We enjoyed a sunny few hours in central Brighton yesterday. Five of us took part – either talking to people around the Bible table, or going out with belief surveys and gospel leaflets.

There are festivals happening in Brighton so it’s quite a buzzing place at the moment and we met all kinds of people. Some had never really thought about what they believed. Others wanted to know how to help their children or grandchildren who are asking big questions. Some were clearly on a journey to discover Jesus and were glad to make a connection.

At one point I wondered down the street handing out John’s Gospels. A man sitting outside a cafe asked what I was offering.
“It’s a gospel of John – part of the Bible”
“Oh, no thanks – I don’t read fiction,” he quipped.
Well I started to explain that it wasn’t fiction but an eye witness account of the life and message of Jesus (John 20:30,31; 21:24,25).
“I’m an atheist. I have science,” he replied
There were only to be another couple of sentences to our conversation. I began to explain that we’re all believers – even atheists have to believe in something.

And then the conversation ended. Just friendly, playful sparring. But I left thinking if only I had a one liner that would really have either opened up the discussion more or left a ‘thorn in his shoe” that would make him think.
Then it came to me in a Ray Comfort epiphany.
“So you believe in the scientific impossibility that nothing created everything and that life sprang from non-life?
That must take a lot of faith.
How do you know that that’s not a fiction?”

It would have been a great conversation opener – the fiction of a godless universe and a godless existence.
I’ll think I’ll keep that one up my sleeve for next time and pray for the right words at the right time.