“And one day, every tongue will bow and every knee confess that Jesus is Lord!” —What was said to the crowds after a long day of preaching before the USC/Oregon game last week, when one of our open air preachers suffered a temporary lapse—to the shock and dismay of at least one listener.
Over the last several years I’ve posted about Christians in the U. S. being harassed by police and
government officials for standing up for their faith by preaching, handing out Gospel tracts or by simply having a Bible study. Mostly these posts have been about other people in other states; this time, it’s about what happened in our own church….
In addition to being the evangelism pastor at Hope Chapel, Hermosa Beach, I also oversee nearly fifty Bible studies that meet in various locations around our community. One of these studies was held in the City of Hawthorne Library. The leader was offered a room to meet in, free of charge, so that he, his wife, and a few others could read through the Gospel of Mark over a period of eight weeks using a book called “One to One Bible Reading” by David Helm.
And they did. For one week.
The second week of their meeting, the Library Administrator informed the Bible Study leader that because of the separation of church and state, they could no longer meet in their private room. They were, however, welcome to meet off to the side in a corner of the library on a first come, first served basis.
I told the leader that we had to fight this because what the administrator told him was wrong. It is against the law to forbid a group from holding a Bible study in a public library!
I called our lawyer. He wrote a letter. It got results. Quickly.
Here’s what it said:
This Saturday, November 10, we kick off the Evangelistic Parade Season (which lasts until next next June) with the Long Beach Veteran’s Day Parade. This is a gentle, family-friendly event where we get to honor veterans and current military personnel with hearty applause, Gospel tracts and preaching in the open air. (Details are below the
Sudden Death: Front Porch
DENVER – Family members of a west Denver man who collapsed and died on his front porch said a mail carrier walked by the body to deliver the mail, but did nothing to help. “I don’t know how he sleeps at night,” said the man’s wife. On Nov. 2, her husband, was dropped off at home
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