Greetings Brethren, Family & Friends,
I pray this email finds you growing in the grace and knowledge of God.
It’s been a while since I’ve sent out an update. We are all doing well and continuing to minister and preach here in Albuquerque. For those who don’t know, I had a little setback in December due to having my appendix removed. Early in December, I started feeling pain in my side but didn’t think too much about it. However, as a couple days went by, it kept getting worse. I thought I had only pulled a muscle, so I was still going out evangelizing everyday. Then one day I woke up and the pain was really intense. I did a little research online and from that was pretty convinced that my appendix had burst. I drove to the hospital and they did a CT scan and found that my appendix had ruptured. They said my abdomen was a total mess. Apparently my appendix had been ruptured for a few days. They took me into surgery right away and everything went fine. In fact, the surgery was relatively quick, and I had pretty much recovered after about a week. Even though I knew that having my appendix removed was pretty minor as far as surgeries go, it still made me think about the shortness of our life and the frailty of our mortal bodies. It doesn’t take much for these bodies of ours to shut down and bring an end to our life here on earth. When you think about it, in light of eternity, it’s only a matter of moments that we’re here on earth before we pass on and, for the believer, go and meet the Lord. How short this life is, and unfortunately, how often we can find ourselves preoccupied with things that mean nothing in light of eternity and Christ’s everlasting Kingdom. These verses in Ecclesiastes have always help me have the right perspective (or bring me to a place of sobriety when I don‘t):
It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart. (Ecc 7:2)
The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth. (Ecc 7:4)
How much better it is to think about our own mortality, the shortness of our life, our accountability to God, and the coming judgment than to fill our lives with pleasures that put us into a state of spiritual slumber. A wise man will “lay these things to his heart” and live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present world. Solomon ends the book of Ecclesiastes with words that we should all meditate on frequently:
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. (Ecc 12:13-14)
God will judge all of our works. Not just the works themselves, but also the motives of our heart in the things we do. Even for the believer, what a somber day it will be to stand before God and have our life and works judged by the One who is perfect, who sees us as we really are, the One who is not deceived or fooled by the pretense and show that we so often put on before others.
And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Heb 4:13)
God sees us as we really are. Brethren, I pray that you will take these things to heart and be reminded of the shortness of your life, your accountability to God, and His seriousness about His Gospel and His Kingdom. As pilgrims and strangers, may you pass your time here with godly fear and live soberly, watching your souls, knowing that you will give an account for the “much” that has been given to you through and in the gospel. I pray you take this short exhortation to heart and examine your life. May you be found living in such a way that when Jesus returns, you will not be ashamed at His coming.
To my friends and family who remain unconverted, or who take the name of Jesus without having experienced the new birth (John 3), I want to exhort you as well. I pray you will read the above scriptures as well and let them cause you to think on your own mortality. Let them remind and teach you of the reality that you too will die and will stand before God in judgment and give an account of your life. The All-Powerful, Ever-Present, All-Knowing God; the one who formed you in your mother’s womb, the one who knows all your thoughts and every deed you’ve ever done; He will bring all your secret things to light on the day that you must account for your life. Apart from real repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, there will be no hope for you on that DAY. If you die in your sins, you will not find the goodness and mercy of God on the day you are judged. You will find God sentencing you to eternal damnation for your sins and for your unwillingness to receive the pardon for your sins that God has provided at Christ expense.
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (Dan 12:2)
And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. (Mat 25:46)
Are you willing to continue on in sin and rebellion when God, through His great mercy and grace, has provided a way for all your sins to be forgiven? God has made a way for you to be reconciled to Him through the death of His Son Jesus Christ. Not only has God made a way for your sins to be forgiven and for you to be reconciled, but God has broken the power of sin through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. If you have not put your faith in Christ and have not received the New Birth spoken of by Jesus in John 3, you stand on no safe ground; and if you die in this state, your future will be forever sealed by the wisdom and word of God. The only place fit for willful rebels who reject the goodness and grace of God is Hell and the Lake of Fire. It is the portion and destination of all who chose to rule their own life and reject the goodness and grace of God in Jesus Christ. However, that doesn’t have to be your future. Your sins, like the sins of all people, deserve to be punished. God however, sent Jesus Christ, His Son, into the world to be a substitute for us by becoming a sacrifice for our sins. Jesus Christ lived a perfect sin-free life with the intention of laying His life down, so that we could be saved from our sins and be brought to God. It was the good pleasure of God to have His Son make payment for our sins. 2000 years ago, Jesus Christ was crucified for the sins of the world. He bore the wrath of God for our sins and became a substitute for all who put their faith in Him. In Isaiah it says:
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. (Isa 53:4-8)
And then….
Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. (Isa 53:10-11)
It pleased God to offer up His Son to justify and save those who believe in Jesus; those who repent and put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and what He has done. Jesus Christ has already died as a sacrifice for sins. God verified that the sacrifice of Jesus was accepted and perfect because three days after Jesus was crucified and buried, God raised Him from the dead, never to die again. This same Jesus who created the worlds, who created you, who became a man, who was crucified for our sins, who was buried and raised from the dead, who ascended to heaven, who is seated at the right hand of God, and who is returning to earth, He is the same Jesus before whom you will stand on judgment day. He is the one to whom you will give an account of your life. Will you stand before Him in your sins and be ultimately condemned for all eternity? Or will you accept the love and grace of God and put your faith in Jesus Christ and be saved? God freely offers eternal life to all who put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. (Joh 3:16-17)
The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. (Joh 3:35-36)
You must cease from trusting in anything you do and put all your trust in Jesus Christ and what He has done for you on the cross. If you will do that, you will find that God will forgive all your sins, He will give you eternal life, AND He will deliver you from the power and bondage of sin. By putting your faith in Christ, God will shed His love abroad in your heart, and you will be reconciled to God the Father. You will be adopted into God’s family and have an eternal inheritance with all those who have the same precious faith.
When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, you will experience what Jesus calls “the New Birth.” You will be born-again. I know there are many of you who receive my updates, both family and friends, who say you believe in Jesus, but who have never experienced the new birth that the Bible speaks of (nor do you live a life of “doing the will of God“). You have never had God’s love shed abroad in your heart and have never been delivered from the power of sin. You hold to the name of Jesus (when asked) but do not have a life that shows that you have been born again and are actively following the Lord because of a genuine love for Him and His Kingdom. It is possible to have a “false faith” that is no faith at all. Don’t deceive yourself into believing you have something when in reality you don’t. When you truly repent and put your faith in Jesus Christ, God will put His Holy Spirit inside of you. You will become a new person. Your conscience will be cleansed from the guilt of your sins, and you will experience peace with God. God will go from becoming “something you know about” to Someone you know. Your faith will produce an experience, and the experience is that the living God will dwell within you and His Spirit will testify to you that you are His. Jesus Christ is the “door” that all must come to and through to be saved.
I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. (Joh 10:9)
The fruit, or result, of having true, saving faith is that you will find that you now have a desire to “do the will of God” that you didn’t have before. It will be the joy and focus of your life. Jesus said:
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. (Mat 7:21)
The result of being born-again, being born of God, is that you will begin to “do His will.” Your passion, desire, and practice will be to do the will of God and to continue to do the will of God as you grow in His grace and in the knowledge of Him.
So let me ask you, won’t you come to Jesus and be saved? Isn’t it time to think about what really matters, what’s really important? Isn’t it time to stop being unbelieving and to stop trusting in a false faith? God will freely receive you today as His own, if you will but repent and put your trust in Jesus Christ and what He has already done to provide you with salvation.
Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. (Rom 10:9-10)
Though we deserve nothing but judgment and damnation, God has shown us His love and mercy:
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. (Rom 5:8-9)
Eternal life is a free gift from God. If you will but believe what God has done for us through Christ and receive Him, God will give you eternal life.
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Eph 2:8-9)
If you reject Jesus Christ and His word and do not believe that He is who He says He is, you will die in your sins. You will never know the peace and love of God, and you will have to pay for your own sins in the Lake of Fire throughout all eternity. Please don’t remain unbelieving or trust in a false faith that is actually no faith at all. I pray you will take these truths to heart, humble yourself under the love and grace of God, and begin a new life today with God and His Son Jesus Christ.
EVANGELISM
I’ve been consistently evangelizing every week. For the most part, I’ve been evangelizing at the bus stops and at the University of New Mexico. While I’ve had some decent conversations, which I believe the Lord has used to plant gospel seeds in people’s hearts, for the most part, it’s been a tough winter. We had one man who was coming to Bible study for a while, and it seemed as if the Lord was working in his heart, but as of now, any interest in the Lord that he seemed to have has faded away. When I evangelize, I pass out tracts that have our contact information on them. There are some people that periodically stay in touch with me and ask questions regarding the scriptures. Hopefully we’ll see the Lord bring some of them to faith and repentance. Also, because I’ve been continuing to evangelize at the same places, I often have the opportunity to speak to the same person on multiple occasions. In these instances, our conversations have been fruitful, and I’m able to build upon what we’ve talked about before. In fact, some people have seen me on the street and have come up to me to continue talking about the Lord. For that I’ve been thankful.
