to wiz along. Every mile we thought we would join that tailback of heavy traffic but as we proceeded we found that there was not a sign of a traffic jam.  Our prayers had been answered so we started to sing “He rolled back the traffic on the mighty A13” and laughed with joy at the empty road.

Mrs Crook had listened to the testimony and a wonderful change had come over her.  Her depression lifted, she was full of confidence in God and full of expectancy of the Lord return,. She told her companion one day  The Lord is coming soon wouldn’t it be wonderful If I was alive when he returns.. I may not have to die but be wonderfully changed when Jesus returns in all his glory.  Mrs Crooks had got so excited she would often share her faith and testify of the Lord Jesus returning in the clouds..   Yes it was this chorus Tony remembered that had changed her life… He rolled back the waters of the mighty red sea, he said I’ll never leave thee, put your trust in me….

“I Have Killed a Man” 18

The precinct in Ramsgate was busy.  Shoppers bustling about, some folk  sitting on the seats provided, waiting for their partners or friends to return after finishing their errands and, perhaps to take them for a welcome cup of tea or to wend their way home.  I had been giving out Gospel tracts to all who would take them including a young man sitting on a seat nearby.  He had accepted a tract and told me his name was Stephen.  I thanked God as I noticed people reading the Gospel message.

Gradually I became aware of a group of youths, sprawled around on some of the chairs.  They were acting noisily and belligerently.  The youths looked as though they had just come from the public house, full of alcohol!

I was waiting for the Lord to prompt me to start preaching the Word of God but I knew before I started, these youths could be a problem.  I prayed silently for wisdom, guidance and protection.

As I stood waiting, I glanced across at Stephen.  He was unshaven,  and dishevelled but his head was down reading the Gospel tract he had taken earlier.  I thanked God because he was reading about Jesus.

I started to preach the message God had given me.  It was not long before the youths responded.

‘The hound of hell, the devil, the hound of hell,’ one of them called out.  The alcohol had given them courage to heckle. Behaviour like this always attracts onlookers and that day was no exception, soon there was a small crowd of people watching, listening, probably wondering what would happen next.

Suddenly a woman ran over dragging her husband along.  She clutched my arm,

‘You are fantastic, it’s wonderful what you’re doing.’

I tried to thank her without losing the theme of God’s message I was preaching. She went as quickly as she came.

One of the youths lurched towards me, he was friendly but a distraction.

‘I’ll be happy to talk to you in a minute,’ I told him and carried on preaching.

‘I believe you, I believe every word you say.  I know Jesus died on the cross for sinners.’,  the alcohol on his breath was pungent and penetrating, his slurring words difficult to understand.  Eventually he veered off and returned to his friends.

Another couple who had been listening contentedly made a sudden elaborate show of angry disgust and moved off.

I noticed Stephen get up and walk away,  but he was soon back coming to sit right in front of me.  He was wearing shabby camouflage army gear and looked like a man with no hope,   He buried his head in his hands but I knew he was listening.

The message came to an end. I offered a free Gospel to anybody who would receive one.  I was thrilled when several folk, including Stephen, came forward holding out their hands  for a copy.

Tom, another man wanted to speak to me,  I asked Stephen to wait for me until I had spoken to him and others who were waiting.  It  only took a few minutes then I was able to get back to Stephen.  He was reading the Gospel I’d given to him

Sitting down beside him I listened to his story, it was heart rending.

‘My life is in ruins,’ he confessed.  ‘My marriage broken up, I’ve lost my children, my home, everything,’  he sobbed.  His voice lowered, I waited  patiently.

‘I’ve killed a man,’ he sounded distraught.

‘I was in the Falklands war, I killed a man.’  Stephen was tormented by what he’d done.  He had tried to find comfort in drink, gradually becoming an alcoholic.  He had alienated his wife and family and in his drunken stupor, gone down in an ever increasing spiral of depression.

Stephen could find no peace or pardon and didn’t believe he could ever be forgiven.

I explained the Gospel message, that God would forgive freely if we truly

repented.  ‘Jesus came down to this world to save sinners,’ I continued.  I showed him the Word, “To as many as receive Him , to them He gave power to become the sons of God.” (John 1:12)

I don’t know how much Stephen took in or understood.  I put my arms around him and felt him sobbing, I prayed with him there, in the shopping precinct.

I believe he was praying with me.   Seek ye the Lord while be may found, call ye upon Him while He is near:  Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.  (Isaiah 55:6-7 KJV)