An interesting evangelizing experience with a cab driver

This was one of the most interesting evangelizing encounters I had with a cab driver.

I was going to the airport to catch my flight. As usual, I would flag a cab for my trip. However the moment I got into the cab, it did not take me long to realize that the cab driver was actually meditating with a chain of beads while he was driving. The chain of beads was long and it kept getting tangled around the gear stick and the cab driver was trying to change gear and count the beads simultaneously. I was certainly not pleased with him trying to multitask this way and putting his passenger’s life at risk, especially when he was driving a manual car.

However I could feel a sense of grief in my heart for this cab driver for putting his faith in the wrong source. My compassion for him rises and I could feel the Holy Spirit prompting in my heart to share the gospel with him. I started praying in tongues at the same time, asking God to lead me or show me an opportunity to break the salvation message to him. So I broke the silence and the conversation went like this:

Me: “Uncle, can I disturb you for a while?”
Cab driver: “Ya, sure sure.”
Me: “ What are you doing?”
Cab driver: “Oh, I am meditating.”
Me: “For peace?”
Cab driver: “Yes, yes. For peace.”
Me: “Is it ok if I share my experience with you?”
Cab driver: “Sure.”
Me: “Jesus can give you the peace that you want.”

And the conversation about Jesus and God’s salvation plan started from here.

As our conversation went on, I could tell that this cab driver was a staunch believer of another religion. He believes the need in doing good works to attain salvation. While he was not a student of his religion, his faith in it was strong.

I remembered in the past, one of the visiting pastors to our church shared his experience with the congregation on his relationship with a leader of a non Christian religion. He told us that this leader was very well trained in the teachings of his religion. The pastor started to build a relationship with this leader and gradually gained his trust as a friend. There was mutual respect for each other’s role as a religious leader. The pastor also did not try to share his faith with this leader all this while. He knew they would engage in a never ending debate on the topic of God. Until one fine day, the Holy Spirit prompted the pastor to ask the religious leader questions on salvation and eternal life. These were questions where the answers to them were vague and uncertain from non Christian religion teachings. Hence I applied this wisdom into the current situation I was facing.

While I was trying my best to share the message of that salvation is free for the cab driver, I could sense that our conversation was veering towards the direction of a debate which was something I do not want to get into.

Cab driver: “Every religion is the same. It depends on fate. Maybe I do not have the fate with Jesus.”
Me: “Then you can consider we are fated today to meet and for me to share this gospel with you.”

(Some people tell me that they are not fated to be with the Christian God. In realty, they just do not believe in Jesus and was using this as an excuse. I have realized that my answer is probably the best approach to such replies, which is true. God arrange for this divine appointment.)

Colossians 4:2-4, “Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving; meanwhile praying also for us, that God would open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in chains, that I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak.”

Then I asked, “Uncle, does your religion guarantee a passage to heaven?” The cab driver replied, “Yes.” I was not surprised because I had encountered such replies in the past but the underlying confidence is not there when you probe further.

Me: “How do you know?”
Cab driver: “It was written in this religion’s scriptures.”
Me: “Who wrote the book?”
Cab driver: “The religious head.”
Me: “So is this person a man or God?”
Cab driver: “Man.”
Me: “So if he is a man, how does he know he will go heaven when he had not been there?”

The cab driver was not able to answer properly and kept emphasizing it was written in the scriptures. If he has asked me, I would have said, “I knew I would go heaven because the bible says so too. The bible also says that Jesus was resurrected and hence we serve a living God. But most importantly, I had a living relationship with Jesus. Hence I am fully convinced that I would go heaven should I die.” I did not have the luxury of time to explain this to him as he tried to change the topic.

Cab driver: “So tell me. When is Jesus birthday?”
Me: “I do not know.” (Jesus birthday was not written in the bible although 25th Dec was appointed as Christmas day)
Cab driver: [laughs] (Deity birthdays are very important occasions in his religion)
Me: “Is it important?”
Cab driver: [kept quiet]
Me: “I really do not know when is Jesus birthday because the bible did not say so but I knew that Jesus death made such a big impact to this world that 2010, the year we are living now, was marked at His point of death. This is where BC (Before Christ) and AD (After Death) dates arises from.”
Cab driver: “Sorry, I do not understand what is BC and AD.”

The cab driver was probably not well educated and hence he did not know what is BC and AD. By this point in time, I was arriving at the airport already. I ended our conversation with, “Uncle, thank you for allowing me to share my faith with you. Please do not misunderstand me that I am asking you to believe my God right now and then. I just want to share this with you so that in case you want to seek other gods, you can consider turning to Jesus Christ by asking Him to be your God.” The entire conversation went well and we ended amicably. It was non confrontational but gentle in nature. My sharing arises from my compassion for the cab driver and I was sharing with fear and trembling.

1 Corinthians 2:2-4, “For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,”

After I got down the car and think back about this incident, I realized that the Holy Spirit had been leading me in asking the right questions and giving the right answers to the cab driver. Praise God!

Isaiah 55:11, “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”

Like what the visiting pastor advised. Ask the right questions, share the Word and let God minister to their hearts and set them thinking.

I thanked God for this divine opportunity as well as the wisdom to share the gospel with this cab driver.

Steve