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Q.How do you decide when to share your faith?

A. Even those whom we peg as least apt to need God most likely will welcome meaningful spiritual conversation at some point in their lives. Our job is not to force that intersection but to be ready for the opportunity.

How do productive spiritual conversations come about?

Three factors must be in place: example, timing and content.

Tell us about the right example.

Our actions must match our words. We do not have to be perfect, but we do have to be genuine and credible. There must be unmistakable evidence that we are attempting to practice the very message we are proclaiming. the old saying rings true: We are the only Bible some people will ever read.

What about the right timing?

According to Proverbs 27:14: "If a man loudly blesses his neighbor early in the morning, it will be taken as a curse." The right words at the wrong time sabotage effectiveness. Sharing faith requires a combination of patience and boldness: We need to hold our tongue until the light turns green, but then we don't need to be shy about stepping on the accelerator.

And the right content?

Launching into an analysis of the Trinity when our coworker is having trouble simply understanding God's love probably will yield nothing more significant than a blank stare. "Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity," counsels the Apostle Paul.

Example, timing and content are all Holy Spirit issues. We will not drive them on our own. But when He directs our spiritual conversation with colleagues, it is like cruising down a highway with no other traffic. If it works in the tractor cab of an 18-wheeler in the middle of the night, it ought to work anywhere.

—Thomas Addington and Stephen Graves are founding editors of The Life@Work Journal.

Credits: Adapted from—Saturday: Life@Work (7-8/99)

Copyright © 2000 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity. For reprint information call 630-260-6200 or e-mail mail@menofintegrity.net.
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