If you are unfamiliar with New Mexico, there is a huge Native American population here. As much as you hate to validate some stereotypes, it’s quite true that many Natives are alcoholics. A good portion of the Natives that I meet on the street are consistently drunk and pretty aggressive. I usually don’t try to engage people when they are drunk, but sometimes they come to you and you can’t avoid it. Almost all of these interactions are fruitless. Many times, Natives have seen me passing out tracts and evangelizing, and they will come right up into my face and start cussing me out and being belligerent. I usually try to calm them down and move on and talk to people who want to listen. The other day, I was passing out tracts at one of the bus stops where I usually go. I passed out tracts to everyone at the stop and then proceeded to talk to someone who was sitting on the wall behind the bus stop. We were having a good conversation when three of the Indians who were at the bus stop came over to us. Two of them got in my face; they were cussing me out and standing as if they were about to throw punches. I really thought that in any minute, they were going to jump me. I’ve been in situations like this before but never to where I was actually just waiting to get hit. One guy was calling me a snitch, and the other one kept saying that I wanted to start stuff with Indians (even though they came to me!). However, as it was escalating, for some reason, the third guy all of the sudden wanted to leave, and he pulled the other guys and got them to leave with him. I was definitely relieved and believe it was the Lord who just pulled them away. The great thing was that the guy who I was originally talking to before these three guys walked up had heard everything, and now he was really open to listen to what I had to say! Having witnessed what had just happened, it led him to ask some good questions, and I was able to speak to this man about His and everyone’s need for Christ. (Please pray that God would give us grace with Natives Americans that we preach to on the street; that God would break through their bondage and strongholds and that His love would be manifested to them through the revelation of Jesus Christ.)
Through all this though, the Lord did encourage me by letting me meet another brother in the Lord when I was about preaching one day. When I was out one day, I saw a man and his wife who were preaching to a couple guys, and then he started to pray with them. I was kind of surprised because you just don’t see this everyday. So I decided to wait until he was done praying and say hi and introduce myself to him. Turns out he’s a real brother in the Lord. He had also just left his fellowship, due to the same reason many today find themselves without fellowship. So he’s been able to fellowship with us many times and has gone with me to do street ministry as well. I’m thankful that I can go out and preach the word of God, but I do rejoice when I can go with someone else as well!
DOOR TO DOOR
In addition to preaching on the streets, Braden and I have been evangelizing by going door to door in the neighborhoods around where we live. Unfortunately, the first thing people think about you when you come to the door is that you are either a Mormon or a Jehovah’s Witness. While these cults almost exclusively propagate their faith by going door to door, it’s seldom that you see Christians doing the same thing. Not having done much door to door myself here in the US (mostly street evangelism and open air preaching), I was actually surprised at how open people were to hearing the gospel. In fact, so far there are several people that I’ve been able to follow up with and continue to sow the word of God into. With God’s grace, we’re going to continue preaching Jesus door to door.
FELLOWSHIP
Our small fellowship is growing. We recently had a brother name Jeff, his wife Abby, and their five kids move to Albuquerque to join us for fellowship and ministry. They moved from Texas, and we’re glad to have them here with us! The brother I met on the street who evangelizes has also been fellowshipping with us when his work has him in town. We continue to have a few people come and go here and there and are praying the Lord will add new converts to our fellowship.
BROTHER ISMAIL AND BROTHER NOE
Thanks to all of you who sent funds to help brother Ismail’s wife Ester with her surgery. Everything went well and she has recovered.
Brother Noe in Mexico is doing well too. I talk with him fairly frequently. He continues to faithfully preach on the streets every week and also spends him time encouraging new believers. Both of these brothers greatly appreciate the pray and support that some of you send to them.
If you would, please keep our family, fellowship, and ministry in prayer. I am so aware that without Christ, we can do nothing. It is only by His grace and His working in and through us that we can see His kingdom expand and His name glorified through our lives. Thank you to all of you who do keep us in prayer, encourage us with your fellowship and correspondences, and for those who support us financially. We’re truly thankful for all that you do for us in the Lord.
May the Lord bless you….
