Even those of us who minister in God’s church often struggle with doing personal evangelism. We know we need to do it, but it’s not always easy to connect with non-believers and share the gospel with them. So, we turn to programs to help us jump-start this process.
I’m not opposed to programs; in fact, I’ve seen good programs that equip believers to evangelize. At the same time, though, I don’t want us to miss a simple, basic step that can charge our evangelistic efforts.
To see that step, I turn to two of the apostle Paul’s writings to hear his requests for prayer from other believers:
- “Pray also for me, that the message may be given to me when I open my mouth to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel. For this I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I might be bold enough to speak about it as I should.” (Eph 6:19-20)
- “At the same time, pray also for us that God may open a door to us for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains, so that I may make it known as I should.” (Col 4:3-4)
This was the apostle extraordinaire admitting by his request that he needed God’s help to evangelize. He needed boldness and clarity, and he knew God alone would open doors for him to share. Thus, he asked believers to pray for him.
My point is really simple: if Paul needed ongoing prayer to do evangelism, I suspect all of us do, too. If you want to evangelize more, ask some church members to pray for you – for boldness, clarity, and opportunity – and give them permission to hold you accountable for your evangelistic efforts. Prayer + accountability can make a big difference.
Isn’t it time that we stopped “doing evangelism” as if sharing the good news of Jesus Christ and making disciples is some discrete activity in which we engage apart from the rest of the way that we live? Isn’t it time to think in terms of adopting an evangelistic lifestyle, a lifestyle in which sharing the good news of Jesus Christ and making disciples is a normal part of Christian living? Praying for each other and praying for those who do not yet know Jesus Christ should be a routine part of our lives as Christians.
Dr. Lawless, I hope to write a short book on this very thing.
1John.1.3 – We are telling you about what we ourselves have actually seen and heard, so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.