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Men of Integrity, May/Jun 2001
Witnessing to People You Know
This Week's Theme: Introducing Christ
Saturday, May 26
Q. How can I point acquaintances to Christ without turning them off?
A. Become a friend before you become a preacher. If you preach at people before winning their trust and friendship, they'll probably label you as a self-righteous snob and will assume that you think yourself better than anyone else. But, if they've come to trust you first, they'll know that you care about them.
Don't condemn your friend. The Lord accepted us all as sinners before condemning our sin. Our friends don't need to "clean up their lives" before accepting the Lord. That's a "good works" philosophy.
Don't defend yourself. Christians aren't perfect, and we'll have far more success in our witnessing when we admit our imperfections. We're not trying to draw people to ourselves but to Jesus Christ. He needs no defense. He is perfect.
Look for a need in your friend to use as a starting point. Most people don't feel a need for God, but they're hurting somewhere. Many times Jesus reached out and met people's physical needs (healing, feeding, listening) before He gave them the Good News. Using His method will show our unsaved friends we care about them as people, rather than as a number to be won for our church membership rolls.
Ask questions! Asking questions makes our friends think. Giving answers usually stops the conversation. Asking questions will help us avoid using Christian clichés and Christian vocabulary.
Floyd Schneider is a former missionary to Austria.
Adapted from: Evangelism for the Fainthearted (Kregel, 1991/2000)
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Prayer for the Week |
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Lord, help me to both live my faith and be prepared to talk about it with those I encounter.
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