Shedding some light on evangelism

There are a few religious words that really rile people up, because everybody has a different definition for them, and because some use the words rather liberally and vaguely because the words have a negative connotation, not because the person has some specific use for the word.

Example: "I don't like that group because they're judgmental."

Anyway, the word that riles people up the most is the word "evangelism." It REALLY freaks out the masses, Christians and non-Christians alike, even though everyone who says it means something different by it. I've consciously been using the word without apology lately, because the evangelism I know is a really great thing.

Some have asked me what I am doing on project. Among other things, I list, "sharing my faith," "spreading the Gospel," or, if I'm bold, "evangelizing." Now, all three words mean the same thing, but only the last word makes people angry.

Here is a breif description of what we do on project when evangelizing to people we don't know (this is pretty standard stuff):
1. Initiate, listen, and discover.
2. Share a simple outline of Christian beliefs.
3. Offer an opportunity to respond.

That's really it. There is no deception, and everything I say is very genuine and honest. And I really listen to people. We even use surveys that ask about people's religious backgrounds and thoughts to give them ample opportunity to share their heart with us. Probably half the time the person I have initiated with spends more time telling me what they believe then I spend telling them what I believe. (This is absolutely fair, of course, since I'm the one asking questions.)

The next step after listening is to segway into the Gospel, offering the person I am interacting with a chance to hear exactly what I believe as a Christian. If they say "No," maybe I'll make sure by saying, "Are you sure?" but that's it. Jeez. A lot of people need to get over their pushy Christian fear. Anyway, if they let me, I'll walk through the Gospel with them (click here to see exactly what that is; note the stunning lack of pictures of people burning in a fiery furnace). This is my favorite part of evangelizing, and is a very heartfelt experience for me. I am honest, open about things I don't know, and heavy on the examples from my personal life.

The last step of sharing the gospel is something I am just getting a grasp of: offering an opportunity to respond. Simply asking someone if they ever have or would want to invite Christ to come into his heart (or some similar conversation turner) elicts a RESPONSE, positive or negative.

Anyway, many Christians have problems with this sort of of "initiative" evangelism. They don't want to hassle (?) people or something. Maybe we are just afraid of the response, or of offending someone, or of being rejected, despite the importance and the Biblical importance of this activity.

Meanwhile, many non-Christians hate the idea of evangelism because they don't like to get "someone's religion shoved down their throat." Now, there are people who do that. I've seen them in the city, once in a while, holding up big signs with pictures of people in burning agony because they didn't pick Jesus, yelling through a mic for people to "stop being a homosexual," and screaming at people walking into abortion clinics. But, although I know hundreds of Christians, I don't personally know anyone who does those things. I'd estimate that Christians who do that represent less than half of one percent of all Christians. Seriously.

Seriously.

So why is this stereotype so prevalent for non-Christians? The stereotype is so universally accepted that I will sometimes have a decent, friendly, totally non-threatening conversation with a non-Christian, and when I walk away, they think I just shoved my religion down there throats, when I didn't even really share anything about what I believe. Why do people think Christians are so pushy when 99.5% of the Christians I know are actually entirely timid about sharing their faith, even what straight-up ASKED about it?

Well, I think I just answered my own question. Remember that evangelism, besides being important to the salvation of eternal souls, is also the #1 way that Christians are spokespersons about their faith to the world. If normal, reasonable, loving Christians ignore the call to evangelism and remain silent about their faith, even when their friends want to hear about it, then to the world, normal, reasonable, loving Christians don't exist. As long as we stay silent, overbearing, pushy zealots are all the world will know.

Get out there and share your faith, and shut up the stereotypes.

Campuses and a new job

Well! A lot has been happening here in Chicago. Here's a couple highlights:

On Wednesday we had a first campus outreach. We go to campuses to start spiritual conversations, find out the spiritual atmosphere of the campus, and look for contacts that would be interested in starting a movement. A few people came to Christ right before our eyes. It was amazing. We will be going to Kennedy King College and UIC for the rest of the summer. Neither of these places have a Crusade movement going at their school (yet).

The other main excitement is my job. I got let go from Shoreline; they didn't want to deal with my hours. This put me in a very bad mood. At the same time, I knew that God was in control, and that I needed to trust Him. So today was my second day of searching for jobs. I walked randomly into a Jimmy John's (sandwich place) and I got hired within 20 minutes! I start on Monday! I was amazed. Last year I applied at over 50 places before getting hired. This time around, God decided to provide right away.

