This is a moment in our history as a nation when people are probably more open to the gospel than maybe they've been in decades. And harvest is at the right place at the right time. We've seen 1,200,000 professions of faith in the history of harvest. 10,000 people baptized through harvest since 2023.
So, this is a really good time to pour some rocket fuel on a burning fire. When you give, you're investing in this revival fire. Just go to harvest.org.
Some people are all for evangelism. They're big fans. As long as the pastor does it. But today on A New Beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie points out it's everyone's privilege. People sometimes will ask me, what is the one thing you can say to a non-believer that will cause them to believe?
It's as though they think evangelists have this little secret message. I don't have anything like that. But I know there's power in the gospel. Your job, my job, our job is to share it. This is the day when.
The lost are found. This is the day for a new beginning. Amazing grace can squeeze us down. But can you hear when the angels are singing? This is the day and day when I begin.
God has built into us a hunger for Him. It's an insatiable longing that nothing else can fill. And he's given believers a pivotal message, the gospel message, that has the power to bring people to him. The ingredients are there. It just needs our willingness to share that message.
Are you willing to be used that way? Today on A New Beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie brings us a number of practical principles to help us share that life-giving message more effectively and confidently. One of the most effective ways you can share the gospel is through your personal testimony. Everybody has a testimony. Your personal story.
We read of those courageous believers in the book of Revelation that overcame Satan by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.
Now granted, some testimonies are more dramatic than others. But listen. Not everyone was in the mafia. Not everybody was an atheist. Maybe you were just living a nice moral life.
But you needed Jesus too, didn't you? That's a testimony. See, someone may not relate to the hardcore gangbang testimony or the drug addict testimony or the alcoholic testimony, but they'll relate to you because you would say, I was living a good life, I tried to be a moral person, I reached all of the goals I set in life, but there was something missing, and I realized I needed Jesus. That's a testimony. That'll preach.
Let me tell you your testimony. Here it is. Once you were blind, but now you see. That's it. It's the same for everyone.
So, when you share your testimony, this is a way to build a bridge. And I'll usually start with my testimony. Let me tell you about what my life was about before. And I describe it and I use my story. to lead to his story.
Ultimately, the objective is to get them to the gospel. You say, what is the gospel? I should be able to point to any person in this room and say, give me the gospel in three minutes or less. You should be able to stand up without warning at a moment's notice and be able to articulate the essential gospel message. And sometimes we overcomplicate it, we use verbiage that people don't understand.
So just to. Simplify it. Here's the gospel. Again, the word gospel means good news. Before I can appreciate the good news, I have to know the bad news.
I said this already. That bad news is I'm a sinner. I've broken God's commandments. I've fallen short of His standards. There's nothing I can do to fix that.
But the good news is, 2,000 years ago, Christ came to this earth, was born at Bethlehem, and died on the cross for my sin. He came to pay a debt he did not owe because I owed a debt I could not pay. If I will turn from my sin, And receive Christ into my life, I can be forgiven and go to heaven and now find a meaningful and purposeful life that He has for me. It's very simple. We should be able to articulate That message.
How many of you saw the Jesus Revolution movie?
Well. If you saw the film, you have a sense of my life. I'll give you a couple details that are not in the film.
So my mother, a beautiful woman, literally a dead ringer for Marilyn Monroe. And she was married and divorced seven times. And she was a raging alcoholic. She was beautiful. How else would I be so handsome?
That was not a joke. I don't know what you laughed at. Little hurtful, frankly. No, no, it was a joke.
Okay, so. She's 70 and she looks like she's 90. She drank and she smoked every day. Her kidneys were failing. She was getting dialysis three times a week.
And it was always so hard to talk to my mom about the Lord because she was raised in a Christian home. and rebelled against it. And so whenever I'd bring this subject up, she would say, I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to talk about it.
And so one, and it was frustrating to me. I'm preaching the gospel all around the world. I've had the ability to pray and lead people to Christ, and my own mother is still a non-believer. And so one day I'm driving to church. And the Lord speaks to my heart, go talk to your mother today.
Oh, no. It's so awkward. Go talk to your mother today.
So I call my wife. I'm going to go talk to my mom. Pray for me.
So I'd go over to her house. And she's sitting at the table there in her kitchen. I walked in. Hi Mom, what are you doing here? I wanted to come by and talk to you today.
