Witness Encounter #1

Jarred Elliott Occurrence: 1/8/2014 Place: Napa Auto Parts-Jonesboro, Ar Time: 11:00 A.M Name of Witnessee : Conway Riggs
On this particular day, I was in orientation for my new job, but since the teacher was ill, we were released until the following day. As I thought of what I needed to do for the day; I realized my key fob for my vehicle was no good, so I went to the parts store I used to work for. All of the staff there are former friends of mine, so it is always more than just purchasing parts; it is also fellowship and catching up. Upon arriving, I walk into the store and a man named Conway Riggs was behind the counter. Like the rest of the staff there, I knew Conway. Conway is a very outgoing and friendly old-man. If you were to just make a judgment from outward appearance, you would guess that he is just another believer who has been in church all of his life. But I knew from conversations in the past, that he was not a believer and often questioned the validity of Scripture and God. I guess that you could officially classify him as an agnostic. As I was being waited upon by Glenn (counter salesman), Conway struck a conversation with me and this is how it began: Conway: What have you been up to? Me: Oh nothing but work and school! Conway: What are you going to school for; to be a double ought agent?! Me: Yes sir, a double agent and a pastor!

Conway: Oh, ok I had a preacher friend that looked down on a younger preacher that didnt know as much as him... (Anecdotal story of a self-righteous preacher) Me: Well , you know that is not how it is supposed to be. We are to be humble and always learning; especially when it comes to The Bible. Conway: Well I just dont buy into any of that stuff anyway Me: How come? Conway: Well, why didnt Jesus just write the bible Himself? Me: Because He didnt come to write; He came to die Conway: Well, havent you seen all of those shows on History Channel showing that there was more than just the books of the bible, (Refers to the many attempts by various sources trying to debunk the Bibles authenticity and other false gospels written) Me: So you believe them, but not the Bible? Have you ever read the Bible? Conway: Yeah, well no; my daddy always read it Me: Well, do you believe in Julius Caesar? Conway: Well yes, but that doesnt make a difference to me Me: Well, we have only a handful of manuscripts supporting him, but we have close to 5,600 manuscripts of the New Testament alone! Conway: Well, why did God have to put it in a book? Me: Well, what would you prefer to have God do to show you who He is? Conway: He could send a rock down from space and prove that He did it Himself. Me : But what if I dont find that good enough evidence? What if I dont believe your proof?

Conway: It would be good enough for me. Why does He make children with illness, cleft palates and poverty? Me: Well both because we are in a fallen world, and for His own glory. When Moses came to the burning bush and God told him that he would be the deliverer of the Israelites, Moses was terrified and didnt want to go and used his speech impediment as an excuse. But God told Moses Who has made mans mouth not to speak, or the deaf not to hear or the blind to not see? Is it not I, THE LORD? Conway: For His glory? It isnt their fault they were born. They dont deserve that Me: Well, thats the thing. We are sinners. You and I both have sinned against God. Conway: I dont believe that; I believe that men are good, but some are bad (another anecdote of a friend with a filthy mouth but a servant to his neighborhood) Me: The bible tells us different. We are born in iniquity and our hearts are desperately wicked. Have you ever told a lie? Conway: Yes, who hasnt? Me: Looked upon a woman with lust? Conway: yes Me: Took the Lords name in vain, for example Oh my G__ or Jesus name in a derogatory manner? Conway: No; never Me: You sure? Conway: Maybe a few, but not a whole lot Me: See, we are sinners at heart! Tell me this, why would Paul, Peter, James and many other disciples and witnesses of Christ, die a martyrs death for a lie? Conway: Well, because they believed it I guess.

Me: Obviously! Jesus was the God-man. Jesus was fully God and fully man and He died for our sins. He was the perfect sacrifice that satisfied Gods justice for our eternal sins. Conway: I just still have a hard time believing all of that, we all arent that bad. Me: This is my last bullet; there was a man in the Old Testament named Naaman. Naaman was a commander of an army that was basically our modern-day atheists. Naaman had leprosy and he heard about a prophet that could heal by way of the Lord of Israel. The prophets name was Elisha. Upon coming to Elisha, Elisha told him to go and dip in the Jordan seven times and you will be healed. Naaman being a very prideful man was enraged and was insulted. He denied the directions from Elisha, and got back on his horse and was planning to go back to Aram. But his company reminded him that if Elisha had told him to do a great thing, he would have done it. But the point here is that Naaman had to humble himself. So Naaman got off of his horse and dipped in the water seven times as Elisha had directed, and the Bible said his flesh became like that of a child. This very principle applies to you. You must throw away your pride and read with an open mind and heart. You cannot judge something you have never read Conway. Conway: Yep... I know (he nodded his head, but was also still showing body language of being uncomfortable) This was the end of our conversation. I learned looking back through the dialogue that I could have used much more sin awareness techniques in which to show him his guilt before God, instead of spending the majority of the time focused on apologetics and academia. I also noticed that he would continuously use outside sources against scripture and tie knots that would take too much time for me to untie. That being said, I shouldve spent less time trying to prove validity and historicity of scripture and presenting the Gospel to him in its true form, because he truly just was confused and was leaning to other sources rather than scripture itself. I will continue to pray for him and his salvation.