IN Christ,Sean & Lisa Scott
www.preachingjesus.wordpress.com
I pray this email finds you growing in the grace and knowledge of God.
It’s been a while since I’ve sent out an update. We are all doing well and continuing to minister and preach here in Albuquerque. For those who don’t know, I had a little setback in December due to having my appendix removed. Early in December, I started feeling pain in my side but didn’t think too much about it. However, as a couple days went by, it kept getting worse. I thought I had only pulled a muscle, so I was still going out evangelizing everyday. Then one day I woke up and the pain was really intense. I did a little research online and from that was pretty convinced that my appendix had burst. I drove to the hospital and they did a CT scan and found that my appendix had ruptured. They said my abdomen was a total mess. Apparently my appendix had been ruptured for a few days. They took me into surgery right away and everything went fine. In fact, the surgery was relatively quick, and I had pretty much recovered after about a week. Even though I knew that having my appendix removed was pretty minor as far as surgeries go, it still made me think about the shortness of our life and the frailty of our mortal bodies. It doesn’t take much for these bodies of ours to shut down and bring an end to our life here on earth. When you think about it, in light of eternity, it’s only a matter of moments that we’re here on earth before we pass on and, for the believer, go and meet the Lord. How short this life is, and unfortunately, how often we can find ourselves preoccupied with things that mean nothing in light of eternity and Christ’s everlasting Kingdom. These verses in Ecclesiastes have always help me have the right perspective (or bring me to a place of sobriety when I don‘t):
It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart. (Ecc 7:2)
The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth. (Ecc 7:4)
How much better it is to think about our own mortality, the shortness of our life, our accountability to God, and the coming judgment than to fill our lives with pleasures that put us into a state of spiritual slumber. A wise man will “lay these things to his heart” and live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present world. Solomon ends the book of Ecclesiastes with words that we should all meditate on frequently:
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. (Ecc 12:13-14)
God will judge all of our works. Not just the works themselves, but also the motives of our heart in the things we do. Even for the believer, what a somber day it will be to stand before God and have our life and works judged by the One who is perfect, who sees us as we really are, the One who is not deceived or fooled by the pretense and show that we so often put on before others.
And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Heb 4:13)
God sees us as we really are. Brethren, I pray that you will take these things to heart and be reminded of the shortness of your life, your accountability to God, and His seriousness about His Gospel and His Kingdom. As pilgrims and strangers, may you pass your time here with godly fear and live soberly, watching your souls, knowing that you will give an account for the “much” that has been given to you through and in the gospel. I pray you take this short exhortation to heart and examine your life. May you be found living in such a way that when Jesus returns, you will not be ashamed at His coming.
To my friends and family who remain unconverted, or who take the name of Jesus without having experienced the new birth (John 3), I want to exhort you as well. I pray you will read the above scriptures as well and let them cause you to think on your own mortality. Let them remind and teach you of the reality that you too will die and will stand before God in judgment and give an account of your life. The All-Powerful, Ever-Present, All-Knowing God; the one who formed you in your mother’s womb, the one who knows all your thoughts and every deed you’ve ever done; He will bring all your secret things to light on the day that you must account for your life. Apart from real repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, there will be no hope for you on that DAY. If you die in your sins, you will not find the goodness and mercy of God on the day you are judged. You will find God sentencing you to eternal damnation for your sins and for your unwillingness to receive the pardon for your sins that God has provided at Christ expense.
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (Dan 12:2)
And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. (Mat 25:46)
Are you willing to continue on in sin and rebellion when God, through His great mercy and grace, has provided a way for all your sins to be forgiven? God has made a way for you to be reconciled to Him through the death of His Son Jesus Christ. Not only has God made a way for your sins to be forgiven and for you to be reconciled, but God has broken the power of sin through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. If you have not put your faith in Christ and have not received the New Birth spoken of by Jesus in John 3, you stand on no safe ground; and if you die in this state, your future will be forever sealed by the wisdom and word of God. The only place fit for willful rebels who reject the goodness and grace of God is Hell and the Lake of Fire. It is the portion and destination of all who chose to rule their own life and reject the goodness and grace of God in Jesus Christ. However, that doesn’t have to be your future. Your sins, like the sins of all people, deserve to be punished. God however, sent Jesus Christ, His Son, into the world to be a substitute for us by becoming a sacrifice for our sins. Jesus Christ lived a perfect sin-free life with the intention of laying His life down, so that we could be saved from our sins and be brought to God. It was the good pleasure of God to have His Son make payment for our sins. 2000 years ago, Jesus Christ was crucified for the sins of the world. He bore the wrath of God for our sins and became a substitute for all who put their faith in Him. In Isaiah it says:
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. (Isa 53:4-8)
And then….
Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. (Isa 53:10-11)
It pleased God to offer up His Son to justify and save those who believe in Jesus; those who repent and put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and what He has done. Jesus Christ has already died as a sacrifice for sins. God verified that the sacrifice of Jesus was accepted and perfect because three days after Jesus was crucified and buried, God raised Him from the dead, never to die again. This same Jesus who created the worlds, who created you, who became a man, who was crucified for our sins, who was buried and raised from the dead, who ascended to heaven, who is seated at the right hand of God, and who is returning to earth, He is the same Jesus before whom you will stand on judgment day. He is the one to whom you will give an account of your life. Will you stand before Him in your sins and be ultimately condemned for all eternity? Or will you accept the love and grace of God and put your faith in Jesus Christ and be saved? God freely offers eternal life to all who put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. (Joh 3:16-17)
The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. (Joh 3:35-36)
You must cease from trusting in anything you do and put all your trust in Jesus Christ and what He has done for you on the cross. If you will do that, you will find that God will forgive all your sins, He will give you eternal life, AND He will deliver you from the power and bondage of sin. By putting your faith in Christ, God will shed His love abroad in your heart, and you will be reconciled to God the Father. You will be adopted into God’s family and have an eternal inheritance with all those who have the same precious faith.
When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, you will experience what Jesus calls “the New Birth.” You will be born-again. I know there are many of you who receive my updates, both family and friends, who say you believe in Jesus, but who have never experienced the new birth that the Bible speaks of (nor do you live a life of “doing the will of God“). You have never had God’s love shed abroad in your heart and have never been delivered from the power of sin. You hold to the name of Jesus (when asked) but do not have a life that shows that you have been born again and are actively following the Lord because of a genuine love for Him and His Kingdom. It is possible to have a “false faith” that is no faith at all. Don’t deceive yourself into believing you have something when in reality you don’t. When you truly repent and put your faith in Jesus Christ, God will put His Holy Spirit inside of you. You will become a new person. Your conscience will be cleansed from the guilt of your sins, and you will experience peace with God. God will go from becoming “something you know about” to Someone you know. Your faith will produce an experience, and the experience is that the living God will dwell within you and His Spirit will testify to you that you are His. Jesus Christ is the “door” that all must come to and through to be saved.
I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. (Joh 10:9)
The fruit, or result, of having true, saving faith is that you will find that you now have a desire to “do the will of God” that you didn’t have before. It will be the joy and focus of your life. Jesus said:
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. (Mat 7:21)
The result of being born-again, being born of God, is that you will begin to “do His will.” Your passion, desire, and practice will be to do the will of God and to continue to do the will of God as you grow in His grace and in the knowledge of Him.
So let me ask you, won’t you come to Jesus and be saved? Isn’t it time to think about what really matters, what’s really important? Isn’t it time to stop being unbelieving and to stop trusting in a false faith? God will freely receive you today as His own, if you will but repent and put your trust in Jesus Christ and what He has already done to provide you with salvation.
Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. (Rom 10:9-10)
Though we deserve nothing but judgment and damnation, God has shown us His love and mercy:
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. (Rom 5:8-9)
Eternal life is a free gift from God. If you will but believe what God has done for us through Christ and receive Him, God will give you eternal life.
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Eph 2:8-9)
If you reject Jesus Christ and His word and do not believe that He is who He says He is, you will die in your sins. You will never know the peace and love of God, and you will have to pay for your own sins in the Lake of Fire throughout all eternity. Please don’t remain unbelieving or trust in a false faith that is actually no faith at all. I pray you will take these truths to heart, humble yourself under the love and grace of God, and begin a new life today with God and His Son Jesus Christ.
EVANGELISM
I’ve been consistently evangelizing every week. For the most part, I’ve been evangelizing at the bus stops and at the University of New Mexico. While I’ve had some decent conversations, which I believe the Lord has used to plant gospel seeds in people’s hearts, for the most part, it’s been a tough winter. We had one man who was coming to Bible study for a while, and it seemed as if the Lord was working in his heart, but as of now, any interest in the Lord that he seemed to have has faded away. When I evangelize, I pass out tracts that have our contact information on them. There are some people that periodically stay in touch with me and ask questions regarding the scriptures. Hopefully we’ll see the Lord bring some of them to faith and repentance. Also, because I’ve been continuing to evangelize at the same places, I often have the opportunity to speak to the same person on multiple occasions. In these instances, our conversations have been fruitful, and I’m able to build upon what we’ve talked about before. In fact, some people have seen me on the street and have come up to me to continue talking about the Lord. For that I’ve been thankful.
