Evangelism for the Discouraged and Disheartened
Are you discouraged or disheartened in your evangelism?
At 10ofThose we love Jesus and we pray you love Jesus too – but we acknowledge that we’re not always very good at explaining that to our friends and family. It may be a relief to admit it.
Many of us feel guilty about it. But guilt can drive us even further from sharing.
We don’t say very much for fear of what people will say, in case we get something wrong, because we’re not living as we know we should be, or perhaps because we’ve had a bad experience in the past.
If we’re honest, sometimes it doesn’t even enter our minds, we may have become complacent about sharing the gospel, happy to let others take the reins.
What we all need is help and encouragement!
We want to encourage you, and hopefully equip you, to share the fantastic news of the gospel.
It is uniquely wonderful news – and news that our friends and family desperately need to hear.
What are we so afraid of?
At an evangelism training session held by the Billy Graham Crusades, 50% of Christians surveyed said fear of how the other person would react was the biggest hindrance to evangelism.
“We feel that society is very hostile and that everyone is against us. We think that people will be aggressive and unreceptive if we try to start a conversation about Christianity or Jesus. But, friends, this is simply not true: most people don’t think about the church or the Christian faith from one month’s end to the next.” Jeremy Marshall, Scattering Seeds of Hope.
This is backed up by the recent Talking Jesus survey. 50% of Non Christians have a Christian friend or family member, and the top traits they described were that they were friendly (62%), caring (50%), good-humoured (33%) and generous (32%).
Further to this, 75% of non Christians who had a conversation about faith with a Christian said they were comfortable about the conversation, and over a third of them said it made them feel more positive about Jesus and want to know more about Him.
This is really encouraging!
What will they think?
“Many people don’t have the slightest clue about the Christian faith. They usually think it’s about being good and doing their best. And lots of people know very little about the Bible. Some people know nothing at all. Zero! Nada! Rien! I can’t tell you how many people have come up to me after I have spoken and say something like, ‘Oh I didn’t realise Jesus was a real person. I thought it was just a fairy story.’ Or they’ll say, ‘That’s a great story about Jesus. Did it really happen?’ But by far the most common reaction I get is this: ‘Why hasn’t anyone told me about this before?’ It’s eerie how many times I have heard this.
On the whole, it’s not that our friends have considered Christ and rejected him – they simply don’t know much about him.” Jeremy Marshall, Scattering Seeds of Hope
John MacKinnon, Director of Evangelism at The Word One to One, suggests we pray for five people consistently, that the opportunity would arise to ask them if they’ve ever read the Bible as an adult. If they haven’t, we can ask if they’d like to read it together. The Word One to One starts with just 18 sentences of John’s gospel, and helps people realise we’re not asking them to read the whole Bible together…at least not initially!
If they have read the Bible as an adult we can ask, “What did you think? Did it raise any questions?”. Don’t panic, we don’t need to have all the answers, but we can offer to go take a look and get back to them. We could also suggest reading it together, or to do a short course together.
We also need to remember that not everyone will want to talk about faith, and not everyone will accept our invitations, but that’s okay, we leave that with God. We are encouraged that it’s not our clever words, but the Holy Spirit, that is at work! (1 Corinthians 2:4)
What now?
We want to encourage you that evangelism is something you can, and should, be doing, but maybe you need some helpful pointers.
Pray - Pray every day for opportunities to share with others, knowing that it is the Holy Spirit who equips and helps us, so we don’t do this in our own power.
Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel Ephesians 6:19
Prepare Yourself - If you feel like you’re lacking in knowledge or experience then start to make changes to address that. Try outlining your testimony, and talk through it with a Christian friend, and read up on common questions and objections to Christianity.
Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 1 Peter 3: 15-16
Proudly Present - Speak about Jesus as you would speak about the most exciting and precious thing to you, don’t hide your enthusiasm.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes. Romans 1:16
Read God’s promises
Isaiah 41:10 encourages us and promises us the presence of the Living God when we are afraid.
“So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Suggested books: How to Talk About Jesus without Looking Like an Idiot, Share the Gospel
Need help with conversation starters? - Pray, and read Evangelistic Living, Scattering Seeds of Hope., Before You Share Your Faith, or Out of the Salt Shaker.
Not sure what type of evangelism would suit your personality? - Pray, and read Contagious Faith
Here's Jonathan Carswell review of it:
Want to encourage others in your church to get involved? - Pray, and plan some evangelism training sessions at your church, this will also give you the opportunity to support and encourage others in your fellowship as you seek to reach out. The A Passion for Life training series is a great starting point. The Learn the Gospel or Come and See series are also great.
Coming soon…How to Speak Life
