Massachusetts
|
Massachusetts |
|
Roadside Mission of Boston
Jim Costigan
Brother Jim Costigan and his wife
Jo-Ann have been doing mission work on the streets of Boston for over ten
years. God delivered brother Costigan from a life on the streets and
gave him a burden to reach people on the streets with the gospel. With
a population of over four million people of many different nationalities
living in Boston and it’s suburbs, this is a great and effective open door
for the gospel.
Brother Costigan works the streets almost daily,
presenting the gospel to the people through street preaching, free gospels,
New Testaments, Bibles, gospel tracts, and preaching cassette tapes. A
number of businesses now allow him to keep gospel tracts and preaching tapes
on racks in their place of business, where people can take them free of
charge. At times he broadcasts preaching on the streets by use of a
P.A. system. His ministry on the streets has varied from witnessing to
and feeding the homeless, to speaking with international diplomats about
their souls!
The Costigan family receives financial and material support through Charity Baptist Mission. The mission board also sends them hundreds of pre-recorded preaching cassettes monthly for distribution in the Boston area.
Prayer letter May 2006
Greetings from Boston,
It’s good to be able to write to you again and tell you some great things the Lord has done. First I would like to thank you for your prayers and support. Now that the price of gas is up to three dollars, it costs me sixty dollars each time I fill up my gas tank. This is vital since I depend on my car to get me to all the areas in the city where I preach and give out gospel tracts.
I am out on the streets again since I was released from the hospital. Since January, I’ve been admitted into the hospital two times. I have some bad news for you and would appreciate your prayers in these areas. Two months ago, I had half of a finger amputated due to either frost bite or circulation problems (the doctors are giving me different opinions). In the operating room, I said farewell to the finger as follows, “Well Mr. Finger, it’s time for you to leave me you’ve been through a lot with me these past 52 years, but you’ve got to go.” I now can tell people now that I have two pinky fingers on the same hand. However, this does not get in the way of me passing out tracts or anything else. I have found out that I can do just about anything as before. I just don’t enjoy looking at it. Preacher Luther Carver from North Carolina lost his finger years ago. Yet anytime I see him at camp meeting, it looks as if he can do just about anything. I also have a lower lung infection interfering with my breathing. This has been a battle I’ve been facing and will have to until the infection is resolved.
Yesterday after going to the hospital for a follow up appointment, I went to the train station to give out tracts and talk with people. I gave out about 125 tracts and 20 Spanish tapes. These are good tapes because I know the source. I had a good time. While downtown the other day, the Lord touched me to preach and it felt good. My lung problem did not get in the way. I met a young preacher boy that used to come out and street preach with me. He had not come out for about five years, but he started giving out tracts. He told me he wanted to start coming out again, but so far he hasn’t called me. People do this to me all the time. They get excited for the moment and then I don’t hear from them again. I refuse to chase people down. If the Lord puts it on them to come, it will be real and will last. I’ve been at it for the past 23 years, and I know it is the will of God for me.
Well, today I had problems with my van. I brought it to my mechanic and as we were looking over it, part of a fan blade broke off and flew by my face missing me by half of an inch. I found a junk yard that sold me a used one for fifty dollars. I guess you get an idea where your support for this ministry goes. I have to keep this van, because I don’t know where I would get another van with a wheel chair lift for free. I am so thankful for the way the Lord provides. I have no regrets and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. In my next news letter I’ve got some great things to tell you that I believe the Lord is going to do.
Please pray for my dad Allan Costigan. He’s not saved and his health is failing him. He has a Catholic priest counseling him, but of course he’s got to get away from this priest and come to the high priest Jesus Christ. He lives in Alabama so this makes it hard for me to get to him but that may change soon so please pray about this. I will let you know as things progress.
Your co-laborer in the field till he comes,
Jim and Jo-Ann Costigan
Luke 1:37
For
what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them,
as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for? Deuteronomy
4:7
Summer 2003
Greetings from Boston;
This has been one of the best Spring and Summers I can remember for tract
distribution. Jo-Ann and I have been going to areas that do not have a Gospel
witness as far as I know (no good Bible Preaching Church) So these people do not
get confronted with the real Gospel. Instead when they go to their church they
are being preached a social gospel and some by a so-called woman minister. Some
of these old churches (Methodist, Presbyterian and Baptist) use to preach the
Gospel. In just one weeks time I was able to put out 3,350 tracts. I went to
the motorcycle rally in NH and (200,000) people were there. I was able to give
out 1,000 chick tracts called “The greatest story ever told”. There are some
tracts that I do not like and do not use, but this one has nothing but the
Gospel.
I have a box of "This was your life" tracts that I like and within a 1/2 hour
time, I gave out 300 of them at a train station. I told Jo-Ann it has been 20
years this year, of giving out tracts and preaching on the street. Many of the
same people have been coming through this station on the way to work for the
past 20 years. Some people will be going out one door of the station and will
intentionally come to the door where I am standing and grab a tract. Some
people when they have already gone by me will turn right around and come back to
get a tract.
am so grateful the Lord has called me to this work. I have had some of
the greatest moments in my life through this ministry. There is a place on the
Boston waterfront called Castle Island. It is an old fort which was used to
fight off the British and was also used in other wars. It is a tourist trap and
is now a peninsula, so you can drive on it. There were so many people there
this past weekend that they had to turn people away. Hundreds of tracts were
given out that day. There are so many places to give out tracts it's a tracters
gold mine.
I have met, and have been able to tract many Muslims lately. They have been
immigrating from Africa and the Middle East to the land of opportunity. Please
keep me in prayer as I am planning to write another tract. I have already done
several tracts; my testimony and the "Freedom Trail" tract (which I use on the
Historic Boston Freedom Trail) which tells the historical freedom trail that
Jesus blood provides. Thousands of tourists walk this scenic tour or take a
trolley car. People come from all over the world to see Boston, New York and
Washington D.C. As wicked as this country is, it is still considered the best
in the world. I thank the Lord that we still have the freedom to worship God,
preach on the streets and put out gospel tracts. With all this terrorism and
homeland security, we may lose it.
I went to the summer Campmeeting at in Bristol TN. Because of my health I flew
three hours rather than drive 16 hours to get there. I had a cloth bag with my
battery charger in it (for my electric wheel chair). I taped the handles so it
wouldn't fall out. The security people just asked what was in the bag and
didn't undo the tape to see what this very heavy thing was. It could have been
a bomb. I am so glad I'm saved, if a bomb went off it would have sent a suicide
bomber to hell and me to heaven. I was able to give tracts to everybody I had
contact with, other wise you have to have a permit and can't go beyond to the
passenger gate.
I ask you to pray fervently for Joe-Ann. I can't get into it all, but she is
having a lot to go through. My health has been better and I know it's the Lord
doing it. There is so much to say it would take a ten-page newsletter to tell
you. Here is a funny one: I was fishing with my son and had grand kids we used
bread for bait and I said we should brought corn or worms for bait. As I pulled
the line it felt heavy, I thought I might have a fish, but it was a ball of
fishing string with two hooks and on the end of one hook was a piece of corn. I
laughed so hard and thought it was a reminder of Philippians
4:19
..”but my God shall supply all your need”...you know the rest. God is so good
to us, we have a great God and I thank Him for taking such good care of me. I
will write again sooner and sure to tell you of some of His mighty works Ps
106:1-2
Thank you once again, your friends in Christ
Jim and Jo-Ann
For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them,
as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for? Deuteronomy 4:7