share

It was going to be a three-hour bus ride. I sat down by myself and hoped it would stay that way. 

Just as we were about to leave the bus terminal, one more person got on the bus. Sure enough, he sat down right beside me.

Even though I still wanted to be alone, I started feeling guilty about my selfish attitude. I prayed, "Lord, if you want me to speak to this person, get him to say the first words." 

A few minutes later, the man picked up his book and started reading. I thought, "This is good."

Then, it happened. The man put his book down and looked at me. I started getting worried. 

His very first words to me were, "So, what do you think about God?"

For the next three hours, I had the opportunity to listen to and share the Gospel with my new, unsaved friend—someone who was obviously seeking truth. 

In John 12:42, we see that some of the Jewish leaders believed in Jesus. Yet, they refused to share their faith because they were afraid of getting kicked out of the synagogue.

In my experience, fear is one of the main reasons why I sometimes don’t share my faith. I’m afraid of what people might think. I’m afraid of awkwardness and conflict. Of course, sometimes I’m just selfish and don't really care about the other person. 

Yet, there is one thing that conquers fear and selfishness: love. If I really love someone, I am much more likely to help them. Obviously, I need to help people with their physical needs when I can. Yet, my highest calling is to help them take faith steps towards the One who took our place on the cross—the One who died and rose again so that we might have a deeply satisfying life both now and forever. 

Jesus’ love compels me to love others, even strangers on a bus. 

What are some of the fears that keep you from sharing your faith? How might Christ’s love help you overcome those fears?

Note: For additional help on sharing your faith, check out Six Ways Anyone Can Share Christ and Eight Biblical Reasons for Sharing Christ

Randy Wollf is Director of MinistryLift and Assistant Professor of Practical Theology and Leadership Studies at MB Seminary. 

Our family spent nine months in Thailand, serving with Power to Change. We lived on the 22nd floor of an L-shaped apartment building. We lived on one tip of the L. Our kitchen was in an enclosed area on the balcony. Little did we know that some of our neighbours on the other part of the L were watching us.

One day, we met three Bhutanese girls who lived at the tip of the other part of the L. They were impressed with how the kids and I helped in the kitchen. This conversation was the first of many we had with these girls who became like daughters to us. 

Over the course of a few months, we were able to give them the Jesus DVD in English. Bhutan is a Buddhist country with very few Christians, so they had not heard much about Jesus. Even though their English was quite good, we really wanted them to see the movie in Dzongkha, their mother tongue. I checked with a friend at Power to Change and they had it. We were able to arrange for someone from Canada to bring it to us when he was in Thailand. 

We were thrilled to be able to give the Jesus DVD in Dzongkha to our Bhutanese daughters. Little did we know what they would do with it. Several weeks later, we asked them what they thought of the movie. They said they really liked it and that they had showed it to Buddhist monks from their country who had stayed at their place. Wow! These Buddhist girls had become missionaries for Christ! 

We had given them English Bibles, but thought it would be great if they could have the Scriptures in their heart language. I contacted a friend at Wycliffe and asked him about it. He responded, “Funny you should ask. We just completed a translation of the New Testament in Dzongkha. I’ll print off a copy on my printer and bring it to Bangkok when I'm there in a few weeks.” 

It was such a joy to be able to give our Bhutanese girls a copy of the New Testament in Dzongkha. God is amazing! 

You just never know what might happen when people watch you! 

Note: For ideas on how you can reach out to others, check out Six Ways Anyone Can Share Christ. 

- Randy Wollf

I don’t consider myself an evangelist and I’m not an overly outgoing person. Yet, over the years, God has given me numerous opportunities to lead people to Christ. I vividly remember when our neighbour Cathie prayed to receive Christ in our living room. We had prayed for her, loved her, and when she was ready, we shared the Gospel with her. 

In a previous blog, I shared eight biblical reasons for sharing Christ. In this post, I would like to share six practical and powerful ways that any Christian can share Christ.

Pray

Several years ago, a guest speaker at our church preached on the importance of praying for the unsaved people in our lives. He challenged us to pray for five unsaved neighbours, for five minutes a day, for five days a week, and to continue this for five weeks. He encouraged us to BLESS our unsaved friends and family by praying for their:

Bodies – health, protection, strength

Labour – work, income, security

Emotions – joy, peace, comfort

Social life – marriage, family, friends

Spiritual life – salvation

As the five weeks of praying regularly for my unsaved neighbours turned into months and years, I was amazed by how God answered those prayers. Cathie was one of the people who was on my prayer list. As Hudson Taylor once said, “We need to learn to move [people] through God by prayer alone.”

Love Each Other

When Christians love each other (I’m talking about a deep, sacrificial, life-on-life kind of love), it sends a powerful signal to a world that is desperate for love. Jesus said, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).

Be a Blessing

I remember walking to church one Sunday morning. I was a pastor at the time. One of my neighbours came out of his house just as I was walking by. He was dressed in his painting clothes and seemed quite agitated. He told me that he was hard-pressed to get some painting done before a contractor arrived to do some work for him. Part of me wanted to help, but I couldn’t just abandon my church responsibilities. So I wished him well and continued my trek to church.

Even though I probably couldn’t have helped my neighbour right then and there, I realized that I had become rather selfish in my interactions with my neighbours. I didn’t really want to get involved in their lives. That day marked a turnaround for me as I attempted to be more of a blessing to my neighbours.