Two Conversations a World Apart

On a recent Saturday morning, I woke early and had a few hours before everyone would be up. I went online to take a few conversations and join the overnight crew of Responders. I ended up with two chats going at once and I thought about both people for the rest of the day.

The first was Min, reaching out from Japan. She’d been reading Acts 13 and noticed how the Holy Spirit spoke to Paul and Barnabas. Christians around her seemed to hear from God regularly. Her question was earnest and fresh: How does the Holy Spirit actually speak to us?

Min was a slow typer, so I picked up a second conversation. This one was Scott in Maine. He was 68, exhausted, caring for a chronically ill spouse, and carrying what he called a “besetting sin” since childhood. He warned me he might need to leave at any moment to help his wife.

While waiting on Scott, I returned to Min. She was a new believer, curious and a little confused. The conversation was warm and unhurried. We talked about how God speaks most clearly through Scripture and how we learn to hear Him better as we grow closer to Him.

It was then that Scott shared his struggle: he had always had a deep desire to be a woman. He’d followed Jesus for decades and knew the truth. I chose to listen and let him share.

Min had no Christian community, so we focused on simple biblical principles and finding a healthy church. We talked about the wisdom of walking slowly before God and how wisdom has a pace that is slow and a posture that is low. She finished encouraged: “I will pray and wait and really pray for strength.” A sweet conversation with a new believer searching for more of God.

Scott had been typing out his full story and how he recently created a fake online persona of a woman he dreamed of being, had enjoyed being referred to as a woman, then deleted the profile. The compulsion had grown stronger under the weight of caregiving. He didn’t come for answers but for a few minutes of confession and encouragement. We talked about how feeding secret sin gives the enemy more ground, and how accountability from his pastor or other men might help. The chat ended when his wife called for him.

Two conversations that were worlds apart in every way. This is online evangelism. You never know who will reach out: a curious young believer in Japan asking her first deep theological question, or a weary brother in Maine barely holding on. Both matter deeply to Jesus. Both deserve a real person who will listen, speak truth, and point them to Christ. That’s why we’re here and what your partnership makes possible.