“Out there” with Jesus
We are bringing mission to the forefront of our church calendar this year in order to help all of us make the most of the opportunity that this moment in history provides. We are not looking to overload you with more activities however—we are not going to be asking you to head out and do mission; we’re encouraging you to do mission when you head out. As Elliot said last Sunday, we just want you to be “out there” with Jesus.
But what if you have never been in the habit of talking about Jesus with friends and family? What then? Listening is all good and well, you might say, but what if the person I am talking to wants to listen to what I believe!?
I can think of three reasons why we don’t bring Jesus up in our conversations and therefore might struggle in these situations.
The culture of our family and friends.
You know the old adage—don’t discuss politics, religion or money in polite company—and in some groups of people, they never have! To begin a conversation about Jesus would break the unwritten social covenant so we just don’t.
We have tried and had a bad experience.
Perhaps you tried to share something about your faith and were shouted down. Perhaps you were criticised or ostracised for mentioning Jesus. I would understand if you were genuinely fearful of giving it a go.
We don’t really know how to start.
Every time you have been in a situation where you feel you could, you don’t because you don’t know what to say or it feels forced or unnatural. I understand. I know those moments and particularly with people who you have only just met recently.
You might have other reasons in mind too but in the case of these three, I have a three part solution: pray, prepare, and patience.
Pray!
Pray that God would help you to share something of your thankfulness for Jesus and the significance of your relationship with him. Our confidence (and gentleness) in moments of opportunity will come not from inner bravado but from the power of God working in us. So pray for courage and confidence.
Prepare.
1 Peter 3:15 says, “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!” Write down something you might say to someone who asks you about your faith. Perhaps think of three questions you might be asked and write two sentence answers for each. Short and significant answers that provide enough to chew on but are short enough to remember the gist of. Then, practise your answers with a friend or family member. That will help you remember your words and make the moment with an unbeliever easier.
Be patient.
The right and obvious moment will come for you to share something even if it’s not the done thing or you have had a bad experience (I am confident of that if you are praying!). You don’t need to jump in at every chance but being ready to jump in at the right chance is wonderful. This week at our staff meeting, one of the team mentioned how they chose not to raise Jesus at an opportune moment for very good reasons. We celebrated that because it reflected good listening and thoughtful, patient, prayerful engagement with their friend.
We all naturally talk about things we love: for me that’s cycling, running, bush walks and the beach. Let’s see if we can add Jesus to that list of natural conversation topics. Give it a go this week and let me know what happens.
