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[Sticker]

The other day, my fiance and I decided to go to dinner at a little mexican joint near our home. The hostess began walking us to our table when we were stopped by a young man sitting at a table with a friend. Turns out he was an employee of a breakfast establishment that we frequent and he recognized us. He recalled our usual order to us, introduced himself and his friend, I introduced my self and my fiance, and then without any transition in the conversation he proceeded to say, "Three years ago I was suffering from depression, but then I found Jesus."

My fiance and myself were a bit taken aback. We basically said, "That's great we must be going," and continued to our table.
From my perspective, it felt like pleasant conversation with a stranger who suddenly decided to make it unpleasant by jamming his religion in my face.

My question for Christians, has this tactic ever worked for recruitment?

[jimwalton]

It's a pretty abrupt strategy, since the restaurant and chance meeting were probably not the best place for a conversation like that. I mean, since you were just walking past and not joining them at the table, it's odd he would think the conversation could blossom into much of anything.

So, to answer your question directly, I would guess it's not a tactic that works very often for "recruitment," as you say it. On the other hand, since we can't always see the hand of God at work inside of people, sometimes a sudden and unexpected comment can motivate a person to think. It obviously has done that to you, though not specifically about the person of Jesus (which was the point, no doubt), but more so about the person who lunged at you, so to speak.

It makes me wonder what may have triggered him to think that a comment like that would speak to you. As the employee of an establishment you frequent, I wonder if he saw something in your demeanor or overheard snippets of conversations.

All of which is to say, have you considered the claims of Christ? As an atheist in a by-and-large religious world, I'll assume that you took up your position after some thought. At the same time, especially from numerous conversations on this forum, I have come to realize that many people have wildly distorted views of God, Christianity, and the Bible, not at all true to what they actually say. So it makes me wonder if you have ever really, open-mindedly and objectively, considered the claims of Christ? Many have pursued them with an open mind and been pleasantly surprised by what they have discovered. I invite you to do the same, since you're obviously thinking about such things.

[Sticker]

It got me thinking about how I would be okay with going through the rest of my life and never interacting with this person again. Oh and why would someone feel the need to do that? Hence, why I am here.

As for christ in my life, I had it for a short time as a child. But then the more I was involved with it, the more I questioned it. The more I debated with religious people, the more I realized it's a pointless discussion. They aren't going to change my mind and I'm not going to change theirs. I'm happy in my life and they are happy in theirs.

So on that note, as I do not walk around town telling people to reject christ, I don't want random people telling me to accept christ. The good old fashioned golden rule, treat others as you would want to be treated.

[jimwalton]

> It got me thinking about how I would be okay with going through the rest of my life and never interacting with this person again. Oh and why would someone feel the need to do that?

Yeah, I get that. Just to let you know, someone would feel compelled to do that because he senses that there are a lot of starving people in the world, and he knows where there is food. He knows there is a lot of depression, but he also knows where a person can find hope. It's pretty safe to assume his motives were honorable.

> As for christ in my life, I had it for a short time as a child. But then the more I was involved with it, the more I questioned it. The more I debated with religious people, the more I realized it's a pointless discussion. They aren't going to change my mind and I'm not going to change theirs. I'm happy in my life and they are happy in theirs.

Yeah, I get this. Of course, I don't know what your conversations were like, but I get this. Sometimes religious people don't come across very well, if you catch my drift.

> So on that note, as I do not walk around town telling people to reject christ, I don't want random people telling me to accept christ. The good old fashioned golden rule, treat others as you would want to be treated.

As I mentioned, if he thinks he is offering food to starving people or offering hope to those in need of hope, he would be treating others as he would want to be treated. Many of us appreciate help through life. And as far as "I do not walk around town telling people to reject christ," some atheists do, as you must know. I've even met some on this forum who say that their goal in life is to turn as many people away from Christ as possible. They are dedicated to destroying faith in people—telling others to reject Christ.

So maybe your "friend" doesn't know enough about you, but he acted honorably in offering some good news about life to a friend. You obviously think his behavior was strange (and even inappropriate), but maybe try not to take offense.