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G’day Go-Team!
Welcome back to “The Holy Go” newsletter! We’re here to equip you to love the hell out of your city, and multiply disciples in your everyday life!
Last weeks challenge was to “Invite someone around for dinner.” Sarah and I did so, and we had a great night. Prior to having them over we sensed God say that love looks like making them feel like family. So we ate spaghetti, talked a lot, played card games together and laughed the night way. There is joy in the Kingdom of God!
What about you… How did you go? If you didn’t invite anyone over, I wonder what held you back?
Todays EQUIP section is all about overcoming one of the greatest barriers to sharing the gospel: FEAR. I hope it is helpful for you!
Equip
Into the bush
Part of the Harvest School of Missions in Mozambique that Sarah and I attended, consisted of going on “Bush Outreach.” Our team would head out on trucks and drive for hours upon hours into the bush. (translation: into the middle of nowhere.)
On these trips people would come back with incredible stories of miraculous healings, deliverances and other supernatural occurrences. Often they would share how not just some people came to The Lord, but how entire villages turned to Jesus. It all seemed very easy!
But then there were other times when it all felt really hard… For example, some teams wouldn’t even make it outside of the truck when they started getting pelted with stones. Others spoke of getting chased out of villages, and completely rejected.
Fear
Fear is the number 1 reason why people don’t share the gospel. In the West this often looks like the fear of:
damaging our reputation: what will others say or think about us?
damaging our relationships: what will this do to our friendship?
damaging their response: what if I mess it up?
Whether we are fearing a loss or change to our friendship or looking like a fool because we don’t know hot to answer, this can leave us feeling like we better leave this to someone else…
The trouble is, you are better placed to share the gospel in your area of influence than anyone else is! Therefore it is imperative that we overcome our fear of sharing the good news.
We can’t help ourselves
One of my favourite stories is in Acts 3 and 4 when Peter and John heal a lame beggar. As a result of this they get into trouble with the priests, the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees. After being told off, they are commanded to stop their gospel sharing.
I love how Peter and John respond,
“Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! 20 As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
Acts 4:19-20
Peter and John had every right to be afraid. They had seen what happened to Jesus, and if they continued there is every chance they could be next. Instead, they were buoyed by something more exciting and powerful. Something that they “couldn’t help but speak!”
They had faith.
Faith or Fear
Faith and Fear are both ways to look at the future.
Fear looks at the future with negativity.
Faith looks at the future with positivity.
What rises up inside of you when you are about to:
invite someone over for dinner
share your faith story with someone or
offer to pray for someone?
If we are bound by fear we will only think of the negative things that could happen.
In order to overcome this fear, we must reframe the “what if…” to something positive. For example,
What if I invite someone over for dinner and they realised they were deeply loved?
What if I share my faith story and they end up giving their life to Christ?
What if I pray for someone and God miraculously shows up in their life?
Remember: When fear says nope, Jesus says hope!
Welcomed or stoned?
As we pulled up to the village where we were to share the good news of Jesus, we all waited in eager anticipation to see what response we would get… Would we be welcomed, or stoned?
We were excited because we knew that if they welcomed us, their village would never be the same again. (And if we got stoned and got away, it would be a cool story to tell people we “suffered” for Jesus!)
We jumped out of the truck…
Then a few days later we left having seen multitudes of people give their lives to Christ, healed, set free and even the King of the Village offered us land to build a Church!
I urge you, if you are “sitting in the back of the truck” worrying about the “what if’s” then it’s time to reframe your thinking.
Spend some time now, imagining what could happen if God does show up, and once you truly begin to believe these positive “what if’s” you will be like Peter and John and say, “I cannot help speaking about the good news of Jesus!”
Activate
This weeks challenge is to take a gospel sharing step that you are afraid of.
Here are some 8 Action Steps steps from a great resource called “Yes He is!” Have a look at them, and commit to taking one step that feels a bit scary. Reframe your negative “What if” scenarios, and go meditate on some holy, faith-filled “What ifs.”
Offer to pray for someone
Have a faith conversation
Share part of your testimony
Invite them to Church
Share gospel media
Explain the gospel
Love of Jesus inspired act of kindness
Pray with someone for their salvation
Before you go - commit to an action and we’ll circle back next week! And if you have found this helpful, why not share this with a friend.
Let’s Go!
James