is there some sort of conspiracy amung christians to step up prosthelytizing?

i mean no offense to any christians whom may read this post, but
i'm a vendor by trade, flea markets, craft shows, gem and mineral shows etc.........
within the past few weeks, while being exposed to hundreds of people every weekend, i've noticed that it seems many are stepping up their preaching.
it has always been the norm that people approach me at these markets and ask questions like,
are you a christian?
are you born again?
have you found jesus? etc....
lately they seem to be multiplying, not only that, they seem to be getting far more obtrusive in their actions.
guys blocking me from other customers in order to make me listen to them.
far more numorous numbers of handed out scripture and pamphlets.
in a way it's sad, i love a good religious conversation, yet now it seems most are only there to preach, i can not so much as get a word in, let alone finish a sentence.
the usual after church crowds seem abnormally pumped up lately.
what i find especially sad is the fact that i've been forced to be ruder to these people than i prefer.
i'm there to make a buck, and when someone literally stands in my way i must ask them to leave.
the last guy i encountered insisted i listen, refused to let me speak and then invited me to his church.
after confirmation of him being the pastor my response was basically,
'sorry, but you couldn't pay me enough to step foot in your church'.
don't they realize that this aggressive attitude most likely chases away more than it attracts?
sorry, but the 'fear factor' just does not work with me.

Well, according to that one church, the 21st of this month is the rapture, so they may be trying to save you before then.

reply to post by chiefsmom


clueless about the church you speak of, but concepts like that are about the only reasoning that makes sense.

feeling among many (MANY) in the Christian community is that we are in the end times, as prophesied in Matthew 24, and that we need to evangelize as much as we can while we still can ('night is coming, when no man can work')
every disaster (Japan quake, tornados) affirms the feeling, as well as the unrest in the Middle East, which is interpreted by some as a precursor to a one-world-government, or at least a Caliphate.
they are motivated from compassion and mean you no harm.
(maybe I should say 'we' as I am one...)

reply to post by rubbertramp


Some things that go down in churches are rarely spoken about.

But there is something going on in most churches in recent times, they are informing their church attendants about all the evil in the world(as usual) but are now connecting it with how we are nearing the end of times. You know how conspiracy theorists have their own DVDs like "loose change" etc.? Well, Christian organizations do too, and they use bible verses and predictions and connect them to today's events.

And Christians are taught to be forgiving and not to forget to spread the gospel. In their eyes saving someone(a non believer) by convincing them to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and savior, is the thing to do as a Christian.

Combine the two above; We are at the end of times, a lot of people are presumed to die, so they try to help save as many souls as they can from going to hell.

Of course, the above is not a reflection of ALL Christians, but most likely are a reflection of the Christians who are as intrusive as those to you. EDIT: Didn't read the post above this one, but hey, there you go.

reply to post by rubbertramp


www.ebiblefellowship.com...

Look at the maps of how many countries they bought billboards in for this. It's crazy!

reply to post by chiefsmom


sheezz, that is crazy.
so what happens if they are wrong?
will they just push the date forward a few more months?

i do understand the 'rapture' concept, yet fi i am not mistaken, the word is nowhere to be found in the bible.

Just try to image for a moment if you can. Even if you don't believe, just try to put yourself in our shoes.

Imagine if you can that there is a God and he will judge the world.

Everyone is a sinner. God is perfect. Since even one sin separates us from God, everyone deserves punishment. But God knew we couldn't live without sin. So he sent his son to be the perfect sacrifice for our sins.

The gospel is very simple, it is just to accept that Jesus is God's son, he was born of a virgin, he was perfect, he died for our sins and was resurrected. His death was to bring us back to God. If we accept him, God will not see our sins. He will still judge everyone one day, but the Christian Judgement will be different. We will see the good that we did, but I think we will also see the good we could have done.


Everyone, even the saved people, will be judged. Imagine that you have to stand before God and he shows you people who you loved or cared about and says that they are not saved. He shows you what you could have done to save them, but you didn't act.
You have to face it that a person was lost and you were the one who could have helped them.

Now imagine he shows you the neighbors you have, people you passed in the street. You see how every word, every action, has an effect on people. You see the good that you have done, and those you helped to turn to the right path, but you also see those you could have helped.

No one wants to think that they could have helped someone and didn't. That person is lost and they would have listened to you, and maybe you were the very one to help turn them to the right path.

Now if you don't believe in God, then none of this matters, because you don't think this scenario will ever happen.

But I DO believe it will happen.

I want people to understand that since I really believe this will happen, then I have a responsibility and duty to try to help people avoid this.



One day we will know everything about what happened on the earth. We will get a life review and see the good and the bad we have done. We will see where we could have made a difference. I think most of us will see some good we did that we didn't even know that we did.


We will also see how some of the idle words we speak effect people. Just idle chatter, just kidding, not even serious remarks we made. Just silly stuff that shouldn't have mattered but effected someone in some way. We forgot all about it, but the other person didn't.

Sometimes we do good things and don't even know it. Sometimes we do bad things and don't mean for it to effect someone as strongly as it did.

I still feel the sting every time I remember some bully's remarks. That bully is alive some place in the world, and he or she doesn't even think of me. That person probably never thinks about me, or the hurtful things that they said, but it still effects me, if I remember it.

I have to forgive them though. I don't want them to go to hell though. If God shows them that they hurt me, then I hope I can come out and forgive them. I would. And I hope anyone I have hurt would come out and say they forgive me too.