If you are unfamiliar with New Mexico, there is a huge Native American population here. As much as you hate to validate some stereotypes, it’s quite true that many Natives are alcoholics. A good portion of the Natives that I meet on the street are consistently drunk and pretty aggressive. I usually don’t try to engage people when they are drunk, but sometimes they come to you and you can’t avoid it. Almost all of these interactions are fruitless. Many times, Natives have seen me passing out tracts and evangelizing, and they will come right up into my face and start cussing me out and being belligerent. I usually try to calm them down and move on and talk to people who want to listen. The other day, I was passing out tracts at one of the bus stops where I usually go. I passed out tracts to everyone at the stop and then proceeded to talk to someone who was sitting on the wall behind the bus stop. We were having a good conversation when three of the Indians who were at the bus stop came over to us. Two of them got in my face; they were cussing me out and standing as if they were about to throw punches. I really thought that in any minute, they were going to jump me. I’ve been in situations like this before but never to where I was actually just waiting to get hit. One guy was calling me a snitch, and the other one kept saying that I wanted to start stuff with Indians (even though they came to me!). However, as it was escalating, for some reason, the third guy all of the sudden wanted to leave, and he pulled the other guys and got them to leave with him. I was definitely relieved and believe it was the Lord who just pulled them away. The great thing was that the guy who I was originally talking to before these three guys walked up had heard everything, and now he was really open to listen to what I had to say! Having witnessed what had just happened, it led him to ask some good questions, and I was able to speak to this man about His and everyone’s need for Christ. (Please pray that God would give us grace with Natives Americans that we preach to on the street; that God would break through their bondage and strongholds and that His love would be manifested to them through the revelation of Jesus Christ.)
Through all this though, the Lord did encourage me by letting me meet another brother in the Lord when I was about preaching one day. When I was out one day, I saw a man and his wife who were preaching to a couple guys, and then he started to pray with them. I was kind of surprised because you just don’t see this everyday. So I decided to wait until he was done praying and say hi and introduce myself to him. Turns out he’s a real brother in the Lord. He had also just left his fellowship, due to the same reason many today find themselves without fellowship. So he’s been able to fellowship with us many times and has gone with me to do street ministry as well. I’m thankful that I can go out and preach the word of God, but I do rejoice when I can go with someone else as well!
DOOR TO DOOR
In addition to preaching on the streets, Braden and I have been evangelizing by going door to door in the neighborhoods around where we live. Unfortunately, the first thing people think about you when you come to the door is that you are either a Mormon or a Jehovah’s Witness. While these cults almost exclusively propagate their faith by going door to door, it’s seldom that you see Christians doing the same thing. Not having done much door to door myself here in the US (mostly street evangelism and open air preaching), I was actually surprised at how open people were to hearing the gospel. In fact, so far there are several people that I’ve been able to follow up with and continue to sow the word of God into. With God’s grace, we’re going to continue preaching Jesus door to door.
FELLOWSHIP
Our small fellowship is growing. We recently had a brother name Jeff, his wife Abby, and their five kids move to Albuquerque to join us for fellowship and ministry. They moved from Texas, and we’re glad to have them here with us! The brother I met on the street who evangelizes has also been fellowshipping with us when his work has him in town. We continue to have a few people come and go here and there and are praying the Lord will add new converts to our fellowship.
BROTHER ISMAIL AND BROTHER NOE
Thanks to all of you who sent funds to help brother Ismail’s wife Ester with her surgery. Everything went well and she has recovered.
Brother Noe in Mexico is doing well too. I talk with him fairly frequently. He continues to faithfully preach on the streets every week and also spends him time encouraging new believers. Both of these brothers greatly appreciate the pray and support that some of you send to them.
If you would, please keep our family, fellowship, and ministry in prayer. I am so aware that without Christ, we can do nothing. It is only by His grace and His working in and through us that we can see His kingdom expand and His name glorified through our lives. Thank you to all of you who do keep us in prayer, encourage us with your fellowship and correspondences, and for those who support us financially. We’re truly thankful for all that you do for us in the Lord.
May the Lord bless you….
IN Christ,Sean & Lisa Scott
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