We hadn't been there long before we got to know our neighbors. On one side was a middle aged couple with 2 children, a girl about 12 and a boy about 4. On the other side was a younger couple with 3 boys 10, 8, and 6. Over the next couple of months, we became friends with these families and were grateful our children had playmates.
Back then, people seemed to be interested in their neighbor's lives. We'd speak when out in our yards, lend garden tools, and do other neighborly things. Whenever someone had a cookout, everyone in close proximity would be invited. It was easier to be friendly with the older couple, but not quite as easy with the younger ones.
The younger couple was always fighting. We could hear them screaming at each other all hours of the day and night. Occasionally we'd hear glass shatter as a beer bottle went flying out a window and hit the ground outside. John, the father of the three young boys, had a drinking problem and couldn't hold a job. His wife worked at a convenience store and was gone from the time her children were dropped off at school each morning until about dinner time that day.
As the drinking and the fights escalated, we became very concerned for the children, but back then, people didn't make phone calls to child welfare as easily as they do now.
One day, when all the children were at school, John came strolling over to our house. I was on the front porch in the swing reading a book. I greeted him and realized by the glazed look in his eye he'd been drinking.
He asked if he could sit down for a few minutes and although hesitant because his wife and my husband were at work, I agreed. We sat for a few minutes talking about the children and about our lives when I felt the tiniest prompting from the Lord saying, "Tell him about Me."
John kept the conversation going rambling on about projects he had planned for their home and I looked for an opening to share the Lord with him but before I knew it, my neighbor was staggering away.
The next day the owner of our small corner grocery store shared tragic news. The previous night, John and his wife had a major fight and he'd left inebriated. He took the car and went speeding off eventually coming to the highway overpass where he plunged to his death in the traffic below.
When I learned of his passing, I was grieved- not only for John's untimely death, but also for the fact that I'd not shared the gospel with him. I cried and cried for days and days asking God to forgive me for my disobedience.
The "if onlys" haunted me for months. I couldn't help but think if I'd interjected God into our conversation earlier that day, I could have presented the plan of salvation and John might have been saved.
My point in sharing this very personal story is to encourage you, especially in these days, to heed the Scripture found in 2 Timothy 4 "Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine."
My prayer has always been that John saw my life example and was able to tell I loved the Lord. Perhaps that's why he approached me that day on the swing. Maybe he "felt" the difference and wanted to know how he could have the same.
I have no idea whether he is in heaven or hell, but I'm hoping he went to be with the Lord. Maybe someone else had planted a seed in his heart years ago, or even better, maybe he'd been saved as a child. I'll never know until I get to heaven, but I still think about the Holy Spirit's prompting to this day.
Now I listen even more intently for His voice and when I hear it, I act immediately, no questions asked. I hope you'll do the same.
Someone once said, "You may be the only Bible someone ever reads."
They're watching, whether you think they are or not. That's why we have such a great responsibility as believers.
St. Francis of Assisi said "Preach the gospel at all times and if necessary, use words."
When the Holy Spirit instructs, use your words, please. I love and care about people. I don't want anyone to perish and spend eternity in hell. You may or may not believe that heaven and hell are literal places, but I can guarantee you they are. If you pick up the Bible and read it from cover to cover, you'll get a much clearer understanding. And if you don't have the desire to read it cover to cover, then I pray that you would at least listen to an audio version of the Bible. You don't have to listen to the whole thing in one sitting, you can listen to a chapter at a time, a book at a time, or whatever you choose.
You can't know the truth if you don't put God's word into your heart and mind. The only way you can do that is through the Word- The Holy scriptures, God's love letter to us.
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