Second Nature, Part One: My Story

I have always struggled with method evangelism. 

There are so many.

Since becoming a Christian I have read, watched, and listened to evangelists and minsters all over the country who argue their method wins souls at high success rates and their proof is in the pudding. 

I have met ministers, teachers, elders, and church leaders who constantly and consistently share the gospel with people and have developed solid methods for leading people to Jesus, but I have always had difficulty adapting. 

While I will always believe the teaching scripture is the way to go, I have had great difficulty implementing these ways in my daily evangelism. However, it wasn't until I asked, "why" that I began to understand why it didn't work for me. 

Moments of Clarity

I was working at small congregation in Northern California, trying to get somethings going when I stumbled upon a seminar of a brother from the south, who claimed to have won hundreds of souls for Christ and revitalized his churches attitude toward saving the lost. I was sold, I scoured the internet looking for more information on his seminars, I was hooked, I wanted to know more. As I watched it became more apparent that I needed to talk with him about coming to California to do his seminar for us, he agreed and flew out with his family. 

After hearing what he had to say I was excited to put his method into practice. I reached out to hundreds of christians all over the area encouraging them to attend and learn how to save souls, but as I applied the method, the people I was teaching began to drop like flies, but why? 

I leaned back in my chair and thought about it, why had so many people agreed to study, but then immediately decided they wanted no part of the study any longer? Was it me? Had I been doing this all wrong? Had I said something that wasn't right? After all, the man who taught it claimed 90% success rate, so why shouldn't I?

Then in a moment of clarity I realized it wasn't natural for me. It felt forced, impersonal, and argumentative. I reevaluated, prayed, and read scripture seeking answers, but nothing. 

A few years later, I was working as minister in the central valley, when it finally clicked. Covid hit, the church was shut down for months. After the drought of not meeting with my brothers and sisters for weeks on end, I reached out to a close friend in the area. I was tired of not seeing the people I'd once had strong brotherly connections with. We started a few people in my friends home and it grew like wild fire. I got to know people I had merely seen in the pews just a year before. And it was then I realized the power of human connection. 

A year or so after, I stepped on to a scale the seemingly lied to me about my weight. I was the heaviest I'd ever been, and the sickest I'd ever felt. I worked up the courage to set foot in the gym, ashamed at how I'd let myself go, and motivated to get strong. My dry spell from the gym had created unfamiliar territory and unfamiliarity with people. At first, I merely glared at others as if it were competing in a silent weight-lifting competition. I wasn't a fan, so I told myself that everyone who made eye contact with me while working out I was going to talk to. Blind of the Lords work through me, I did it, I made friends, connections, and became apart of a group of people who had all set out to do the same as me, get in shape. 

I shared my story and my faith naturally, and conversations about spiritual conditions and urgency came about organically as if I wasn't even trying. 

It was then, I understood clearly what worked for me. Sharing became natural I began to look at people, not as prospects to convert to cash, but as friends, human beings, who I grew to love. 

So what's worked for me? 

Pitch 

I won't try to pitch you on a method or sell you on why I think this way works the best, but what I will tell you is that by building relationships and creating friends you truly learn to love others. Consistency is key. Listening, and asking questions are also highly necessary as you get to know them, because it removes your bias and agenda to simply bring them to your faith. This comes, but with time, effort, and investment in their lives. We don't just need to show them we care, but we need to actually care about them, regardless. 

Challenge

So here's my encouragement to you...

Find a place you can go everyday and make friends, build a circle, a community, and let God work through you for His glory. Maybe for you, it's your job, or a hobby you enjoy, the point is being consistent. Consistency creates familiarity which eases the tensions or fears of speaking about your faith. Realize that part of sharing the gospel is sharing your story about how Jesus has changed your life. There are many people in the world, who like publican in Luke 18, think they are too bad or too sinful to get close to God and wouldn't dare to set foot in church building. But you being their friend? 

Might just open that door.  

- Nick