Anyway, if you meet a Christian and they start to preach to you, at least realize that they are doing this because they honestly don't want you to go to hell. You should be honored that they care for you enough to share the gospel with you. They don't want you to be lost. It may not be important to you, and you may not believe it, but you should feel honored. The other person has shown you respect, they don't want you to die.

Even if you don't believe any of it, just think of it as a stranger stopping to help you.

You may not think you need help, but the other person does. It may seem like an inconvenience to you, or annoying or even offensive.

But all we want to do is help you. We also want to help ourselves because we are responsible for trying to help others.

Now imagine that some people have thought for a while, well one day I'll go and I'll preach to others, but not now. And now they feel like that the time is short. So some people feel like they really have to reach out now to everyone, because there isn't much time left.

This is where we are coming from. We feel like we have to help. Just try to imagine it if you can, even if you don't believe it. Just try to, because maybe you can get a new respect for people who are doing this.

I believe some Christians are very in your face. They confront people in shocking ways. I don't always understand the tactics being used. Some people are actually turned off because people confront them, corner them, and make people feel guilty or attacked.

I think it is better to just leave tracts for people to read, or stop and talk to people. People should be made to feel welcomed and comforted, not attacked. Some people are very turned off to Christianity because they have meet some people who have not represented the religion correctly.

reply to post by works4dhs


don't mean to sound silly, but are there extra points given per conversion?
i'm not sure if i understand why?

reply to post by rubbertramp


Its a bit hard when your trying to make a living at the markets, not to scare off other customers by being rude to some one wasting your time..
but as i once got told, "dont argue with an idiot, they will bring you down to there level then beat you with experience in BS."
as for me, when some one asks me if i have found jesus.. i say yes, and you know what he told me?.. go find your own path, your ready to move beyond the path i have laid out.. it will be harder then treading the path that many choose to follow, but your soul is ready to carve out a different road to the goals you seek.
the other thing i say, is "wouldn't it be better to spend your time actually trying to save someone who needs saving? as i already have a religious path to follow, and your wasting time trying to convert me.."
after all they are basically sales men, and if you tell them they cant sell you something they normally head off.

reply to post by jessieg


very nicely said.
obviously, you are the type i have no problem with and you do understand my point.
like i said, i love a good religious conversation, but a conversation is a 2 way street. if i am not allowed to finish a sentence it tells me that the speaker truly believes he has no more to learn from anyone.
i think this goes directly against the teachings of jesus and these people can not see themselves from the perspective of those around them.

Just say you're a satanist, or swat them with a rolled up newspaper.

reply to post by sprocket2cog


i believe this was true in the past.

after all they are basically sales men, and if you tell them they cant sell you something they normally head off.

yet, it no longer works the way it did.
questioning them or trying to add something only seems to escalate the confrontation.
i hate even using that word, but confrontation is the right explanation lately.

reply to post by rubbertramp

Makes you wonder if they really care about your soul if they are so persistent.. are they more concerned with"oh dang end of the world is coming ..i better do everything i can to make sure i get to heaven, who can i save today??"

you could always just have a set of headphones around you neck, and when they start getting into it.. just put your head phones on and start singing the words to one of these songs
top 25 devil songs...
www.earvolution.com...

(disclaimer: im not a satanist, as satan is a christian belief...)

In my opinion the concept of sin is fully man made. There is no good without evil and vice versa.

What is good through the eyes of someone is bad for others. It seems as if good and bad are both manifestations of one and the same force.

Thus there is no judging. God doesn't fall that low as to judge somebody to eternal hell or bliss. In my opinion if God is the perfect being all-mighty/knowing/etc he wouldn't have created the world any other way than like it is right now just in order to judge people for the so called "sins".We all just are right now as a part of God (the universe in my concept as a living being) just like the cells in our body are part of us.

The God in the bible is obviously man made if you think about how many times the "holy book" has changed throughout history to suit the needs of the ones controlling religion.

I'll stop writing here because I don't know if it's worth it trying to explain better than that. If one thinks rationally he would elaborate on what I've mentioned above.

Originally posted by YouDeserveToKnow
Just say you're a satanist, or swat them with a rolled up newspaper.

ya' know, it really pisses me off when something so absurd makes me giggle.

reply to post by sprocket2cog


that is what i mean, i try and treat all humans with respect and this is the first time it seems an entire group is pushing me to a point.
they stand in front of me, won't go away, so i turn my back.
they come around and we repeat this process.
it's like i'm just turning in circles.
i can't remember truly turning my back on anyone in the past.

So after the 21st of May will it finally be safe to visit Texas????

reply to post by doomy


i don't go quite as far as you do, but, in ways i do believe right and wrong is nothing more but basically opinion.
'thou shalt not kill' is actually translated as 'thou shall not murder'.
huge difference to a peon like me, and the difference is basically only someones opinion of what they wanted us to believe.

reply to post by rubbertramp


I find that such increase in this sort of activity tends to be based on the patterns of a local church, youth group, or organization more than a concerted effort. Where I used to live, it would always come about right around Easter. Lots of people getting re-committed in the Evangelical and Baptist churches around that time, lots of them going out with youth groups and other organizations.

At least that was my correlation. Based around a horribly tiny data set and a single experimental subject (myself).

There's also this May 21st thing, I think some Christians are taking it seriously.