by Jack Hyles
There are several ways to do this, but you must try to get them to pray. If he is really ready, say, “Could I pray for you, and while I pray, would you pray and ask God to save you today?” Maybe he is not quite that ready. Maybe you don’t know. You could say, “Could I pray that you will get saved?” Maybe you don’t think he will let you pray for him to get saved. Then you say, “Could I have a word of prayer with you before I go?” Anyway, to get your head bowed is good. If you are talking to him, he might interrupt, but if you are talking to the Lord, he won’t. You can preach him a little sermon in the prayer. If you can’t win a fellow to Christ, and if he won’t let you present the plan to him, the best way to tell him how to be saved is to tell the Lord and let the sinner hear you.
I go into a home and say, “Sir, would you like to know how to be saved?”
“No, Don’t have time for it. The wife’s sick and I’m busy.”
“Could I have a prayer for your wife before we go, that she will get well?” With his wife lying there sick, a man would be a fool not to let the preacher pray for her. He says, “Well, O.K.”
I pray, “Dear Lord, bless this wife and make her well, and help this man to know that Romans 3:10 says, ‘As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one.’ And if people die in their sins, according to Romans 6:23 ‘the wages of sin is death.’ O dear Lord, show him that Romans 5:8 is true when it says that ‘God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners…’” Pray him the plan. He won’t interrupt you. You can get by with a lot of things talking to the Lord that you wouldn’t talking to him. After you review, get to pray some way or another. If he will consider getting saved, good. If you can’t get by with that, just get him to let you pray.
26. ASK HIM TO PRAY
I stop abruptly in my prayer. I pray a simple prayer. Never pray a big prayer.
You must pray a prayer so simple that he won’t mind his prayer following yours. If you pray, “Jesus, Thou God of Jacob; oh, Thou God of Rehoboam and Jeroboam and Jehoshaphat; oh, Thou great God of the universe, the omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient God, would you save this man?” After that, he won’t pray. But you can pray this, “Dear Lord, here is a fellow who needs to get converted. I pray You will help him get saved. May he receive Christ. You love him, dear Lord…” “Now fellow, will you pray?” You pray like that, and he can pray his little prayer in a minute.
I always stop in the middle of my prayer. I say, “Dear Lord, lead this man to be saved. You led me here and I pray that he will be saved today. May his wife have a Christian husband and the little children a Christian daddy. Make this be the day of his salvation. Now while our heads are bowed in prayer, Mr. Doe, would you be willing today to ask God to forgive you and tell Him you want to get saved?”
See, you stop in the middle of your prayer and lead him to pray. Let me say this: Fifty per cent of the time when you get this far the lost person is going to pray. Now, I would suggest you tell him what to pray but not the words. Like this: “Would you ask God to forgive you and tell Him you want to receive Jesus today?” Fifty per cent of the time he will make up a prayer. I’ve heard some of the sweetest prayers. A lot of times he won’t pray. He does not know how to pray. He says, “I have never prayed before.” In that case I say, “Mr. Doe, would you just say these words and mean them in your heart, ‘Lord, be merciful to me a sinner… forgive my sins and save my soul… I now receive Jesus as my Saviour’?”
Let me say this: By the time you get there, the forces of Hell will be fighting you. By the time you get this far talking to a sinner, you will feel like everything you own depends on what you do right now. Realize the seriousness of it all.
27. ASK HIM TO TAKE YOUR HAND
He has just prayed and asked the Lord to save him. “Now Mr. Doe, while our heads are bowed, if Jesus Christ came in the room, He would extend His hand, no doubt, and ask you to take His hand if you would receive Him. Mr. Doe, if you will make this day the day of your salvation and this moment receive Christ as your Saviour, just like my hand were His hand, would you put your hand in mine?” Now, he takes your hand.
28. YOU PRAY AGAIN
“Our Father, help this man to see in his heart that salvation is by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and what He did on Calvary. Give him peace in his heart and the assurance of salvation. In Jesus’ name. Amen.” Before you pray that last prayer, you may do several things. For example, if the wife is in the room, have her come over and take his hand, too. Then ask little Johnny to come and place his hand on Mommy’s and Daddy’s. Then you can have your closing prayer.
by Jack Hyles from the book Let’s Go Soulwinning