photo by paul obregon

Melissa was my first new friend after we moved to Atlanta. She noticed I looked lost and offered to help me find my classes. Later she invited me to sit with her and her friends at lunch, relieving me of the nightmare of having to sit alone. A day that could have been heavy with loneliness and homesickness was made a little lighter because she took the opportunity to reach out to me.

I found out Melissa struggled with some aspects of the Christian faith. Raised in the church, she had questions about things I considered foundational. She couldnt get her brain around a God Who loved her enough to forgive her sins and accept her doubts. Because she attended a Christian school, Melissa felt saturated and rejected traditional evangelistic methods, like invitations to special church services or worship events. I was only able to discuss spiritual things with her in the context of our friendship. Our church was in the cafeteria, or in the hallway before school started. Melissa watched Christians closely and questioned their actions and motives. These questions led to discussions of a true relationship with Christ and how He shows Himself in the lives of believers.

This issue of On Mission focuses on postmoderns like Melissa. How do we communicate to a world that believes in no absolute truth that we have met the Truth?

To reach the Melissas of the world, we must be authentic, relational evangelistswilling to meet people where they are. Melissa demonstrated her own postmodernism by unreservedly reaching out to me that first day of school and checking up on me throughout the next few weeks to make sure I was adjusting to everything. She didnt let her friendship end with one lunch invitation. Likewise, in order to earn the right to talk about Jesus, I had to invest in her and form a solid friendship.

The relationship people need most is with Jesus Christ. He is able to soften the heart of the most confused, the most doubtful.

After six months of knowing Melissa, I strolled into  Sunday school and was shocked to see her sitting next to the teacher, acting like it was the most natural thing in the world! Another friend had invited her, and because God had been working in her life, Melissa accepted the invitation. Through friendships, God showed Melissa that He wanted her to experience the ultimate friendship with Him.

Meredith Day, editorial intern, meday@namb.net