Only God is able to penetrate the minds of the young and old

100 Years Old

Editor’s note: How can we share the gospel with an elderly person, especially one who suffers from dementia or another condition that limits the clarity of the mind? Doug Nichols, Founder and International Director Emeritus of Action International Ministries, has found a good way to share the gospel with such senior citizens. He and his wife Margaret read aloud “The Lamb” and managed to share a clear gospel with a group of elderly folks. Now that’s inspiring! Read on as Doug shares the story:

Doug and Margaret Nichols
Doug and Margaret Nichols

My 100 year-old father-in-law resides in a home-care facility with five other residents (Dad calls them “inmates!”). Even though the facility owners are Christians, we have been praying about how to share the gospel and minister to these elderly residents. Many have Alzheimer’s, dementia, or are otherwise slow in their thinking. Recently, my wife Margaret began reading the children’s picture book, The Lamb to six residents after lunch. They could hardly wait for each session. It was excellent!

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The gospel smashed into my heart

Photo credit: Willem van Bergen on flickr

Out of the blue, we received a phone call last week. It was from a gentleman named Manuel* who lives in the US. He said he was prompted by God to share his story with us.

Manuel related that he became a believer 30 years ago but his life took a dramatic turn when he attended one of our TERM Seminars in Idaho. He was brought through The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus and he said he really “bumped into the meaning of God.” He fell in love with the book and sought to use it to explain the gospel to others.

His first two students were his mum and dad. They were impacted by the message. His dad said the gospel “smashed into my heart” and made him realize how much of a sinner he was.

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A cycle of sin, confess… sin, confess…

Sin, Confess... Sin, Confess...Let me take a moment of your time to tell you my story–the true story of a Christian who became a Christian. No, that was not a typo! Let me explain…

I grew up in the Bible Belt surrounded by churches. The local school was called a Christian school; and most folks were called Christians. My parents also subscribed to this way of thinking. We went to church Sunday after Sunday, read our Bibles and prayed regularly. In fact, we made a good number of short-term mission trips together.

So it happened one day that the local evangelical church we attended had a joint Sunday School meeting. All the kids were gathered together to watch a film. I can’t remember what it was about but I do remember an adult stepping forward after the film and saying that if we wanted to go to heaven that we needed to invite Jesus into our hearts. So around the age of five I did just that–without telling a single soul–not even my own mother.

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How can I use the Stranger VideoBook with Worldview Rethink?

Leader's Guide and VideoBook

Question:

Dear GoodSeed,

After seeing the book The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus recommended by DA Carson in his book, “The God Who is There,” I quickly began to look for it. I found your website recently and have been looking into it. I bought both the Rethink Worldview Curriculum Box and The Stranger VideoBook. I am one of several pastors at a fairly large church and am always looking for material to teach the basics of Christianity. Most of our new visitors have very little religious background (most have never opened a Bible at all) and are somewhat skeptical of Christianity. A couple of questions about material:

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I don’t know what to say!

Photo credit: Quinn Dombrowski on flickrOne of the most common reasons that believers don’t share the gospel message is that they don’t know what to say. Even if they had a friend or neighbour willing to learn the message of the Bible, these believers are nervous because they don’t know where to begin. We can understand that sentiment. The Bible is a big book!

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How churches are grounding their congregations

By This Name Clas in SingaporeRecently we received two testimonies. One was from a ladies’ small group from a church in Alberta, Canada and the other was from a church in Singapore. These two churches were an ocean apart but they had the same vision: to ensure every member understood a clear gospel.

These two churches found it useful to use By This Name as the book for small group study. Longtime churchgoers as well as and people still seeking to understand what the Bible is all about benefited from going through the creation-to-the-cross approach used in the book. They saw how the Old and New Testament tied together as one story, and for many, it made them want to read the Bible more! Here are their stories.

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I found my faith in Christ through this study

Ladies Church StudyOur ladies’ study group consisted of 12 ladies with different levels of Bible knowledge. There were ladies with no knowledge at all, some with many of years of study and everything in between. The study ran for two months and we met every Wednesday morning. Our book study was By This Name by John R. Cross of GoodSeed International. The commitment was to read 1-3 chapters every week and fill out the companion workbook before the sessions. At the sessions we would watch video segments that would reinforce the previous week’s reading as well as go through and discuss the questions in the study guide.

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The Bible had always been confusing for me

By This Name ClassA church in Singapore regularly runs its own version of a TERM Seminar. They use By This Name as the text and run the course over seven Friday evenings. All types of people, from long-time church goers, to new believers, to those who are just seeking to find out what the Bible is all about attend. Here is a testimony from a recent participant.

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This I can read!

The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus (Large Print Edition)

When sharing the Good News of the Bible with aged parents or older friends, one of the challenges is that they simply can’t see the text of the book clearly enough. It’s for this reason that we have a large print edition of the The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus. The bigger text is a lot easier on the eyes. The pictures, charts and maps are larger too so anyone can read the book with ease.

Resources: The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus (Large Print Edition)

 

 

Dad, are you ready to die?

Photo credit: Bruce on flickrStuart* levelled his eyes steadily at his father Frank. He took a breath before asking one of the most difficult questions a son could ask: “Dad, are you ready to die?”

Frank had been in and out of the hospital over the past few months with a series of problems. First there was a fractured hip, then the cancer and now there was fluid in his lungs. The doctors had run tests and determined the problem—his kidneys had failed.

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