“At some point, the gospel gets aggressive.”
I looked up at him. There was that rush, that slight piercing feeling in my chest, that flip-flop in my stomach, that heart-beat quickening just a bit. You know that feeling, when you’re sitting in church and all of a sudden you feel as though the pastor is speaking only to you.
That’s the Holy Spirit.
That’s our cue to pay attention: This one’s for you.
I had just had a series of conversations that went something like this:
Person: “So, how do we get more people to come to church and like, love God and like, be disciples and stuff?”
Me: “Um … I don’t know.”
That pretty much sums it up. I probably said more than that, dropping buzzwords like “missional” and “outreach” and “organic,” and I probably said something really stupid like how we should really get a sign in front of our building. Surely that would help.
A sign will definitely get some serious disciple-making going on.
Gag.
See, here’s the deal. I’m friendly. Really friendly. I’m an introvert but I get the fact that people are what God cares about. Plus, I truly do like people.
And, I love Jesus.
And I’d really love for them to meet each other.
But apparently I’m terrible at introductions.
Anybody else?
Sometimes I forget that the whole point of this life-thing is to introduce Jesus to those who do not know Him. That’s why we’re here! I just read through Acts, and was struck anew by how simple Jesus’ mandate really was:
1. Pray and fast
2. Proclaim the gospel
3. Share all your stuff
4. Expect suffering
That about covers it.
I’ve made baby steps in prayer and fasting. I’m beginning to expect the suffering thing (not that I like it!). I’ve come a long way in sharing my stuff. But honestly:
I haven’t come very far in proclaiming the gospel.
Confession: It’s much easier for me to give away my stuff than it is to boldly talk to people about Jesus.
*Sigh*
Why?
There are probably a lot of reasons, but one of them has to do with idols. (Idols of the heart are those false gods we live for, the hidden reason we do what we do.) Most people tend toward an idol of Power, Approval, Comfort, or Control. I don’t mind not being in control and I don’t thirst much for power. I don’t struggle much with the idol of comfort–which means it’s much easier for me to give up my stuff, or money, or go without. (Not saying I’m immune to those things, just not as much.)
I struggle with the idol of approval.
So it’s way harder for me to bring up a subject that is bound to bring me a nice healthy dose of rejection.
Teaching at retreats? Sure. It’s easy to be bold there. Plus, let’s be honest–I get a nice dose of approval pretty regularly in those settings.
Telling lost people about Jesus? There’s a 99% chance of rejection at some level.
But, Acts has been messing with me because Paul didn’t give a rip what anybody thought. Except Jesus. Paul was stoned, imprisoned, rejected, ridiculed. You name it. But he maintained,
Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. (Gal. 1:10)
Yeah … doesn’t get much clearer than that.
But here’s the thing: The idea of being bold in talking to people, and specifically about talking to people about Jesus can come across as being creepy. In our culture that’s a taboo topic in everyday conversation, so to bulldoze through that social norm is to enter into a serious creepy-zone.
But there is a place somewhere in between creepy and cowardly.
Sure, it’s obnoxious when people wear sandwich-boards on street-corners and scream about hell. It’s creepy to go up to random people and start preaching.
But I’d venture to say none of you are doing that. It’s more likely you’re something like me, comfortable meeting people, serving people, and maybe even inviting people to church, but really uncomfortable actually talking to people about Jesus.
Maybe you too are afraid of appearing creepy. And maybe we settle back a little too far.
Maybe back into cowardly.
On Friday I’ll share a fun story of taking a step, feeling creepy, and seeing how God came through (still waiting to see how the story ends). For today, let’s consider together how comfortable we are talking about Jesus.
Not church, not politics, not morals or virtues:
Jesus.
There’s this crazy verse that keeps haunting me. And it’s sad to admit that as I’m writing this post I’m thinking to myself, “No one is gonna like this one. Definitely not gonna get any positive comments here.” It’s sad that as I’m writing I’m thinking of whether or not I’ll be approved of or not. By you. Instead of just asking Jesus, “Is this what you want me to say about you?” That approval addiction runs deep, but this verse cuts to the heart:
“For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” Mark 8:38
Chewing on this today, with you. What heart-idol to you tend toward? How do you feel about talking about Jesus with others? Is there someone specifically you want to name, asking God for boldness in talking to him or her about Jesus? Father, change us and make us bold. We love You so much. {Thank you for reading.}
8 thoughts on “Why it feels creepy to talk about Jesus…”
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I think to make a long term impact on someone you have to get them to tell you their story; about themselves. This allows you opportunity to tell your story and tell how Jesus is impacting your life. I do not feel comfortable jumping straight to “do you know Jesus”. Maybe I should?
I think we should look how we converse with people about other stuff that means a lot to us. We should study how we do that and apply that to telling them about Jesus. I have not done that so I am curious as to what I will learn seeing how I talk about other things I deem important. I think people get turned off if they perceive our goal is to convert them and put a notch on our gun. What should our goal be? We want them to know Jesus.