So I sat down. I said, Mom, I want to talk to you today about your soul. She said, I don't want to talk about it. I said, today we're going to talk about it. And I was direct with her.
And After, as a result of that conversation, my mother. made a recommitment to Christ. You know, I'm so glad I did it. I'm so glad I did it. I want to tell you one more story from my.
Earlier years, I had a full-time ministry evangelizing my mother's old husbands. I was able to. Reconnect with my father Oscar Laurie.
So, in the movie, if you saw Jesus Revolution. You see, Greg is always drawing a little tree. And the word rapulalot. And that's the family crest of the Laurie family. And it means it buds afresh.
It's the idea of a tree that was cut down that begins to grow back again.
So Oscar Laurie, not my biological father, But the only man my mother married whoever treated me as a father should treat a son. He loved me, he took an interest in me, he adopted me, and he gave me his name. And my mother abruptly left him. I was getting out of school. The car was loaded up.
And I said, what's going on? She says, we're leaving. I said, where are we going? She said, to Hawaii. I said, where's dad?
She said, he's not coming. And I arrived in Hawaii. and met her new husband, who was very abusive and almost killed her. My mother loved him, but uh Oscar.
So, I wanted to reconnect with him.
So, I'm a young man now, and I'm a young pastor, and I thought I want to try to talk to him. I had been asked to speak in New York City, and that's where we lived, and we We're together, and my mom was married to him, and so I did make contact with him, I got him on the phone. I called his office. She said, Law Office of Oscar Laurie, he was an attorney. And I said, yes, I would like to speak with Oscar Laurie.
She said, well, what is your name? I said, Greg Laurie. She said, how do you spell your last name? I said the same way he spells his. This is his son.
So he comes on the phone shortly after that. Craig, so good to hear from you. Hey dad, it's kind of awkward to call him that. I hadn't seen him for like 16 years, hey, Dad, I would like to see you. I'm going to be in New York.
He goes, come and spend the weekend with me. We would love to see you. And I said, well, I don't want to impose because he had remarried, had sons. And no, come and spend the weekend with us, okay?
So I spoke in Central Park and got on a train, and I got off the train, and there's my dad. It was like I went back in time. He looked just like I remembered him. And so that night we caught up. And I told him all of the things that had happened to me in my life.
So We had dinner, and he married a wonderful lady named Barbara, who was Italian and was an amazing cook. I love Italian food. After a great meal of spaghetti and meatballs and garlic bread and all the fixings. Barbara My dad's wife says to me, Greg, Tell me how you became a Christian and how you became a pastor.
So I began to share my testimony, and there sits. My wife and my son Christopher and Barbara and my dad. And Barbara's listening, nodding. Oh, that's amazing. On the other side of the table, my dad's sitting there.
He has his hands up to his face like this. He's just looking at me, not reacting. I felt like I'm in a courtroom, and he's the judge. No reaction. just looking at me.
So after we were done, I thought, okay, that didn't go over so well with him. And I'm getting ready to go to bed, and he says, Greg, can you walk with me in the morning? I left out a very important detail. My father had some heart problems and blacked out at the steering wheel and drove into a post. and almost died.
So now he's on heart medication and he has to exercise. and walk every morning.
So he says, Will you walk with me in the morning? And I said, okay.
So he could knock on my door. It's six o'clock in the morning. New York time. Three o'clock in the morning California time. And so I stumble outside with him.
It's very brisk, you know, and we're walking in Oscar. My dad says, Greg, I was listening very carefully to what you said last night. I said right. And he said, and I want to accept Jesus Christ into my life right now. Boy, whoa.
Wake up call. Like a triple espresso. What? I want to accept Jesus Christ into my life right now. Understand, my dad was like an intellectual.
He loved to read history books. Very sharp, very bright, intelligent man. I said, I thought maybe he didn't understand what I said.
Well, Dad, let me go over that one more time: what it means to accept Christ. I go over it again. He goes, Yes, I want to do that right now. What do I need to do? I said, and we're walking.
The whole time we're walking. He says, What do I need to do? I said, Well, we need to pray. He said, Okay, he drops to his knees. This is not an emotional man.
He's a very reserved gentleman. He's on his knees.
