Saturday, June 20, 2015

Issues in Personal Evangelism: Two Articles


When “The Only Way” is the Wrong Play

The exclusivity of Jesus is an essential doctrine, but sharing your faith effectively often requires starting the conversation elsewhere.

In my early 30s, I returned home to my beloved Oregon and to an unexpected appointment as a volunteer chaplain at Reed College, which at the time was regarded as North America’s most anti-religious institution of higher learning.

After many months of sharing faith with those widely intelligent and ideologically diverse Reed students, I made the most unexpected discovery. The question, “Is Jesus the only way to God?” did not make any sense to most of those students.

I am not saying that they did not understand the words or syntax of the question. They simply could not imagine why anyone would ask it. To them, such a question had no moral or practical relevance. Keep reading

How to Become a Better Listener - 8 Simple Tips

I have been struck recently with how bad I can be at listening. So often I am catching people at church, while needing to speak to countless others, so I can have half an ear on what they are saying, my eyes wandering around to catch the next person on my list – and of course a necessary eye on what my children are doing too. But God has been teaching me how bad a model that is.

Listening is a skill that needs to be learnt well. As the old saying goes, "You have two ears and one mouth, so listen twice as much as you speak." Keep reading

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