God is Busy... Can I Help You?

Shortly after speaking with Ray at a Christian Worldview Weekend seminar in Washington D.C., a few friends and I stopped at a diner to grab something to eat. It was 11:30 p.m. We were tired and hungry. Our day was done. As we sat down, I noticed that my friend Larry was no longer with us. I got concerned, so I searched the restaurant. No Larry. I went outside and found him a hundred yards away in the parking lot, witnessing to seven or eight very rough looking guys with pierced body parts and tattoos (they were assembling for a midnight drag race with their modified sports cars. Larry's no tough-guy. He looks like me. All by himself and in the dark, surrounded by cigarette sucking guys much bigger than him. My friend Mark Spence and I moved closer to the pack just in case they decided to pounce, when Larry dropped the "G" bomb. He did. Larry deliberately swung the conversation to the subject of God, their sin, and the fact that they could die at any moment and have to face the Judge of the Universe to give an account of their lives. Honestly, Larry looked like a lamb about to get eaten by a pack of wolves. Without flinching, he asked one guy named "Nate-Dog" if he had kept God's Ten Commandments. He hadn't. Larry then told the gang about the reality of Judgment Day and Hell. This attracted more teenagers and the pack of wolves got bigger. There were now 23 of them surrounding Larry the Lamb. One of the baddest looking guys in the bunch (named "Simon") had full arm tattoos, a giant circle disk inserted into his stretched out earlobe, and a black shirt with the face a Satan and the caption "God's busy... can I help you?" written on it. Finally, Larry told them of how God, 2000 years ago, demonstrated His love for them by sending his Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross and pay the price for their sin. I could see that Larry was in the "witnessing zone." As he continued to tell them about repentance and faith, fear had left him. He was running on adrenaline and his knowledge of how to share the gospel biblically, trusting the Holy Spirit to work through him.

After forty five minutes, Larry was still standing. No slaughtering of the lamb. Just twenty three teenagers asking honest questions and listening to God's Word. I stayed back, not wanting any of them to notice "the guy from Growing Pains" and distract from what was happening. Every one of those young men took a gospel booklet called "Save Yourself Some Pain--Ten Steps for New and Growing Christians." We overheard one say to his friend, "I'll tell you one thing for sure--I'm reading this before I go to sleep tonight!" Another one prayed with Ray for God to reveal himself and help him understand the truth.

As we drove to our hotel rooms at 3:00 a.m., we all agreed that we had witnessed something supernatural, and that if the average Christian had witnessed what we saw, it would completely fire them up and alter their view of sharing their faith.

Alone in my hotel room, reflecting on the night's events, I remembered Simon's T-shirt with the face of Satan and the written words "God's busy... can I help you?" I couldn't help but think of how many professing Christians hardly ever share their faith. They are either too busy, too afraid, or not equipped to witness to someone. Meanwhile, Satan is always available, and extends his hand to the lost, 24/7. Think about it. If unbelievers feel that God and those who claim to know Him are too busy for them, no wonder they gravitate towards Satan's offer of the pleasures of premarital sex, illegal drugs, alcohol, and rebellion against God.

Question: Is it okay for Christians to be so busy with legitimate acts of worship (like praying, Bible study, and serving at church functions) that we don't have time to seek and save those who are lost and on the brink of eternal Hell? When's the last time you went out as a sheep among wolves and shared your faith with a non-Christian? I made a new commitment that night--not only to love the Lord, but also to love the lost.

So the next time you see someone who is not saved (a friend, a family member, or even a stranger) who is not saved, what message will you send them? "I'm too busy" or "Can I help you?"