Thanks for the prayers. :) They are working. Keep praying for the city, and for Kennedy King and UIC.

Chicago Blues Fest Outreach

Sunday is my favorite day of the week on project. We go to church at Cavalry Memorial Church in Oak Park. Then we have our own "Sunday School class" run by the staff. This is an important time of ministry training. Then we go do an outreach in the city, and that is followed by a "date night" with Jesus--two hours one-on-one with the savior.

So, yesterday we did outreach at the Chicago Blues Festival in Grant Park. By the grace and power of God, it was great. We go around doing spiritual surveys, getting into spiritual conversations, sharing the Gospel, and giving people a chance to respond. Evan and John talked to a guy named Jason who was going through some tough personal stuff. When they asked the survey question, "What is one thing you want to make absolutely sure you do during your lifetime?" he said, "Get saved." Needless to say the Gospel presentation went well. Robin and Ashley talked to a Vietnamese woman who accepted Christ, asking if "Jesus understands Vietnamese."

Finally, David (my awesome discipler) and I shared together. A guy named Nick came up to us and asked us if we would give a couple dollars for the homeless. He flashed some flyer at us, but I thought it was for a movie or something. I'm not sure. But David said he didn't have a dollar on him and asked if he would take a survey with us. He said he would. After going through the survey, David asked if we could share something from our lives that has made a huge difference. He said, sure, why not.

So I started going through the Gospel with him. I was using the "Knowing God Personally" booklet. I explained how God loves us and has a wonderful plan for our lives. Then I asked what he thinks keep us from knowing God. At first he said not knowing enough could keep us, but then said, "my past." I explained how we are all sinners and all have earned spiritual death. I also explained the way Romans portrays sin as a power over us that represses us.

Then I showed how Jesus--God in the flesh--came to earth and died on the cross. I asked Nick why he thought Jesus had to die. He thought for a moment and then said, "Umm... Well, I guess he died for my sin!" Then he started shaking our hands and it saying, "I got it, I got it." I was stunned. I did not know what was going on, if he just wanted to run away or what. Thankfully, David had the sense of mind to ask, "Have you ever accepted Jesus into your heart?" Nick said, "I'm doing it right now! I'm doing it right now!"

I still was not sure what was going on, but David, filled with the Spirit, went on to talk to Nick for a few minutes about salvation, Jesus' sacrifice, and the permanent freedom and forgiveness it gives us. It was at this time that it became clear to me that things really clicked for Nick and that he did understand and accept the Gospel for the first time right there in front of us. We then prayed for him, and David said, "I don't know if we have any change on us, but--" but Nick interrupted and, putting his arms around our shoulders, said, "You've given me enough. Thanks."

Praise God! We did not even approach Nick! He approached us! It is truly by God's power that He brings men to Himself. Please keep praying for the city of Chicago and the campuses we will go to for outreach on Wednesday.

It is easy to tell that outreach is really the core of what this project is because when we all came back from outreach today, we all felt so much closer and it touch with each other. Morale was up.

Thanks for reading. I will update again Wednesday after our next outreach! Thanks for your prayers!!

Greetings From Chicago

We are finally here! Chicago Summer Project began on Monday. It has been so great so far. There are 16 students, 11 staff, and 5 kids. Yes, this is a very small project. In fact, there are only 5 male students. This is okay with me. That makes it all the easier to get to know everyone and grow close to everyone, especially the guys.

I forgot what a fun, beautiful city Chicago is. We went to Navy Pier and walked around this evening. As we walked, when everyone saw the lights of the buildings from the pier, they stopped and stared in awe. It's a great city. Everyone is so elated with Chicago. Public transportation is such a blast.

The first day of outreach was today. (I think I will blog every evening after outreach, if possible. That's Wednesday and Sunday nights.) We went to magnificent Millenium Park and initiated conversations, did spiritual interest surveys, and shared the gospel. I actually got rejected more than I ever have, but it still felt very good to be sharing my faith. Pray for the hearts of the people we talk to, that God would go out before us and prepare them. One of our staff members emphasized that the people we talk to do not need an interaction with us. They need an interaction with God. Pray that God would interact with people as we step out in faith to talk to them.

One amazing anomaly of summer project is the way that EVERYONE there seems so cool. I think that everyone on project here in Chicago is so passionate and loving. We are all living in close quarters, so it will be a tight, family-like community by the end of the summer.

