Beliefnet presents Evangelism for the Rest of Us by Mike Bechtle

We're sorry, but this content is no longer available on Beliefnet. You may enjoy the following related articles: Jerry Jenkins: Why We Must Evangelize Watch the video Do You Wear Christian T-shirts to Evangelize? Take the poll Religion Etiquette: Coworkers Who Preach What advice would you give? Some of us are built for quality relationships rather than quantity. We dont usually seek out a lot of casual relationships, but we invest in a few deeper ones. That means well often be able to build trust with people who dislike shallow relationships. Its impossible to stereotype an introvert, since that quiet side manifests itself in different ways in different people. Introverts need to discover the communication tools that are part of their personal wiring, develop them, and use them to interact with others. So if youre shy or reserved, how can you get started on the path of sharing your faith as a natural part of your daily life? Here are the things Ive learned on my journey: 1. Be around non-Christians. Find ways that fit your personality to become involved with people who believe differently about Jesus than you do. Dont feel like you intentional sharing have to share the gospel with them initially. Just build friendships. 2. Be part of a team effort. No one is solely responsible for leading someone to Christ. God uses man people in the lives of unbelievers to guide them toward faith. Our part is important, but its not the only part. Thats why God asks us to be faithful, not successful. First Corinthians 3:10 says, By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. 3. Be creative. Focus on the objective of leading people to faith, not on specific methods youve been taught. Think outside the box, asking God for creative approaches to building trust in the lives of others. Often it might involve writing instead of talking. 4. Be patient. If you havent been sharing your faith for long, it will take time to develop your own style. Give yourself grace in the process; God does. 5. Be unique. Nobody can do evangelism the way I do; thats why God made me different from everyone else. The freedom Ive found in that fact is a powerful incentive to share from love instead of guilt. 6. Be available. Some of us arent made to recruit; were made to respond. I need to develop my relationship with God and prepare for encounters he brings into my path. Then I dont have to panic when the conversation turns to spiritual things; I can simply be fully present with the other person during that time, listen carefully, and share my ideas without feeling threatened. 7. Be aware of who the real enemy is. Its not people from another faith. Those people simply have different backgrounds and beliefs than you do. I need to see them through Gods eyes. 8. Be involved. Joining a volunteer organization that fulfills your passion is a great way to reach out to others. That common area of interest gives you natural topics for easy conversation. 9. Be intentional. Ive found its artificial to try to work a presentation of the gospel into every conversation. Instead, we talk about other issues of life, but I drop in just enough comments so people know where Im coming from: Last Sunday I ran into someone at our church who found where to get a great deal on patio furniture. Next week? Yeah, we can get together for coffee. Tuesday night Im in a Bible discussion group, and Wednesday weve got family coming over. Any other night would be OK. Yeah, raising preschoolers can be tough. I found three or four books that really helped us. One was the Bible. Another was..." 10. Be directional. Introverts tend to be unusually inwardly focused. We wonder how other people perceive us. In evangelism, we need to shift the direction of focus off ourselves and onto God. Our role is to point peoples focus toward him, not toward us. If theyre focusing on being like us, theyll be looking for love in all the wrong places. But if our lives help them turn their eyes toward the Savior, he will have the opportunity to impact their lives. That last principle is a great approach to evangelism: get peoples eyes on Christ instead of on us. That enables us to simply be facilitators to get people looking in the right direction, and then we step out of the way and let God do his work. TEXT ENDS HERE -->