Two are better than one

Today my family and I spent part of the day at Seaworld. I was praying for a chance to initiate with someone to share the gospel.  My amazing wife reminded me of a very important lesson about evangelism. Two are better than one. It has been a while since I have had someone with me while I've tried to initiate spiritual conversations. Her feedback made me more aware of my need to be direct and to speak from the heart. I had fallen into a certain patterns and approach's where I would just kind of go on autopilot.  Each person is different and we constantly need to be relying on the spirit. There is a reason why Jesus sent the disciples out in pairs.

The discipline of sharing

How can I share the gospel with power and zeal if I am not believing the gospel myself? As I drove home tonight after an attempt to talk to a couple who was leaving Wallmart, I realized how often I detach sharing the gospel from my own heart. How pitiful would it be if I committed my life to sharing the greatest news ever without truly believing and trusting that it applies to me.  I am not saying that I should only share when we feel a certain warm fuzzy feeling but rather that I would be honest with God about the condition of my heart.  As I commit to share daily I am finding that verbalizing this good news acts as a guard against apathy and unbelief. Being active in sharing my faith is just as important for me than the person I am sharing with.

Who is Jesus?

I started walking towards a couple who were standing by their car because it had overheated. As I began to talk to them they shared that they were muslim.  We ended up talking for over an hour.  Tark grew up catholic and later on became a muslim.  Needless to say he had a very interesting perspective. We mainly discussed the differences between their view of Jesus versus the the Christian view.  It reinforced how the scriptures saying that the  "WORD was God" (John 1) radically changes everything.  It was a blessing to talk to this couple.  Please pray that Jesus would reveal himself to this couple.  I got their contact information so pray also that we could talk more.

Preach the word, be prepared

 "I solemnly urge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who will someday judge the living and the dead  when he appears to set up His Kingdom: Preach the Word of God. Be prepared , whether the time is favorable or not."   2 Timothy 4:1-2

I have been humbled and challenged by Paul's charge to Timothy.  Being in full time ministry I am supposed to have this evangelism thing down, right?   Well just in the few interactions I have had recently I have become aware of just how unprepared I am at times to use God's word.  Also I have noticed that just like with anything else the more that I engage people with the gospel the more alert and sensitive I become.  While at the same time when I don't actively share my faith the more unprepared and out of shape I am.

Today I approach a couple in the park. Joseph was 23. Sorry I can't remember his friends name.  I approached them by saying "could I share some good news with you that changed my life?"  After sharing I bit of my story along with the gospel they both said that they had accepted Christ at some point.  Although they both talked about going to church and having family that is religious rather than more of a personal experience.  They seemed ready to move on so I said goodbye.  As I left I felt I wondered if I had correctly handled God's word.  Did they really understand what it means to truly give their lives to Christ?  Was this just something they grew up hearing at church but not really experiencing life change?  Please pray that this couple would truly understand the gospel.

 This challenges me to be prepared and to preach the Word whether the time is favorable or not.

Just do it

One of the biggest ways that the enemy keeps me from being faithful in sharing my faith is overthinking.  How should  I approach them?..or maybe this isn't the right person?..they don't look like they would be open to talk. All these thoughts can rush through my mind and can keep me from just doing it.

As I went to Walmart tonight knowing that I was intending to share the gospel with someone I was feeling confident. But as soon as I parked the hesitation began. Then I was convicted of my lack of faith and reminded of the encouragement my wife gave me before I left.  Through the power of the Holy spirit I was able to have two encouraging conversations right outside Wall-mart.  The Lord blesses our willingness to step out in faith even when we feel uncomfortable..