"I used to be a man of the world"

A few years ago, the newly opened and sadly now closed Dunkin’ Donuts in Wood Green awarded me a free donut and coffee every week for a year after stopping a robbery. It became part of my weekly routine to take my work to one of the two tables in the small shop. I would eat my Boston Crème donut and sip my Dunkaccino, study, work, and engage staff and customers alike in conversation about matters of life and faith. Good times. One day, I arrived and the chairs and tables were already taken so I chose to sit on a bench on the High Road. It was there that I saw a man I recognised as a shoplifter whose accomplice I had stopped a year previous. He whistled to a man across the road, and the two met up. My suspicion was aroused and I followed at a distance on the other side of the road. It was not long before the security alarm went off in a shop they had entered and I saw them running out. I ran down the street and crossed the road to cut them off. They doubled back as I gave chase, pausing to confirm with a security guard that he needed my help and to hand him my iPad. I saw the men enter the shopping mall in the distance and feared I had lost them, when I spotted them casually strolling down between the shop. I raced after and pounced on one of them, throwing him up against the wall and pinning his arms behind him. Within minutes, we were in a holding room, the police had arrived, and were running the man’s tats for identification. The suspect, an Irish traveller named Johnny, was incensed with me for taking his theft of what turned out to be something quite small so seriously. 

“God bless you” he kept saying, meaning somewhat the opposite. 

“Just stop saying that, mate. You don’t know God and you are in no way able to confer his blessing” I said, somewhat annoyed.

“What do you know about God?” he replied. “You don’t know the first thing about God.” I took out my business card, slid it across to him and said with a laugh, “It may or may not mean much, but make of that what you will.” 

“A pastor, are you?” That set him off on how I should have stopped him before he stole, instead of after – a nice thought, but much easier said than done and more an attempt to project blame onto me. Johnny struggled to accept any answer I gave him, and doubted whether I was really a pastor. He quizzed me on Christian songs and eventually mentioned “How Great is Our God”. 

“That’s a popular one that a lot of people like”, he said. 

“Yes, I suppose they do. Memorable lyrics, catchy tune. The problem is a lot of people can like a song about God’s greatness but have difficulty applying its implications to their life.” I looked at him deliberately. He set off again and the police told us both to be quiet. That was fine by me, I had to leave anyway. 

Over the years since, Johnny and I would bump into each other on the street. Johnny would confront me about how angry he was with me. Most if not all of these confrontations ended in me walking away as he yelled after me “You’re not a man of God! You’re not a pastor!” 

I prayed for Johnny regularly. It was then a massive answer to prayer when he approached me in McDonald’s last year to apologise and to say he was trying to make some changes. I forgave him, offered some counsel, and prayed with him.  We saw each other a couple of more times but despite making things right with me, Johnny was still not right with God. In early December, I entered the chapel of Grace Baptist Church Wood Green, dimly lit for our Christmas Carol service, and approached a young man to introduce myself. He looked up – it was Johnny. Words do not quite describe my joy at just seeing Johnny in church, but even more-so when he walked up to me after the service to say he had given his life to Christ, wanted to be baptised, and wanted to grow in his knowledge of God’s word. 

In the weeks and months that followed, it became apparent that Johnny was quite serious. He realigned his schedule and accommodation to revolve around the church’s weekly schedule and rarely missed anything – both services on Sunday, prayer meeting on Thursday, and personal Bible studies. His hunger for God’s word and enthusiasm for evangelism have already been refreshing. Yesterday, he stood before Grace Baptist Church Wood Green and testified to the grace of God in his life.

“Hi my name is Johnny Doherty.

I am from an Irish travelling community. I was brought up a Catholic. On occasion, I would go to mass pray to saints and pray to Mary. I used to bless my face and wear rosary beads thinking I was holy by doing things like that. I used to be a man of the world, desired the things of the world, material things. If that meant sinning to get those things I would do it without a care. I was led astray by my own desires to be cruel to brothers and sisters for my own self gain. I had no relationship with God. I had no remorse for the things I had done. I had no pity on anyone. I was very selfish, proud, arrogant, and would think I'm better than people and look down at brothers and sisters. I was a liar, cheat, blasphemer, adulterer, I hated people, I've broke all the commandments that God said not to.

But one night I thought about my life - if I was to die where would I go? And I knew the answer straight away, that I deserve to go to hell but I knew about Jesus Christ dying for my sins and that through him I can have eternal life in heaven. I repented for my sins and asked God to transform me and give me a new start. He gives me hope and deliverance, a new heart and mind, and I thank God for Jesus Christ taking my sin and my punishment that I deserved by laying his life down for me to take away my sins. I am very grateful and praise his name for forgiving me. 

This is all through prayer. I encourage anyone who has problems or struggles in their life to turn to Jesus Christ in prayer and he will give you a new start. Since the 1st of December God has changed me abundantly already. He's a God who answers prayers! One day I hope I can be a servant for the Lord and thank him for his grace. God bless you.”

Johnny was baptised as a believer in immersive portrayal of his belief in the history of Christ, his unity with Christ, his purity by Christ, and his eternity with Christ. Pray that his life will bear out the words spoken as he went into and came out of the water: 

“You are buried with Christ in baptism. Raised to walk in newness of life.”