So I get down to my knees. I wasn't going to get on my knees, but he's on his knees. I lead him in this prayer. He prays this prayer to accept Christ into his life. After we're done praying, he says, Greg, pray for my heart.
Pray that God heals my heart.
Okay, let's pray.
So I prayed, Lord, heal my dad's heart. And we stand up and he goes, Greg, my doctor's office is right over here. Let's go over there. I want to tell him I've accepted Jesus and He's healed my heart. I'm like, whoa.
That I don't know if he healed your heart.
Well, let's go see him.
So we walk over to his. Doctor's office, a nice Jewish gentleman. My dad walks in. Doc, this is my son, Greg Laurie. He's a preacher.
I just accepted Jesus and my heart is healed. The doctor's like, now, Oscar. We need to run some tests on you first. And they run tests on him, and guess what? God healed his heart.
God gave him fifteen more years. Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment. It's such a blessing to hear from listeners who take time to express their appreciation. Pastor Greg. Your podcasts are so uplifting.
Every time I listen, I always learn something new. And I want to thank you for your ministry. I love listening to you, Pastor Greg. Your messages are always clear and perfectly articulated with both firmness and a light heart. You are a blessing to me.
Thank you so much. When we hear from you, it's not only a blessing, it also confirms that the program is touching lives. Would you consider sharing your story? If so, send an email to Pastor Greg. Send it to greg at harvest.org.
That's Greg at harvest.org.
Well, today we're in Spokane, Washington, enjoying a message from Pastor Gregg titled Evangelism Jesus Style. He offers insight on getting past the pain and disappointment we encounter in life. One of the best ways to deal with Traumas from your past is is first of all forgive people.
Well, they don't deserve it.
Well, you don't deserve it either, okay. The Bible says, forgive as God in Christ has forgiven you. See, when you forgive a person, you set a prisoner free. yourself. You're the prisoner.
of unforgiveness.
So forgive I had to forgive my mom. forgive some of these guys she married. But sharing the gospel was a great way to do it. But here's my point. Forgive.
and try to share the gospel with people, even people who've hurt you. Leave your comfort zone. Go and do something unexpected. Reach an unexpected person in an unexpected place with an unexpected message, which is the gospel. And Not all of these guys came to the Lord.
I mentioned one guy that my mom married. When she left Oscar and moved to Hawaii, this guy was the worst. He was abusive, horrible, almost killed her. Mm-hmm. I'm in Hawaii preaching.
And someone says, your dad. Is really close to dying. Maybe you should go talk to him. Oh. And I would like to tell you, I was able to lead this man.
His name was Al. I wish I could tell you I led this man to the Lord, but it was as hard. In the later years, as he was in his earlier years, I told him all about Jesus, what Christ had done for me, and he just looked at me like, Yeah, so what? And I said, and I'm preaching across the street here in this park, right over here. You can walk there from here.
It's called the Waikiki Shell. Will you come and hear me? He says, no. Look, my job is not to convert people. Nor is it yours.
I have no ability to convert a person. People sometimes will ask me, what is the one thing you can say to a non-believer that will cause them to believe? It's as though they think evangelists have this little secret message. Okay, I don't usually share this with people, but say this. And they'll believe, I don't have anything like that.
I'm just like you. We're all the same. But I know there's power in the gospel. I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes, who have confidence in that message. Your job, my job, our job is to share it.
Jesus says, No one comes to the Father unless I draw him.
So it has to be a work of the Spirit.
So I shared with Oscar, he believes. I share with Al, he doesn't believe. Everyone's different. But just do your job. and leave the results in the hands of God.
On that final day when we stand before Jesus, It's not about success, it's about faithfulness. It's about doing what you were called to do. Jesus will not say, well done, good, and successful servant. He'll say, well done, good, and what? That's it.
Faithful. servant.
So just be faithful and Into your world. Go into all of your world. and preach the gospel. And I'll tell you, one of the greatest joys I know next to being a Christian is having the privilege of leading someone to Christ.
So we're going to close now in prayer. And I'm going to ask you to make a commitment. To be available to God. But I'm going to warn you now, but I'm going to ask you to pray. I suggest you don't pray if you don't mean it.
Because if you pray the prayer, I'm going to lead you in. I'm an evangelist, I like to lead people in prayers, okay?
