Who Said It
Mike Bechtle

Mike Bechtle has taught more than 2,000 time- and life-management seminars, many for Fortune 500 companies. He's been speaking at conventions and churches since 1974. He and his wife, Diane, serve as mentors to a young married couples class at the First Evangelical Free Church of Fullerton, California. Mike's doctorate is in higher and adult education from Arizona State University. He also has a degree from Talbot School of Theology.

What He Said
Where's the Bait?

If your goal is to catch fish, you could put a hook on the line, hold it about a foot above the water, and call, "C'mon, fish. Here, fish. Come and get it." But you'd get no results because you're trying to get the fish to leave the environment in which he can breathe. And there's no worm or bug on the hook. You need to put something the fish likes on the hook and place it in the water. It's not your job to beat the fish with the bait. If he's hungry, he'll notice the bait and check it out.

It's important to go where those who need Christ live, rubbing shoulders with them. That's why a university professor and his wife have become actively engaged in an animal rescue group—an area where they have personal passion—and get to build real, caring relationships with people who might not be interested in coming to church. The personal transformation we may be undergoing will be ineffective for evangelism if we're not close enough for anyone to see it.

Adapted from Evangelism for the Rest of Us (Baker, 2006) by permission.

Prayer for the Week

Teach me, Lord, how to live the gospel naturally among those that You care deeply about.

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