Instead, I spoke to those who had come for the week long street evangelism campaign put on by SOS Ministries. I hope I was useful in the role of coach, passing the torch to those who would rally in the streets. A number of us from SCP participated in the event. Yet I am both eager and fearful when it comes to speaking to crowds in public when I am intruding on their turf, uninvited, especially in San Francisco. The impact shows in people's eyes and reactions, which make an unforgiving judge of one's efforts.
Feedback is immediate and often unflattering.
Above that, you often never know whether you succeeded or failed. This is one of those few examples of when discipleship can become quite costly. At any rate when my talk ended, the troops went out into the streets, to cafes, the wharf, the Marina, Nob Hill, and Union Square. I kept thinking, they went like sheep before wolves, like troops into battle, a thankless and painful job. And most of them were from the lower strata of society and had the marks of hard lives.