This past week, we returned on two occasions to the Sebastian FL library. It has become a recent favorite venue for us because it requires very little planning and setup, requires only two evangelists, and we consistently have fruitful encounters there. There is usually a nice steady flow of library patrons of all ages to whom, at the very least, we give witness through friendly greetings and invitations to our Catholic Truth table and Prayer Station.

This week, we met a woman who had been attending Calvary Chapel for six years but couldn’t really tell us why she liked it there. Then she said she liked the  three pastors, the community and the activities for the men, like corn hole. She wished for more activities for women, but we missed this opportunity to mention the many activities for women at our Catholic Churches.

We prayed for Kim, for her badly injured knee and for gainful employment. She was on crutches and limping badly, had been unable to see a doctor, and was living out of an RV behind a business with her son Taylor. After discussing these issues, they both said they were looking for a new church. So we explained some aspects of the faith, and invited them to St Sebastian. They took a New Testament, a church bulletin, crucifixes and chains, and said they were looking forward to attending.

We spoke with Hope, a young lady who had some experiences with Catholicism when younger, but had not been attending any church for a long time. We talked with her about the many benefits of being in a Catholic faith community. She took a New Testament, a “Why Be Catholic” pamphlet, a Mass guide, and a church bulletin. She said she would be going.

Mark had some Catholic experiences with family years ago, and was very interested in what we were doing. He took a “Why Be Catholic” pamphlet, a Mass times card and the books “The Bible is a Catholic Book,”and “The Eucharist is Jesus.” He also asked for my phone number, which I gave and said I’d be happy to talk with him further and accompany him (on his faith journey). When he left the library, he made a point to stop at the table and shake hands again.

Kyra, who’s nondenominational, took a small cross and chain for her young son. While holding him on her hip, she placed it around his neck, and asked him who is that on the cross. He looked at it and said, “Jesus.” It was a delight to see how she continued to teach him by asking him different questions.

We spoke with two teen women about the faith. They took many pamphlets and a church bulletin. We invited them to Mass, highlighted the one with the most young people, and invited them to a free Life in the Spirit Seminar. One of them said her schedule would allow her to attend and seemed interested.

We spoke with an Orthodox woman without a local Orthodox Church. To help form friendship, we asked if she knew about the Orthodox Church’s annual, and apparently miraculous, Holy Fire ceremony at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher on Holy Saturday. After describing it to her, we asked if she was allowed to attend our Catholic Church. She said she could, but preferred Orthodox on TV.

We noticed a man who came and went several times engaged in some kind of work. So we asked about his work, and learned from John about patents and copyrights. Without knowing his faith tradition, but after having such a nice engaging time with him, we invited him to a Life in the Spirit Seminar. He was interested, but would be returning to Maine before then.

We met many practicing Catholics who appreciated us being there. One took The “Bible is a Catholic Book,” and some others took a rosary or crucifix and chain. We told them about the Carlos Acutis movie in theaters next week, and we signed up one for the Life in the Spirit Seminar.

Ninety-three year old Dale showed us  photocopies of a picture of him sponsoring David into the church at Easter Vigil. After every daily Mass, he goes to McDonalds for coffee with a small group of parishioners. It was there, he invited David, a stranger, to join them at their table. Dale was now so happy about his success sponsoring David, he was going to mail copies of the photo to family and friends (as he doesn’t use email, text or any of that kind of stuff).

You see, you’re never too old to evangelize!