Several months ago, I wrote about the multiplying power of winning one new soulwinnner a year for Christ. I was so excited when Erdinch, a businessman friend, told me, “I want to learn the Bible well enough that I can teach others.” Since then, Erdinch has made time to meet with me only three times. I shake my head as I hang up the phone again after he calls to postpone yet another Bible study. At least he likes the thought of becoming a Christian. In that sense, he is one step ahead of most other people here in Turkey.

In our last study, I shared with him Jesus’ parable of the sower and the soils. We talked seriously about the seeds that fell among the thorns, how they were choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures. He said he could relate, and he asked me to pray for him. I do frequently. He is a good man, and I would love to see him shake free of his distractions and grow.

He is always glad when I call, always full of promises, always too busy to carry through. “Maybe I am not pursuing him hard enough,” I think to myself. Maybe I should stress that the kingdom of heaven is an emergency; that the opportunity for eternal life can pass a man by.
Maybe I should be fasting and interceding for him like I would for my child if he became deathly ill. Maybe I am the one being choked by the thorns! I ponder.

He and I live in a big, busy city. He carries a cell phone in one hand and a Blackberry in the other. He obviously has places to go and people to meet.

His first contact with the Bible occurred 16 years ago. Sixteen years is a long time to be drawn by the Spirit and a long time to put the Spirit on hold. Last time we were together, he asked me, “Can a man confess on his death bed and still make it into paradise?” Does he really contemplate this? Weighing my precious time and my hopes for him and the millions of others here, I wonder, “Is he a Peter just needing my patience or a rich young ruler I must watch turn away?”

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