Well, this marks the first time I have ever blogged on the World Wide Web. Ashley said she made this for us to get on here and talk about whatever was on our minds. I doubt I'll have any cool pictures or videos, but maybe every now and then I'll have something to say that's worth reading. Here goes...
The past few weeks I've read a couple books and I've watched numerous videos in my spare time (or work time, whatever). The two books were written by Francis Chan and David Platt and the majority of the videos were sermons of these two guys. They have given me a fresh perspective on things. Who God is. Who Jesus is. Who I am in relation to my Lord. What is my role in His story? I've been doing a lot of praying about these things and what it comes down to is this... Jesus calls all believers to spread the Gospel. Unfortunately, this is probably what I'm worst at in my walk with Jesus Christ.
Now, I'm not the most talkative individual in the world. Ashley is a wonderful balance for me. She's the friendliest person I know and I'm pretty sure if she's ever seen you, she's introduced herself to you. I could very comfortably sit in a room with you for 12 hours and not say a word. My point is, when I do have conversations with people they tend to be more surface level conversations. Nice and safe. Why is this? My greatest joy in the world is the relationship I have with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Why would I want to compartmentalize that relationship? Is it because I'm afraid of what people would say? How they would react? What they would think of me? I read a verse like Luke 21:17, "You will be hated by all for my name's sake," and I say I'm OK with that. But am I really? My inaction says that I'm not. My fear of "crossing that line" with family, friends, co-workers, or perfect strangers prevents me from truly saying OK to this verse. I'm basically saying that what people think of me is more important than the One who created me. This needs to change.
So for the past few weeks I've been reading and watching and the verse that has come up more often than not is Mark 16:12, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation." I don't want to fear what others think because the bigger fear is that family, friends, co-workers, or perfect strangers might live a life, and subsequent death without knowing who Jesus Christ is...and I could have done something about it.
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes..." -Romans 1:16.
JD
Well put. I do feel that we have also been given a variety of gifts. People of "few words" may have all the patience and kindness in the world but not the ability to converse. But, this still does not give Christians a free hall pass to not spread the word. Great words to ponder on.... Spuring me to read and share today!
ReplyDeleteThis is a common problem--even for extroverts. Part of it is that we don't really know what we're doing-- how to start the conversation and then... what do we say next? How do we simply, easily, clearly present the gospel and let God do the rest? My father is a soul winner. He regularly goes to apartment complexes and just knocks on doors until someone lets him in to preach the gospel. Most of the time, he ends up leading that person--or whole family--to Christ. Why? Because God has gifted him in this, but also because he's well trained. Dad's about to turn 70, and in the course of his years as a Christian, God led him to create a curriculum to teach others how to painlessly and easily share the gospel. Beautiful Feet, the training Dad wrote, is solid; it has helped me tremendously. Knowing how to start the secular conversation and then move to the spiritual, how to answer the theology questions without getting sidetracked off the real issue of salvation-- these have been priceless lessons. My parents moved to Raleigh two months ago, and they have been attending SB. If you want to meet up with my dad, he'd be thrilled to train you in soul winning. You'll be surprised at how much easier it is once you know how. Kristy
ReplyDelete