Last year I attended the annual RAF Benson Families Day. It was wonderful to see so many people gather on station to enjoy the spectacular air displays and the activities of various stalls. I knew that the following year would be a fantastic opportunity to have a SASRA stand to engage people in gospel-centred conversations and share about the work I do as a Scripture Reader.
I felt that the best way engage passers-by would be to have some kind of fun activity or challenge for people to take part in. The idea of asking people to name the Ten Commandments in exchange for a prize came to mind, seeing as most people that I encounter have absorbed at least a handful of them. There was then the question of how to best steer the conversations toward the gospel afterwards. The book of James talks about the word of God being like a mirror that causes us to ‘take action’. So, I found a lightweight mirror that I could write the Ten Commandments on as people named them. When they had finished, I would hold it up for them to see themselves reflected from the same surface.
Colossians 2:14 reads that God, ‘…having wiped out the handwriting of the requirements that was against us…having nailed it to the cross…’ (NKJV). This gave me the idea of wiping the mirror clean and then showing people the reflection of themselves which is free from the guilt of the law when they trust in the sacrifice of Christ.
Throughout the afternoon, I had some wonderful interactions with people who found the activity both fun and thought provoking. I presented the gospel to about five different groups of people and the mirror illustration worked very well. Some listened politely, some had firm beliefs which did not align with Christianity, but they were nevertheless respectful, but others showed keen interest to learn more. One aviator expressed a desire to meet with me at the station church to continue our conversation further.
I am incredibly positive about the event and hugely grateful for the opportunity to be able to share the gospel in creative ways such as this. I am also very excited to be running this activity again at the station Health & Wellbeing Day where we have a Chaplaincy/SASRA stand later this month.
PRAY WITH US
- Praise God for the opportunities Peter has at RAF Benson and the way he is able to use his creativity to share the gospel with aviators and their families.
- Pray that this opportunity would bear lasting fruit and that Peter would be able to follow up with some of the individuals he connected with at the event.
