Evangelism Coach

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Evangelism, at least in my circles of influence, seems to be a dreaded word. At its mention, some people feel queasy, the hairs stand on the back of their neck, people want to secretly leave the room.

On the opening night of our Listening Evangelism Conferences, one participant in Michigan simply said “Evangelism scares us.”

Why I hate Evangelism

From an expired link in this EvangelismCoach.org article, I found “Five Reasons Why I Hate Evangelism.”

1. It violates the golden rule - most Christians would not want to be approached by a member of another religion the way Christians approach others in evangelistic attempts
2. It calls the authenticity of relationships into question - are you my friend because you’re really my friend, or so you can convert me?
3. The moment of truth - we think we must identify a “no turning back” point where you pressure someone to make a decision, and if they don’t respond well, that jeopardizes the relationship.
4. Asking someone about the Gospel feels like making a pass at them.
5. If I like my friends, and want them to continue to be my friends, I have a major incentive NOT to try to evangelize them.

Emotions!

Our emotional baggage associated with “Evangelism” is probably the biggest baggage.

Try answering this question: “What do you think about when you hear the word Evangelism?” (Reese, 11)

• Door to Door
• Pushy televangelists with funky hairdos asking for money and pushing people down.
• What does “one beggar telling another where to find bread” mean?
• My friend was obnoxious year after year always telling me I needed Jesus.
• It implies other religions are wrong, that Christians are better

Other lists that I have gathered over the years include:

• Fear of Rejection
• To mess up and somebody’s eternity destiny is your fault
• Interrupting somebody’s life
• Losing a friendship
• Fear of offending
• Fear of what others will think about you.
• Stuck with unanswerable questions
• Feeling inadequate
• Being seen as arrogant
• Fear of being kicked out of your family or breaking a family relationship
• Fear of your own weakness, hypocrisies, and inadequacies
• Doubt and not being certain about your own beliefs.
• Guilt
• Fear of being a hypocrite.
• Drive-by Evangelism

Let me ask you this?

What do you think about when you hear the word Evangelism?

I’d like to compile a larger list, so feel free to comment or contact me via the form on the right.

Popularity: 50% [?]

I’ve been reading a new book since I very quickly finished Reimagining Evangelism: Inviting Friends on a Spiritual Journey.

This new book, Doubting: Growing Through the Uncertainties of Faith, by Alister McGrath, speaks of the presence of doubt in our Christian walk, but also during the conversion process. He raises excellent points about the role of doubt in our evangelism.

What is doubt?

Doubt, he writes, is part of our human nature. Its not skepticism, nor is it unbelief. Rather, its a difficulty understanding. Skepticism is willful doubt as a matter of principle. Unbelief is a decision not to believe, but doubt exists in the abscence of information, when we have an incomplete understanding.

In our conversion experience, some of us likely had lots of doubts to overcome, we wanted to gather as much information as possible to know that we were making a rational evaluation of the evidence and consequences of accepting Jesus into our life. We searched intently for answers until we had enough doubts settled to committ ourselves fully to following the Lord. Here, doubt was a major obstacle to coming to faith.

Others of us may have had a powerful encounter with the Lord, decided to follow him, and then begin to wrestle with the truth of it all. The experiental encounter was enough to allow us to risk everything without full knowledge of what we were getting into. The character of God that we discovered in that encounter revelaed enough to us to trust Him for everything else, and sort it out as we mature in faith. Here, doubt becomes a partner in the journey of faith.

Faith and doubt co-exist
Ultimately however, to believe in God demands faith. To accept Christ into our lives demands fatih. To accept Christianity as true demands faith. Becuase faith is required, doubt will exist in our life.

“Faith is not belief without proof, but turst without reservations — a trust in God who has shown himself worthy of that trust.” — McGrath.

“Faith needs the vitality of experience if it is to live — and the support of undrstanding if it is to survive.” (McGrath, p. 31).

Doubt and Evangelism
As evangelists, we have to deal with doubt in our own life, and in the life of people we share with.

First, our own. Do we really believe what we share, what we proclaim? How active is your relationship with the Lord? Do you have the “vitality of experience” that supports your belief in the gospel? Or is what you share some one else’s script? We want to be authentic in our sharing, and your owned lived experience in your relationship with the Lord is the most authentic of testimony. How can we truthfully proclaim that we know we are forgiven with we question the truthfulness of that statement in our own heart?

Sure we can proclaim it because its part of the gospel content, as a propositional idea. But, can we share it with conviction because we believe it ourselves? If we doubt our own forgiveness, or our own hope for life after death, or even the love of God for us in Christ, I’m not sure we can proclaim it ourselves convinvingly. The problem is not the gospel itself, its our doubt in its validity for us.

Secondly, we have to deal with doubt in the people we share with. As mentioned, doubt can be a hurdle to overcome that keeps a person from committing to Jesus Christ, or doubt can cause people to question their initial committment. Again, the problem is not with the gospel itself, but with our inabiliy to see what God is doing with the seeds we plant. The seed works in secret, the problem is not with the seed itself. As evangelists, we help people along in their journey to Christ, planting seeds as prompted by the Lord. Some will fall on good ground, others will be eaten by the birds. The problem is not the seed, its the soil.

Popularity: 14% [?]