I start work on Friday! Please pray for me and my co-workers!

Where I'm working...

Chicago update!

It's official, I'll be working at Shoreline sightseeing part-time this summer while I am in Chicago. This is a pretty big weight off my shoulders; I am very thankful for the job. Come visit me at our Sears Tower location sometime. :)

Also, $1876 of my support has been raised. This means I have $874 to go. Please pray for me that God would continue to provide. As we know, money is a tiny, insignificant thing, so the whole support raising experience is more about God molding all those involved than anything else. I pray that He is glorified throughout the rest of my support raising experience this summer.

The project starts MONDAY! I will be flying out of Pittsburgh at 12:15 and arriving in Chicago at 12:35 (an hour and twenty minute flight). This is very exciting! I can't wait to meet everyone in person and get used to being in the big city again. Despite already attending this project once, I still don't know what to expect in a lot of ways. Please pray that God takes care of all of us as we travel to Chicago, that He is glorified all summer, and that all of us are transformed by his power and grace. Please pray for the city and students of Chicago that we will be interacting with, as well.

My next blog entry will hopefully be from the windy city!

Paintbrush Bristles

"I think they could take seseme seeds off the market and I wouldn't even care. I can't imagine five years from now, saying, 'D*** remember seseme seeds? What happened! All the buns are blank.'" --Mitch Hedberg

Often it seems like being a Christian is like being a hamburger bun with seseme seeds added. Basically ordinary, with a few speckles of Godliness (whatever that means) here and there. Maybe I'm more loving. Maybe not. Maybe I follow the ten commandments. Maybe not. Maybe I write a Christian blog about how much I love God. Maybe I work for a Christian company, or am even a pastor. Whatever. It's still life, just the same, my life, with a few changes. Why does the Christian life seem so hypocritically normal?

And when I feel this way, that the Christian life is just a bun with seseme seeds, what advice can my friends give me? Perhaps the best way to help me would be to put life in perspective with an everyday analogy (one that doesn't include fast food).

Let's say my existence is a paintbrush ready to decorate a stretched canvas of life. According to the Christianity I've known for twenty-one years, I need to give control of my brush up to the master painter, the Creator Jesus Christ. I am a brush who cannot paint the picture I was meant to paint. I need to let God help me with my strokes, or better yet, control my strokes entirely. I must be a paintbrush operated by God. THAT will make the difference.

Uh, no.

As helpful as that analogy might be in some contexts, it's a terrible analogy for our relationship to God and for his Kingship in our lives. In my life, it has led to either trying to just follow the rules or living my life by new principals. When Jesus said he makes all things new, I think he meant more than having different values. God is our Shepherd (John 10) and our Helper (John 14:16), yes, but he is also our Savior (Luke 2:11), our Foundation (1 Corinthians 3), our Dwelling Place (Psalm 90), and the Bread of Life (John 6:35).

And humans? We give ourselves too much credit. I am not a paintbrush. At most, I am just the bristles of a paintbrush, with no handle or ferrule. I cannot paint a picture. I am disconnected. I am blown by the wind. I have fallen apart. Any marks I make are feeble and faint. It's not the wrong picture I'm painting, it's not even a picture. David, in Psalm 38:5-8 sings the following:

"5 My wounds fester and are loathsome
because of my sinful folly.
6 I am bowed down and brought very low;
all day long I go about mourning.
7 My back is filled with searing pain;
there is no health in my body.
8 I am feeble and utterly crushed;
I groan in anguish of heart."

You decide. Does David sound more like a paintbrush, or just the bristles of a paintbrush? I would say the latter. But that is the beauty of what Jesus does. He connects us back to Him, and then (and only then) do we become part of a whole paintbrush. And God controls my strokes, yeah, but not because I'm giving him permission, but because I am happily latched to Him, who swings me around on the edge of his fingers, transforming me and painting a breathtaking landscape, with the beauty of the stars and the moon and the rainforests merely being his warm-up.

It is from this perspective that I now step out into life. I am beginning to believe that it is when we find out we are only bristles without God, not a whole paintbrush, that our Christian lives can start to really look transformed. It is then that we are motivated not to pick whatever career we want and just try to praise God with it, but to Go wherever Jesus sends us, and to plan on surprises. It is then that we begin to love with with a love that is not our own. It is then that we stop trusting ourselves and start trusting something more powerful. It is then that the seseme seeds go off the market.