My Bad Habit

I need to make a confession. I don’t really want to but feel the need. I have a bad habit. It’s a habit that has fallen into ill repute in Christian circles. But none the less…sigh…I hand out Christian literature. It can be tracts, gospels, books or Bibles. I have used them all. To make matters worse I often give this literature to total strangers. There it’s out!

As I look back over my life I can now see that my family is to blame. Uncle Vernie was known for two things – riding his bicycle around town and handing out tracts on the streets of Williamsport, PA. I am confident he gave out tens of thousands. Others of our family have followed his example. You know how hard family influence can be to break.

As a young man it was like I couldn’t help myself. The gospel had to go out and literature distribution seemed to be my lot. So, it was off to the World’s Fair in Knoxville, door to door in our community, the University of Tennessee campus, the National park where I was politely asked not to return, and the raceway where I was asked to leave and ended up at the police station. That’s how it started and it’s continued to be a lifelong problem.

Now that we are in Mexico the problem has resurfaced. And like many who have a bad habit I have plenty of excuses. 1) There are literally millions that we could potentially come across on any given day and will perhaps never see again. 2) It’s easy to get the Word out there while the language skills are developing. 3) Opportunities here are abundant with whistlers, gas attendants and street venders everywhere.

You should know also there are people in the shadows who are bad influences. People like R.A. Torrey who said, “There are a great many people who, if you try to talk with them, will put you off; but if you put a tract in their hands and ask God to bless it, after they go away and are alone they will read the tract and God will carry it home to their hearts by the power of the Holy Ghost.” People like Frank Jenner and his faithful ministry in Sydney, Australia (His story found on our website – click and scroll down). People like all those who have written to encourage us in this habit of Bible distribution.

I guess the worst of all is that I don’t want to change. As long as there is the gospel printed on a piece of paper, I feel the need, no the compulsion to sow “seeds” in the lives of those whose heart God has prepared. And so I stand as a man guilty and condemned for this bad habit.

Disclaimer: The editors of this blog recognize and acknowledge the importance of the gospel being shared in the context of life as well.

A few Photos from our anniversary: