by Robby Flack: Evangelism. Just hearing the word can send shivers down our spines. It’s a scary word for most people. It’s a word that can cause us to immediately come up with a thousand excuses about why we aren’t ready to actually do it or why right now isn’t the best time to drop the gospel on someone.

Others talk about evangelism a lot. We have a plethora of training and books available on how to do evangelism. We might even strike up spiritual conversations every so often with a random person at the coffee shop every few weeks. But are you living a lifestyle of evangelism? Are those you are discipling consistently sharing the gospel?

I’ll be the first to tell you that I fall far short of where I desire to be in the area of sharing the gospel! But as we seek to make disciples, my fear is that evangelism becomes something that we do once every few months in order to check the “I shared Jesus with someone” box in our spiritual lives. Or that we would attend an evangelism training course once a year, share the gospel with a stranger or two, and then “call it good” for the year.

Evangelism must become part of the entire discipleship process. Until it does, it will inevitably be a neglected practice that only gets done when we feel like doing it, which typically isn’t all that often!

I desperately want to see more lost people reached through the local church. This is how families, college campuses, workplaces, high schools, cities, and entire countries are reached with the gospel.

So how do we persist in evangelism and teach those we disciple to do to the same? Here are a few thoughts on how to embed evangelism into the DNA of your discipleship and create an evangelistic culture:

1. Pray for lost people and more laborers!

Evangelism begins with prayer. How often do we forget to pray for the lost and for more laborers to be raised up in our discipleship appointments? When Jesus saw crowds of “harassed and helpless” lost people, he said that the solution for the vast harvest was more laborers for the harvest field (Matthew 9:36-38). BUT, he told his disciples that because the need is so great, they should start by praying and asking the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest field. Where else should we start instead of praying and seeking the Lord to raise up disciple-makers to reach the lost people all over the world? As we pray for God to raise up laborers, he deepens our compassion for the lost and fuels our hearts with a desire to be a part of his work.

Sit down with those you are discipling and make a list of 5 friends each who do not know Christ, then pray for each of them by name. You’ll be amazed at how praying for these lost people will fuel our desire to bring the gospel to them.

2. Teach Christians to be Faithful AND Fruitful

In Israel today, the Sea of Galilee is located about 60 miles north of the Dead Sea, with the Jordan river connecting them. Water from the hills around the lake flows into the Sea of Galilee and then head south down the Jordan river and into the Dead Sea. The Sea of Galilee is full of fish and is a source of life for the community.  However, the Dead Sea (like the name tells you) has nothing living in it because of the high salt content. It’s over 8 times saltier than the ocean! The difference between the two bodies of water? The Dead Sea only has water flowing into it, while the Sea of Galilee has water flowing IN and OUT.

In our discipleship, we can’t let people settle for just taking in information and focusing on their own growth. We must teach people that the purpose of learning and growing is always so they can invest it into others. The teaching must be going in and out. Disciples grow MORE when they stop thinking about how to grow themselves and start thinking about how to reach non-believers around them. Help them think evangelistically.

3. Go share the gospel

It will never be easy or convenient, and you will never feel fully prepared. But just go do it! I think the most crucial thing you can do in your discipleship is to have a consistent practice of sharing the gospel. You’ll not only hopefully be seeing people accept Christ that you’re now able to disciple, but those you’re discipling will see your example and imitate it. Seek to share the gospel while you’re together with those you disciple, tell them stories about sharing the gospel with others, ask them who they can share with, etc. Make it a normal part of your conversations together.

4. Talk about the vision of spiritual multiplication often with those you disciple

I’m convinced that one of the reasons we don’t see more multiplication happening is that we’re not talking about it enough! We must learn to constantly come back to the vision of multiplication to refresh ourselves and those we disciple of what we’re trying to accomplish and to have a clear plan for how to get there. Ask those you disciple to share the vision of multiplication with you to see how well they know it. Talk about reaching the 4th generation with them and ask them how it’s going. Ask what obstacles are they facing in making disciples? Help them get a “4th Generation” mentality. This is not a “one and done” conversation, it’s a vision that takes years to press itself down into the very core of who we are.

Practical steps to do this:

Pray for lost friends together.
Talk about who you’re sharing the gospel with.
Memorize scripture on evangelism together.
Make multiplication the goal of your discipleship groups.

Persevere in your efforts to live a lifestyle of evangelism. I desperately hope that you’ll persevere through the tough times when it seems like the gospel is falling on deaf ears, that you’re overwhelmed with life and feel too busy to set aside time for evangelism, when you’ve been rejected by those whom you have shared the gospel with, etc. Remember, Jesus is faithful and will be with you always, to the very end of the age!

“Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you! Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:58)

Originally posted here. Used by permission.

by Robby Flack from Downline

Robby grew up in Manhattan Kansas and attended Kansas State University. While at K-State he learned how to walk in relationship with Jesus, study God’s word, and gained a vision to make disciples. He spent 4 years at the University of Kansas with Student Mobilization reaching students with the gospel of Jesus and helping them mature in Christ. In August 2015, he moved to Memphis to serve at Harvest Church as the Director of College and Young Adult Ministries. After 3 years at Harvest, Robby joined the Downline team as the director of the Emerging Leaders Program! He is also currently working on completing his masters degree from Southern Seminary. His wife Chelsea is a native of Dallas, TX and they are celebrating their 1-year anniversary!

Photo by Elaine Casap on Unsplash

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Source: Building an Evangelistic Culture

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by Craig Etheredge:

Share your story in a compelling way.

The Apostle Paul was on trial for his life. The charges against him were telling people that Jesus is King and calling everyone to trust and follow Him. However in a day when Caesar demanded ultimate loyalty, Paul’s message was a dangerous one. Standing in chains before King Agrippa, Paul launched into a clear defense against these charges and also explained how he had come to believe in Jesus.

This dramatic story unfolds in (Acts 26.1-29 ESV). In this courtroom setting, Paul gives a great picture of how to share your personal testimony. An effective testimony can be broken down into three stages:

The first stage is what your life was like BEFORE you met Christ.

Paul told about how he was very religious and how he followed the laws of Moses, practicing the strictest form of Judaism. He also spoke about his past hatred for Christians, even to the point of murdering some and throwing others in prison (Acts 26.4-11 ESV). This was Paul before he met Jesus. Your testimony needs to begin with what your life was like before you met Jesus. What was your life like? Did you grow up in an irreligious or religious home? How did that background shape your thinking? How did you live your life at that time? Were you searching for God or living for yourself? Be careful not to glorify your sin at this point. The goal is not to brag about how bad you were, but to explain how badly you needed Jesus. Your story begins with your life before Jesus.

The second stage is HOW you met Christ.

Paul continued; telling how he set out to Damascus to persecute Christians, and along the way, had an encounter with Jesus that knocked him to his feet leaving him blind. It was then that Jesus spoke to Him saying, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Jesus also told Paul that from now on he was going to carry the message of the Gospel around the world, telling people everywhere to turn to Jesus for forgiveness and salvation (Acts 26.12-18 ESV). This is how Paul met Jesus. Your story needs to move from what your life was like before Christ to how you came to hear the Gospel and believe in Jesus. You may tell what circumstances led you to hear the Gospel. Who shared it with you? What caused you to be open to the Gospel? What crisis or problems were you facing at the time? Share how you actually came to pray to receive Christ and believe in Him.

The final stage is the difference in your life AFTER you met Christ.

Paul told Agrippa that his whole life changed after he met Jesus. Before that, Paul persecuted Christians; afterward he was a passionate missionary, telling people how to know Jesus and planting churches everywhere he went. This stage is where you want to share the difference Jesus has made in your life. Maybe you were an angry person before, but Jesus gave you peace in your heart. Maybe you were driven for earthly success, but now you live with an eternal perspective. Maybe you were tied up with guilt, but you found forgiveness and freedom. At this point, your story shouldn’t focus as much on you as it does on the power of Jesus to change a life.

As you work on your story, here are some things to consider. First, keep it short and simple. You should be able to share your testimony in two minutes or less. Work on keeping it short and to the point for maximum impact.

Second, think about the overarching theme of your story and then tie the three stages to that theme. For example, maybe your theme is hope. Before Christ you didn’t have any hope, but then you heard about how Jesus could make your life new and give you hope. Now you are living with tremendous hope. Think about what theme ties your story together.

Finally, be honest about your present struggles. Just because you know Jesus doesn’t mean that everything is perfect in your life. Admitting that Jesus continues to help you and grow you only adds credibility to your story.

Written by Craig Etheredge

This blog was originally posted on discipleFIRST’s blog, which you can access here. Used by permission.

Craig is a gifted communicator, author, and Bible teacher. Craig and his family moved to Colleyville, Texas in July 2007 to serve as lead pastor of First Baptist Church where he currently serves. In addition to leading the local church, Craig is involved in the local community serving on the Board of Directors for Baylor Hospital, Grapevine, Board of Directors of Christian Counseling Associates, Mission Board SBTC, Chaplain for the Colleyville Police Department, and football chaplain for Birdville High School. He has a Master of Divinity from Southwestern Theological Seminary and a Doctor of Ministry from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. Craig met his wife, Liz, in the fifth grade and they have two daughters, Leah Beth and Abbie.

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Source: Crafting Your Christ Story

The post Crafting Your Christ Story appeared first on Passion for Planting.