Think on this common question among church-going folks.
“How can I share my faith?”
I shall ease into a suggestion.
Dallas Willard has published a new book. Not easy to do when you had passed away in 2013. Actually, some friends compiled a series of lessons he had given at a church years ago on the parables of Jesus. The book is called The Scandal of the Kingdom.
He builds on the idea of the gospel of Matthew as written in somewhat chronological order. Jesus came to preach (after the time in the wilderness, he emerges with the message “Repent, for the Kingdom of the heavens is around us”), teach (the Sermon on the Mount), and heal (the following several chapters of Matthew).
The preaching and teaching didn’t seem to catch on with the people. He began teaching in parables (stories with a point).
The first parable is the parable of the sower.
“A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear.”
Jesus’s Word was not catching on because some of it (the seed) fell on ears not ready to hear. Others fell on ears but the hearer didn’t have time to digest the Word because of cares and concerns.
Some people were ready and receptive to a message. Jesus’s Word came to them, they were ready, and they lived with the Word.
Back to the inquiring Christian person.
It’s not on you. It’s on the person you wish to talk with. (Hopefully not “to”.)
The best thing is to begin with a question. People want to have deep conversations. They usually need an invitation. So, ask a question.
Ah, but now the burden is on you to listen. Really listen. With your heart as well as ears and brain. Then you can ask follow up questions.
Perhaps there comes a point where you can share. Not your faith exactly, but like a witness in a trial. Sharing your experience of living with God. Tell it like a story.
People listen to stories (maybe it’s my Irish heritage, but I think it’s true). They tune out a string of Bible verses that may or may not be relevant to their lives.
If you don’t have a story, well, that’s another problem. You will need to think about that and find and live your story. Then you can share. That could be the subject of a book.
Faith Venture 