Skip to main content

Listen and Love

Have you ever felt like you just don't have "it"? That gift to "win people for Christ"? We think some people do, but not me. "I can't make them believe." "I don't have a persuasive enough message." "I don't know a strong enough creation argument." It seems so humanly impossible to simply have a 5-10 minute conversation with someone about the good news of the Gospel, totally transform their thinking, and *poof* after our eloquent account of the Biblical narrative, they're a Christian. well, you're right....it is HUMANLY impossible, but very much possible through the trans-formative work of the Holy Spirit. There is something that we do all have control over and hold responsibility for; a person's HEARING of the Gospel.
"So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ."

- Romans 10:17 (ESV)

 Okay... but people still fine evangelism unbelievable. May I suggest it is because we forget about Paul's words in Colossians?

"5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone."
- Colossians 4:5,6

People are not projects. They aren't simply a number to add to the list of souls you've won. THEY ARE NOT YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS! Have you ever been on the other end of an evangelistic project? Jehovah's Witness of Mormon at your door. You don't often feel loved; you proabably feel used, like a pressure, commission based, sale. Paul says, "know how to answer everyone." The Gospel is a singular message with a non-singular delivery. This means that the Gospel itself is unchanging, but the way we approach sharing it will be different person to person and requires wisdom, and wisdon expresses knowledge through understanding. In order to understand someone, we must HEAR them. We need to LISTEN. We need to listen and love. 

We live in a culture that runs at the speed of light. It's always how fast can I get this done so that I can achieve maximum productivity for the day. "Time is money!"... well, love is efficient. It slows down long enough to understand people and their objections to the Gospel. It's not about memorizing or rehearsing facts. We need to see evangelism as a long-term endeavour. While sharing hope and the good news of the Gospel, be sure to be doing so in love and grace for each person. When we start living a lifestyle of loving others, we will see opportunities to share with others.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sabaai Sabaai

Hello everyone and happy new year! I had an amamzing New Year with the students of the NRTC and the YWAM team from Kona (Bora, Corinne, Maeve, Josh, I miss your faces!) God be with them wherever they go during the rest of their outreach <3 The team and I are staying in Nong Bua Lam Phu, in the province of Isaan, which northeast Thailand. We will be in the area from Jan 3-21/22. We are in the country, far from big cities. The land here is so beautiful! It reminds me of the countryside in Guyana when I visited as a child. There is sugarcane as far as the eye can see. I think it's a big export here. Over the last few days, I've had fresh picked bananas, small pomegranates, star fruit, and there are tamarind trees, one of my favourite fruits, in the backyard of the church we are currently staying in. There is such a great sense of community here. The elders here that work at the church are like grandmas and grandpas. One lady just absolutely loves me. Gives me t...
Post a Comment
Read more

More Than A Conqueror

Hey Friends!, This post is long overdue! I was struggling to find the words to express the adventure of Thailand and then there was a turn of events that has made it even harder to write this post. I'll just get straight to the point...I was sent home. 3 weeks before outreach is suppose to be over.  Back in December, when the team and I first arrived in Pattaya, I was having a hard time spiritually (may have mentioned that in previous post, "Hope Is..."). In a moment of frustration, weakness, and selfishness, I had chose to leave the premises of where we were, go to a restaurant, and get a beer. Though, non-alcoholic, but it was the appearance of drinking. I also had a butt of dirty cigarette. "Don't drink, smoke, or go out alone or you will be sent home. No negotiation." .................................... The training leader for YWAM Vancouver and the co-leader for this DTS came to visit us on our last location, Mae Sot (may-sought). I had a one-o...
Post a Comment
Read more

Believing Is Receving

Hello All! I know I haven't posted anything in a while. It has been a busy time here in Thailand.  Here is a sermon I wrote to keep your spirits up. If you like what you read, please send me an email to adrianamcpherson@hotmail.com and let me know! I love hearing testimonies on how God has been changing hearts around the world! Stay blessed and forever focused on the goal! Believing Is Receiving You have heard people say, “I will believe it when I see it.” Generally, that is the way the world thinks. But God’s ways are not like the ways of the world. The world says,” If I can’t feel it or see it, I cannot believe the miracle is here.” God says, “If you believe it before you feel it or see it, you will see your miracle.” Believing first before seeing the evidence of what we believing for is called faith. We are going to look at Hebrews 11 – known as the “living by faith” chapter. This chapter highlights numerous ancestors that lived by faith. The original re...
Post a Comment
Read more