An Unlikely Meeting

One of the greatest joys of evangelism is this: God places you in front of people you would have never planned to meet.

I was sitting alone at a restaurant bar, eating a quiet meal, when a young woman named Hannah sat down next to me. Bars have a way of making people open up—walls come down, conversations start, and strangers become surprisingly honest. Hannah was no exception.

We began with small talk, but it didn’t stay there long. Eventually, the conversation turned to what we did for a living. She shared that she was working as an exotic dancer to pay her way through school. Then she asked what I did.

I knew this could get awkward.

“I’m kind of like a pastor,” I said. “I work with churches to help people share Jesus with others.”

Immediately, I saw it—the hesitation. The subtle pullback. The expectation of judgment.

So I addressed it directly.

“Don’t worry—I’m not here to judge you.”

She paused… then leaned back in.

What followed was honest, raw, and real. She told me she had grown up around Catholicism but had never really practiced. She had never read the Bible. Most of her interactions with Christians had been confusing—like they were speaking a different language, using verses and ideas that didn’t connect with her at all.

But something had been stirring in her heart.

In the two months before we met, she had started thinking about becoming what she called a “real Christian.” She believed God existed—but didn’t know how God could feel about someone like her. Her life was filled with things she knew weren’t right: drugs, alcohol, sex, and broken patterns.

And underneath it all was one question:

Would God even want me?

In that moment, I felt led to share a simple passage:

“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.” (John 3:16–17)

Her eyes lit up.

There was no theological debate. No lecture. Just a simple, powerful truth: God loves you.

We spent the rest of the evening talking about that love—how it meets us where we are, not where we pretend to be. Before we left, we prayed together right there, asking God to step into her life.

I asked if she would be interested in studying the Bible together.

She said yes.

There was just one problem—she was moving to Arizona in a few days.

So we adapted. We went online.

That was nine months ago.

Since then, we’ve studied the Bible together every Sunday.

And the transformation has been undeniable.

She went from believing she couldn’t understand the Bible to reading it on her own.
She went from a life marked by drugs and alcohol to being clean for six months.
Her prayers changed—from sounding like a wish list to becoming real conversations with God, marked by gratitude, repentance, and care for others.

And now, her boyfriend has joined our studies. For the first time in his life, he’s reading the Bible too.

This is evangelism.

Not a program. Not a script. Not a perfect setting.

Just being available—and trusting that God is already at work in someone’s heart before you ever say a word.

Please pray for Hannah—that she continues to walk with Christ and remains steadfast in the faith God is building in her.

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Noah Banks is one of the Georgia-Cumberland Evangelism Trainers