DEAREST FRIENDS,
DANCING LATVIANS, DRUNKS, AND LARGE CROWDS IN DUBLIN
How can I describe to you the absolutely incredible evening that we experienced last night? God made the rain stop, gave us just the right spot to set up our equipment and gave us large crowds. At one point, we counted over a hundred and twenty people standing on the street listening to a children’s Bible story and less than 10 of them were children. Even more listened at other times.
When the first puppet song began, everyone got so excited over the new Egyptian puppets that were singing Pharaoh, Pharaoh. I counted more than 25 people taking pictures or video during that song. They clapped and cheered after every song the band did. More, they clapped and cheered for the puppets and the Bible stories. Please remember that these were crowds who did not know Jesus, but they were excited to hear about Him. Your prayers are making a difference!
Many of us had very special conversations with people after we finished. Michelle talked with a man named Mick who is dying of AIDS and he does not know Jesus. Please pray for him to come to faith. Sam and I bought a homeless man dinner. William was begging on the street, but was very grateful to receive a meal. Please pray for him to trust in Jesus.
With Yeva’s help, I shared Christ with a group of 8 young people from Latvia who were Russian speakers. They did not know Jesus, but were eager to listen to the stories I told them about Jesus and how He changed my life. One of the young women was so touched that she began to cry. Please pray for these young people to meet Jesus as their Lord and Savior. When we finished talking, they began doing a Latvian dance on the street. Some of our band members started to dance with them. We are having a crazy, wonderful time.
As always, we had lots of drunks that loved to yell at us as we they walked past. We heard very interesting vocabulary tonight. One drunken man came up to speak to Sam and I and he kept stroking our faces. He wanted to thank us for what we had seen and heard. Another drunken man was very angry during the Bible story, but our friend John was able to calm him down and walk him to the side.
SPANISH FRIENDS
At the end of every program, the band sings an amazing song about how Jesus makes us alive. The puppets always finish by singing with them. I draw one last picture during this time of 2 cliffs with the cross as the bridge between them. It shows how faith in Jesus is our way to God. It shows how His blood covers our sin. As we finished, 3 young people from Spain came up to Silvana and began to talk in very careful English… They asked me to draw that drawing for them and explain it. With broken Spanish, much prayer, and very slow English, I explained to them the wonderful story of the Gospel. Please pray for them to put their trust in Jesus!
PRAYER
We return to the streets twice today, Saturday, and need you to pray for good weather. Please pray for the crowds to hear and receive the hope that only Jesus gives! Ask the Father to make us wise.
In Jesus, Linda for
Sam Shaw-Asst. Director of The Agape Puppets
Silvana Shaw- Brazil
Yeva- Kurdistan
Sabina- Poland
Malachi Armstrong-USA
Toby Simmons-USA
Jade Rodgers-Northern Ireland
Sam Rodgers-Northern Ireland