So. If you pray this prayer that I'm about to lead you in. Mean it. And don't be surprised. If God doesn't call on you before the day is over and opens up that little door, Just something that seems random, coincidental.
It's not coincidence, it's providence. God's in control of your life.
So, this prayer I'll lead you in, which is a prayer of commitment and availability to God. Is something you should mean before you pray it because God is not looking for ability, He's looking for availability. He does not call the qualified, he qualifies the called.
So really what he's looking for is for a man or a woman. To say, here I am, Lord, send me. Not here, I am, Lord. Send him. Or send her.
Here I am, Lord, send me.
So I'm going to lead you in this prayer. Pray it if you mean it. Let's pray. Pray these words: Lord Jesus. You've called me to go into all the world.
and preach the gospel. I want to do this, Lord. Here I am, Lord. Send me. Open up doors of opportunity.
Give me a boldness like I've never known before. To leave my comfort zone. and engage people with the gospel. Use me for your glory. In Jesus' name I pray.
Now, Father, I pray for everyone here, myself included. We just said, Here I am, Lord, send me. The harvest is great, but the labors are few. You told us to pray that the Lord of the harvest would raise up laborers into the harvest. We're here, Lord.
We want to be bold, but Lord, we'll be on us.
Sometimes we're afraid. And we're Embarrassed. And we're timid. But we should be bold with this message of the gospel.
So, Lord, use us. Fill us with your Holy Spirit. Give us a compassion and a burden for people that do not yet know you. And Lord, yes. Use us to lead people into your kingdom.
We commit ourselves to you now. And we ask all of this in Jesus' name. Amen. Pastor Greg Laurie, with an encouraging message to thousands of people gathered in Spokane, Washington for the Be Bold for Jesus Evangelism Conference. Good insight for all of us today.
You're on a new beginning. Pastor Gregg, we'd be remiss if we didn't follow through and give an opportunity for someone to enter into a relationship with the Lord right now. What would you say to the person who wants to do that? He is only a prayer wang. Which means if you will call upon the name of the Lord right now through prayer, He will hear your prayer and answer your prayer.
Listen, if you want Jesus Christ to come into your life, if you want Him to forgive you of your sin, if you want to know that you'll go to heaven when you die, just pray this prayer right now after Me. Just pray, Lord Jesus. I know that I'm a sinner. But I know that you're the Saviour. who died on the cross for my sin.
and rose again from the dead. I turn from my sin now. and I choose to follow you. From this moment forward as my Savior and Lord, as my as my God and my friend. In Jesus' name I pray.
Amen. Amen. And listen, if you have just prayed that prayer with Pastor Gregg and have meant those words sincerely, the Lord has forgiven your sins, and we want to welcome you into the family of God. And we want to help you get started living this new life. Let us send you Pastor Greg's New Believers Bible.
It's been read by millions of people, and they've enjoyed the scores of helps for new believers and the easy-to-understand translation.
So get in touch for your free copy of the New Believer's Bible. Call us at 1-800-821-3300. We can take that call any time, 1-800-821-3300. or go online to harvest.org and click Know God. And then let us take a moment to thank you for praying for this ministry.
and for supporting it through your generous donation. It's an investment in kingdom business. Isn't that right, Pastor Gregg? Yeah, it's really true, Dave. And I believe it's so important because, you know, the gospel saves lives.
It saves eternal lives. Because when a person believes in Jesus, according to Scripture, they pass from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to the power of God. And then of course that changes the course of their future. That impacts their children and their children's children. The gospel changes everything.
And thousands and thousands of people respond every single year. Thanks to the Lord. Also, thanks to you for your investment in this ministry, enabling us to reach people. Wherever they are.
So, if this is something you care about, I encourage you to make a financial investment. and a new beginning in harvest ministries. Yes, that's right, and we really do appreciate your support. Thanks for partnering with us today. It can make a real difference, not just for today or this week, but for eternity.
So get in touch with your support today by calling 1-800-821-3300. That's a 24-7 phone number, 1-800-821-3300. or write a new beginning box 4000 Riverside, California 92514. or go online to harvest.org.
Well, next time, Pastor Greg launches his series of most popular messages of the year. He'll present a study called The Prodigal Prophet. Think you know who he's talking about? Join us here on A New Beginning with Pastor and Bible teacher, Greg Lorry. This is the day, the day when life begins.
