Practical encouragement to stay on mission
Step-by-step help to turn a conversation into a spiritual discussion
Tips for telling your testimony
Sharing Christ When You Feel You CantBy Daniel Owens Crossway Books 1997 192 pages
Ah, the unspeakable joy that follows sharing the gospel with someone who then accepts Christ as Savior!
Unfortunately, many obstacles stand in the way of that goal, including not only several fears a Christian may havefear of failure, rejection, or lack of skillbut also diverse chasms that separate the messenger and those who hear the message.
As associate evangelist and director of training for evangelism and discipleship for Luis Palau Evangelistic Association, Daniel Owens knows a thing or two about sharing the gospel. Owens was a fairly new Christian, when he tasted that joy as a Liberty University student sharing the gospel during a required door-to-door witnessing program. An elderly man, whose wife had been praying for him for years, said yes, when asked if he wanted to open his heart to Christ.
Owens doesnt remember exactly what he said that day, but over the ensuing years of evangelism he has crystallized a principle: Strike up a conversation instead of an argument. An approach that is more relational conversational evangelism, rather than confrontational evangelismis usually more effective.
While it typically takes seven to nine exposures to the gospel before a person makes a decision for the Lord, Owens suggests ways to bridge that gap while seeking strength and guidance through prayer.
Owens tells of a women who, when asked what she did for a living, replied, I am a follower of Jesus Christ disguised as a waitress. All believers, whether homemaker or electrician, nurse or reporter, can live each day with their antenna extended, ever alert to those opportunities to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have (1 Peter 3:15).