God doesn’t merely recruit silver-tongued orators or skilled apologists for his quest for friends. The silver and the skill can at times inhibit the Spirit’s efforts to find his way into a person’s consciousness. Rather than clarify, many words may confuse instead.Defense SecretaryCaspar Weinberger, assessing an international crisis said in a “briefing” (an oxymoron if …
Believe Me, Trust is the Issue
"One of the biggest obstacles in our attempts to influence people toward Jesus is that they don’t trust us. They don’t trust the Church, preachers, or Christians as a whole. And who can blame them? Unfortunately, our record, as they say, speaks for itself. While the majority of our faith community practices what they preach, …
Living on Mission
"Living on mission isn’t just one of our many activities. It’s our very identity. We’re a sent people, dispatched into the world bearing his message. It’s less about busying ourselves with church work and more about shadowing him in his mission. "What could be better than doing our part to bring others along to see …
Lambs Among Wolves
Too many Christians are, as they say, “seldom right but never in doubt.” They may have a commanding appearance, but their mudslinging stump-speech testimonies don’t win many people to Christ. “The American cultural proclivity to reject authority and put down opponents,” says Elliot Clarke, “has bled into the church, staining all our attempts to win …
Salespersons or Tour Guides?
A change of paradigm might serve to improve the effectiveness of our witness. Instead of Gospel salespersons we might better think of ourselves as spiritual “Tour Guides.” It’s not like we’re selling anything and trying to profit from it, anyway. Right? Our job is to share what we’ve found and tell people where they can …
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