Two open their hearts to Jesus’ love

Open hearts and unexpected outcomes were evident when a Southwestern Seminary staffer shared the Gospel on a warm day in Arizona. In Phoenix this June for Crossover 2017 at the height of the city’s heat wave, Housing Coordinator Jonathan Baldwin turned turbulence into salvation for not one but two willing souls.

Baldwin, one of the team leaders during Southwestern’s annual evangelism sweep, was driving his van to a location where his evangelism team was assigned when he came upon a truck that had broken down in the middle of an intersection. The driver, Clay, was attempting to push the truck up a hill, so Baldwin and another driver, Zach, assisted in getting the truck to a safe location.

Baldwin walked back to his van to get Clay some cold water to drink. Zach accompanied him, and Baldwin used the opportunity to share the Gospel.

Having recently recovered from open-heart surgery, Zach confessed he did not know why God let him live through the surgery. “I then explained God’s love revealed to us through Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection,” Baldwin says. “Zach understood that the only way to have peace with God is through faith in Jesus Christ.”  

Baldwin invited Zach to call upon the name of the Lord, and at that moment, Zach surrendered his life to Jesus. Baldwin then walked him through the Great Commission, informing him of the next steps on his newly begun spiritual journey.

Not forgetting his original aim, Baldwin proceeded to grab a bottle of water and jog back to Clay. He then shared the Gospel with Clay and invited him to a new life with Jesus, as well.

Clay confessed that he had tried to kill himself multiple times. “He believed that he was dead on the inside,” Baldwin says. “I told him, ‘You are dead because of sin, but you can have a new life. You can be a new creation in Jesus Christ.’” 

By God’s grace, Clay made the decision to believe in his heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, and he confessed that Jesus is Lord. “When we prayed together, he called out to Jesus, ‘I am the biggest sinner, but today, You are my Lord,’” Baldwin recalls. “After spending some time in the Word with Clay, I got back in my van with a heart full of joy.”