Unless we are two boats passing in the night I think it helps to let a person know early on your passion about Christ in the context of telling your story not in the context of converting them. I think it makes those conversation better later. Our proclaiming the gospel should be done in a way that is most beneficial. I should not think someone should upon first meeting me hang on my every word and take to heart whatever I am telling them. I think this proclaiming can be part of a building project. You build the relationship and as you are building it you interject as appropriate your passion about Christ and inquire about their passions and what they think about Christ. The proclaiming becomes part of the building project; the building of the relationship. No one likes to be pushed to Jesus. We should pull them along.
I do think it is vital when you start a relationship to let the person know you are passionate and serious about Christ because it becomes creepy later if you spring this part of your life on them. I think they would feel like if this is so important to this person why am I just now finding out about it; why have they kept this secret?
Oh Kari, God is so dealing with me in this area too. I had been in a complete funk for awhile after reading a book that criticized the American church, and it wrecked me b/c I was so devastated that that is the way most of the world sees me and the system I’m involved in. One morning during my quiet time, I asked God who HE said I am, and He responded with “You are mine.” It was and is life changing for me! I am so deeply affected in everything I do by the approval I may or may not receive from others. To have freedom from THAT seems almost beyond my grasp some days. I am growing in this area with you, and appreciate that I’m not alone here. Looking forward to reading Friday’s story. Thanks for your vulnerability today.
It’s actually very crazy that this is the topic of today’s post. Last weekend my husband and I led a youth rally in a small town. The students who attended were the most broken, walled up students either of us have ever seen and combined we have 20+ years of experience working with youth. The theme of the conference was supposed to be “Life without Mixture” (purity) – but we quickly realized these students didn’t need to hear about behavior modifications or boundaries, instead they needed to hear about hope and an identity in a God who loves them so much He broke himself for their brokenness. Then Sunday morning, at church the sermon was on sharing the gospel. Tuesday community group discussion was on the same. Now Wednesday morning I wake up and see this…. I believe God wants to get something through my head.
Romans 10:14: But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them?
Not in a creepy way, not in an overbearing, judgmental way… but in a way that is intentionally pursuing people and sharing Jesus because we know He is the hope of the world. I think about those students in the town my husband and I did the youth rally in and how their countenance truly changed by the end of the day to one of joy, freedom, and relief.
I also think of the well known, outspoken atheist who believes that Christians ought to evangelize (not in a creepy, overbearing way) because if we believe we have the hope of the world wouldn’t we be passionate about sharing it? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhG-tkQ_Q2w
Thanks for writing Kari and for approaching uncomfortable topics that have a bit of tension for us to explore
Love the post and the integrity of it. Here are a couple of remarks by an “old” guy … I mention being “old” because time can be a huge asset when learning some things.
First, being comfortable,confident and secure is rooted in identity. As long as we are a bit unsure of who we are we will be overly sensitive to what others think about us. We were all born spiritual orphans without knowing our Father. When His adoption of us becomes a reality on our side, it may take a little time to abandon the mindsets, patterns, and behaviors natural to orphans. But, when the reality of being a son of God overtakes us we find that we are all about accurately representing the Father.
Secondly, the Gospel is wrapped up in this relationship between the Father’s Firstborn Son and the the other brothers (or the Bridegroom & the Bride). It, the Gospel, is displayed, demonstrated, and declared through this love relationship. The Gospel is NOT a product to be sold with any agenda (becoming part of a group believing right doctrine, etc.), but an invitation to discover you have a Father, to leave the orphanage, to become a son, and live out the inheritance that comes with the relationship.
Identity is the threshold of freedom … internal freedom from all the natural consequences of being an orphan … and external freedom in being comfortable in our own skin to the extent that we can’t help but manifest the Gospel by life and by lip.
These are some of the lessons this “old” guy is learning along the way. They have helped me be comfortable with feeling creepy talking about Jesus, the One who came looking for me when I was an orphan and brought me home to my Father and my Family. Hope they give you a little hope.
Amen sister! I’ve been stewing on this for awhile. Your words spoke to my heart. Thank you Lord!
I used to be TERRIFIED of even saying “Jesus” or “God” aloud in conversations. TERRIFIED! God has brought me a long way and now it simply rolls off the tongue. I find it easiest to talk about God when I talk about what He as a person in my life is doing and has been doing to grow me, change me, love on me. Easier to talk to people I know about Jesus; strangers are another matter. God is still working on me on that one 🙂
Kari, how this resonates, sister! The approval idol, the fear of rejection and the struggle with these commands to share Christ. I’m so looking forward to your story tomorrow, and I’ll be praying with you for opportunities and boldness to share Jesus.
Loved this post, Kari.
I’m with you, I would love to talk to more people about Jesus, more often! It does feel kind of creepy though, doesn’t it? Especially where I live now, in Norway. People here REALLY need the Lord, but Norwegians tend to be really closed-off and not outwardly friendly at all…just a smile to a stranger elicits looks of confusion or even distaste…never a returned smile! So imagine opening up to someone about Christ with that kind of atmosphere!
Even in Norway though, we need to use people like Paul as our rolemodels for evangelizing!
Much love to you and your family. God bless you richly!
-Kirstin