I recently saw the movie God is not Dead. My own reaction to the movie is somewhat mixed to the movie. But a wise evangelist could suggest this movie to a truly seeking friend and allow it to open further conversational opportunities. This movie will likely not successfully engage those who’s minds are already made …
What is postmodernism in respect to Christian Evangelism? How I try to explain it to people without being overly academic, that helps the evangelist understand the times and dominant philosophy of the era.
Being cross cultural missionaries, I run into a clash of worldviews. Likewise, teaching in a missions institute on worldviews, I seek to offer explanations and suggest strategies to contextualize the gospel. We may not see it a lot in the US, but a common worldview I encounter when I minister in Latin America is animism. …
I recently picked up and reread my copy of They like Jesus, but not the Church by Dan Kimball, in reaction to a post I read this week at the Christian Manifesto. Kimball gears his book at those who want to get out of the Christian subculture and actually engage people in spiritual conversation. Most of …
At my kids Christmas school musical this year, the emcee said “No matter what holiday you celebrate this time of year, it’s all about giving back.” Our kids school is multi-cultural, made of immigrants from more than 30 countries and likely just as many different religions.
In the course of my consulting and speaking at evangelism training workshops, I’ve encountered many churches that have very active outreach and community service programs: After school tutoring Shut in or Prisoner Visitation Habitat for Humanity work projects Medical outreaches for the community Participating in Crop Walks for Hunger Relief Food pantries, clinics, shelters for …
I remember a model of evangelism that felt like a sales pitch. I would attend a seminar and learn the newest script for evangelism. The idea is that I would learn a series of conversational steps that would help people See their need for Jesus Make a decision to follow Christ Repeat a prayer after …
I’ve been reading Walking with the Poor, by Bryant L. Myers. The book looks at principles and practices of transformational development. The book explores poverty, causes of poverty, and calls the church to action in engaging broken systems that cause poverty. He lays forth a strong case that poverty is a “deficit, entanglement, lack of …
This week, I’ve been reading unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity… and Why It Matters. It is the fruit of a 3 year study of perceptions that those not it in the church have about Christians and the church. Simply put, Christianity has an image problem. One surprise to the researchers was …
A few years ago, we had the privilege of backpacking in Peru, on the Inca Trail, to the old city of Machu Picchu. Along the way, we got to learn a lot about the Inca culture that built the city, and some of its beautiful architecture, likely from the 15th century AD (1450s or so).
